Control interface for a high velocity teleoperated robot

Abstract

This thesis describes the design and implementation of a control interface suitable for controlling a microrover at high speed. For the purposes of this thesis, a control interface describes the collection of software and input devices used by an operator to interact with a microrover that is not within sight. A microrover is a small, lightweight, robotic vehicle, often less than a meter in length, used to provide a mobility platform for mounting a variety of sensors. Traditional remotely operated microrover systems (where the operator cannot see the microrover) are unable to operate at speeds greater than 0.5 m/s. The microrover used to prepare this thesis operates at a maximum speed of 1.5 m/s, but the control interface described herein should be applicable at even greater speeds, perhaps as fast as 5.0 m/s. Preliminary results show that this control interface performs adequately in comparison to a more traditional interface that uses only live video from the robot.