Have mission controllers ever considered using the IDD to try and move a rock or turn one over?

This one on the Erebus Highway would be a good candidate:

http://qt.exploratorium.edu/mars/opportuni...00P2365L7M1.JPG

It would probably be safer to park one of the rovers wheels on such a rock, lock all the other weels and then turn the one on the rock. Similar to what is done when trenching with the front wheels. It would also allow you to move considerably larger objects.

There was a great deal of discussion on using the IDD as a leverage device when Oppy was stuck in Purgatory dune. People pretty much determined the downward pressure the arm can exert is probably less than 10 pounds, much less the lateral pressure required to "turn" a rock. In the interest of science return you probably wouldn't want to do anything that would risk damaging the arm.

From the RAT's specifications:

"Force from Rover Arm: 10-100 newtons (real life [Earth] comparison is 2.2 lbs = 10 newtons)"

That is presumably in a downwards/forwards direction. Lifting would be quite another thing of course - I wouldn't be surprised if the IDD was designed to just barely be able to lift its own instruments (on Earth).

Airbag

Perhaps at the point when/if the instruments on the arm go Phut! then it'll start getting used as a crowbar - until then, I doubt it! Having said that, a good look at the underside of a rock or two would be a fine thing to have. Of course, you'd need to have the camera on the arm working...

I've continually wished for a very simple backhoe or trenching tool on the rovers... trenching by wheel-scuffing pretty badly scrambles the original ?layered? geometry (or whatever) of the soil. But as always, when you wish for something on the rover, you have to consider what you'd agree would have to be left off to make room.

It think it is worth to see what is under the stone. It seems like that it is a layer of a rock. If it is true, then try to slide it with one of rover's wheel (safest) and even better if it is truned over. Using the IDD to tumble it is a possible but it seems like to be a VERY TRICKY game if the remote control feedback is fast. However, using the remote control from Earth to turn it out would be almost impossible. Needs lots of feedback of control to turn it over.

Rodolfo

Or put that stuck front wheel to some good use.
Position the front wheel to the left of a rock, so that the wheel is also resting on loose sand.
Lock all other wheels, and rotate just that one wheel, to try to dig it in a bit.
Now turn the entire rover to the right. Rock will be caught by the wheel and shoved completely aside. And if we're lucky, it might catch something and flip over.
Now, turn back, and look for bugs and worms under the rock.
Spinning a wheel on top might merely abrade the rock (at least we'd have a reserve RAT, right?).