The RESOLVE EBRC (Excavation and Bulk Regolith Characterization) module was developed as a sample acquisition and preprocessing feed subsystem to the RESOLVE (Regolith and Environment Science and Oxygen and Lunar Volatile Extraction) analytical chemistry plant. Development of the EBRC module occurred in three phases over a four year period. The EBRC module consists of a sample coring drill, a sample transfer subsystem, and a sample crusher. During Phase 1 of the project (2005-2006) key components of the EBRC module were developed using NORCAT's Hydrogeology drill as the test platform to aid in the development. These components included a 1 metre sample capture mechanism, a sample metering device and a proof of concept crusher. Frozen field tests were conducted under a CSA (Canadian Space Agency) contract with the Hydrogeology drill at a Sudbury gravel pit to test some of these key components. In 2006 and 2007, Phase 2 of the EBRC RESOLVE project focused on the development of the EBRC coring drill incorporating the products developed in the Phase 1. Testing of the EBRC drill and its associated components was conducted in a lab environment in the spring of 2007. Phase 3 focused on three objectives. The first objective, size and mass mitigation, was accomplished by integrating the sample metering device and crusher into a single unit. Successful integration and subsequent field testing was completed. The second objective was to integrate the EBRC module to a mobility platform. The EBRC package was successfully integrated to Carnegie Mellon's SCARAB rover in Pittsburgh, tested, and demonstrated in September 2007. This test was repeated in December 2007 incorporating the complete RESOLVE package, including the previously untested chemistry plant. This was the first test of the EBRC module integrated to the remainder of the RESOLVE Science package. Finally, Objective 3 was to deploy the full RESOLVE system in an analog field test. Mechanical and electrical hardware upgrades preceded deployment of the entire system (RESOLVE and SCARAB) on the slopes of Mauna Kea in Hawaii in November, 2008. As part of a Canadian Space Agency/NORCAT led mission to Hawaii January 2010, RESOLVE was incorporated into NORCAT developed 1SRU specific mobility chassis in a tandem configuration. A pre-demo was conducted in October 2009 to perform a form-fit test to the mobility chassis. The entire package was demonstrated again as a key payload system on the tandem configured HOBO class Mobility Chassis in Hawaii during the January-February 2010 deployment.
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