Optimal Interaction Design of Remote Operator Interfaces: A Case study of Patrol Separation Interfaces for Corridor Robots

Although the displayed interface has been emphasized in the study of robotic teleoperation systems, the role played by image information in it has not been fully elucidated. This study designed the Patrol-inspection Separation (PIS) interaction interface using the inspection robot of utility tunnel (IR-UT) as the experimental object. To verify the PIS interaction interface usability, we proposed the IR-UT displayed interface usability evaluation after summarizing the previous studies and assessing the interface combination's degree of excellence. Six different combinations of displayed interfaces were set up, and 17 subjects controlled the IRUT and completed the shooting tasks under the six interfaces. At the end of each interface shooting task, subjects filled out a cognitive load assessment scale and a usability evaluation questionnaire. The results are as follows: the PIS interface and the pan-tilt camera's live image can optimize the operational performance; the dual pan-tilt images can decrease the subjects' performance compared with the single pan-tilt image. The above findings are intended to provide meaningful references for optimizing the teleoperation interface.