MINDS-i Autonomous Self-Driving Mars Rover (45 Hour)

The MINDS-i Autonomous Self-Driving Mars Rover gives students hands-on experience with the technologies behind autonomous vehicles. Through a 45-hour curriculum, students build, program, test, and operate a rugged robotic rover while exploring programming, electromechanical systems, GPS navigation, inertial sensing, communications, and autonomous control.

Students progress from foundational concepts in autonomous vehicles and space exploration to surface mapping, Earth-based GPS navigation, IMU heading, power monitoring, and autonomous obstacle avoidance. A culminating mission challenges students to apply what they have learned through systems thinking, navigation, and problem-solving.

• 45 hours of hands-on curriculum
• Designed for 2–4 students
• Arduino® Mega 2560 microcontroller
• GPS and IMU-based navigation concepts
• Autonomous obstacle avoidance
• Power monitoring and communications
• First-person-view camera
• Telemetry and route-planning software

45-Hour Curriculum

1. Introduction to Autonomous Vehicles – Explore autonomous vehicle concepts and student performance expectations.
2. Mars Rover Autonomous Vehicles – Investigate space exploration, Mars missions, rover components, and chassis construction.
3. Autonomous Vehicle Technologies – Work with the microcontroller, programming syntax, surface mapping, GPS navigation, IMU heading, power monitoring, and communications.
4. Electrical Engineering & Energy Transfer – Explore energy, electric motors, voltage, current, power, and batteries.
5. Applied Systems Thinking – Examine autonomous navigation, inputs, outputs, constraints, and system relationships.
6. Culminating Project – Apply obstacle avoidance and autonomous navigation to a final search-for-life mission.

Autonomous Navigation & Telemetry

The MINDS-i dashboard software allows students to save and load GPS routes, navigate to multiple waypoints, track rover location, and monitor telemetry data. Students can analyze information such as latitude, longitude, heading, pitch, roll, speed, voltage, amperage, and altitude while learning how autonomous systems interpret and respond to real-world data.

What's Included

• Qty. 1 – Mars Rover Kit
• Qty. 1 – RC Transmitter with Receiver
• Qty. 4 – Safety Glasses
• Qty. 1 – Digital Multimeter
• Qty. 1 – 1/16" Hex Driver
• Qty. 1 – 3/32" Hex Driver
• Qty. 1 – LiPo Battery Charger
• Qty. 1 – LiPo Battery Charging Bag
• Qty. 1 – Storage Bin
• Instructions

Component colors and models may vary.

Students move beyond basic robotics to explore how programming, sensors, positioning, communications, and electromechanical systems work together in an autonomous vehicle.

More Information