Dr. Mark Maimone is a Navigation and Machine Vision researcher at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology. In 1989 he completed the International Space University's summer program. He earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science from the Computer Science Department of Carnegie Mellon University in 1996, with a dissertation that addressed problems that have plagued stereo vision systems for decades. He was then a Post-doctoral Research Associate at Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Institute, supervising the 1996 Lunar Rover field trials and serving as Navigation and Software Lead for the 1997 Atacama Desert Trek.
At JPL since 1997, Mark has worked on the Long Range Science Rover, Planetary Dexterous Manipulator, and Pioneer Vision System for Chornobyl Inspection projects, delivering 3D vision systems for autonomous robotic operations and mapping. Mark developed the autonomous vision and navigation software that lets the MER vehicles drive themselves safely, and wrote ground software that automated the analysis of Mobility and arm operations on Mars.
Mark is now part of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) FSW team, again developing the autonomous vision and navigation software for the rover.
His research interests include robotic navigational autonomy, stereo vision, and camera calibration.