To satisfy the requirement for autonomous scientific detection in resource constrained planetary rover exploration mission, a centralized payload control method was proposed. A novel highly integrated hardware architecture was constructed by integrating payload electronics units and traditional payload OBDH (onboard data handling) unit. The software adopted the control method based on the event table and work mode table to control the payload autonomously. Several health management measures were taken to make fault recovery and isolation according to pre-defined rules. The common control part weighs only 3 kg, and consumes 6 W power. The software supports 9 work mode tables running at the same time. Instruction executing time accuracy is better than 40 ms.The method has been applied to China first Mars exploration. Ground test results show that the method is simple, efficient and reliable, and suitable for payload control in planetary rover exploration missions with harsh resource constraints.