JAXA: Advancing Space Robotics on the ISS with MoveIt Pro

Copyright JAXA

Situation

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Japan’s national space agency, leads the nation’s efforts in cutting-edge aerospace research and operations. With a mission to “Explore to Realize,” JAXA drives innovation across domains from satellite launches to human spaceflight. One of their recent initiatives, the Payload Organization and Transportation Robotic System (PORTRS), aims to revolutionize how cargo and equipment are handled aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and future space habitats.

JAXA set out to demonstrate a complex, multi-armed robotic system capable of performing manipulation tasks in microgravity—such as crawling, payload swapping, and handling soft, flexible cargo transfer bags (CTBs). Their goal was to turn successful lab demos into robust, flight-ready autonomy.

Problem

To unlock additional funding and secure mission approval, JAXA needed to go beyond on-orbit demonstrations and prove that their system could meet the demands of real-world, high-stakes space operations with greater speed, robustness, and readiness for practical deployment. The robot—featuring four arms/legs and a non-fixed, reconfigurable base—posed significant challenges in terms of motion planning, task coordination, and environment interaction. The final flight model will use a three-legged configuration, making modularity and adaptable control even more critical. These capabilities are essential in the unpredictable and cluttered environment of the ISS.

JAXA’s Robotics Research team, responsible for technology front-loading activities, sought a platform that could handle these complexities, support rapid prototyping, and integrate into their evolving simulation and control architecture. Their existing tools are good but didn’t offer the full flexibility or scalability required for the next phase of development.

Solution

MoveIt Pro was evaluated by JAXA’s Robotics Research team as the planning and control backbone for PORTRS, due to the team’s past familiarity with ROS and MoveIt 2, and as part of their front-loading research activities exploring advanced robotics capabilities. Working in close collaboration with JAXA’s robotics team, PickNik provided tailored onboarding, technical guidance, and deep integration support. Together, the teams implemented key capabilities, including:

  • Multi-arm planning and control to enable coordinated manipulation
  • Support for “crawling” behaviors via base frame “pulling”, enabling locomotion with an unfixed, floating base in microgravity.
  • High-fidelity physics simulation for motion validation and feasibility studies
  • Task-level planning in highly unstructured environments

PickNik supported the Japanese engineers through a series of training sessions, Japanese interpreter-assisted workshops, and ongoing technical collaboration. The partnership enabled a smooth knowledge transfer and accelerated adoption of advanced MoveIt Pro features.

Outcome

MoveIt Pro enabled JAXA to overcome critical hurdles in the PORTRS program. Within months, the team achieved:

  • Demonstrated feasibility of coordinated motion for four-arm manipulation
  • Work towards simulation of key operational tasks such as cargo handling and traversal in cluttered microgravity environments
  • Established a repeatable planning and validation workflow to support future hardware testing

These research activities complement the main PORTRS development efforts by exploring advanced capabilities and informing future design decisions. With these wins, JAXA is now pursuing expanded R&D funding and preparing for the next phase of development, helping translate mission requirements into real-world robotic capabilities. MoveIt Pro has proven to be a critical enabler, giving the team the tools and confidence to push the boundaries of what’s possible in space robotics.