NASA’s FFR mission standardises on open source Space ROS, with Motiv and PickNik delivering flight-ready motion planning and control software to enable autonomous robotic operations in orbit.
Motiv Space Systems has signed a contractual agreement with PickNik Robotics to develop flight software for NASA’s Fly Foundational Robotics (FFR) mission, with the programme standardising on Space ROS, an open source robotics stack backed by the Open Source Robotics Foundation.
The FFR mission is designed to advance on-orbit robotic manipulation and support NASA’s In-space Servicing, Assembly, and Manufacturing (ISAM) objectives. The system will demonstrate autonomous and ground-supervised robotic operations in low Earth orbit, laying the groundwork for scalable in-space servicing and assembly.
At the core of the software architecture is Space ROS, an open-source, space-oriented distribution of ROS developed to meet aerospace safety, reliability and long-duration mission requirements. PickNik and NASA are among its largest contributors, signalling growing adoption of open robotics frameworks in flight-grade systems.
PickNik will deliver motion planning and robotic arm control software built on its MoveIt Pro platform, supporting mission planning, simulation and execution within spaceflight constraints. The scope includes a flight runtime configuration, a ground-based operator terminal, digital twin analysis tools, pre-launch validation workflows, and integration with Astro Digital’s hosted orbital platform. Additional work spans behaviour execution, system monitoring interfaces, operational tooling, and hardware that mirrors the flight compute environment.
“The Fly Foundational Robotics mission is a critical step toward demonstrating state-of-the-art flight robotic manipulation capabilities that can enable a sustainable and scalable ISAM economy,” said Chris Thayer, CEO of Motiv Space Systems.
“FFR is an exciting opportunity to apply MoveIt Pro’s commercially available motion planning software to the unique challenges of on-orbit operations,” said Dave Coleman, Founder and Chief Product Officer of PickNik Robotics.
The mission is expected to deliver operational experience and lessons to inform future robotic space systems.
