Designing an interface for a teleoperated vehicle which uses two cameras for navigation.

Sammanfattning: The Swedish fire department have been wanting a robot that can be sent to situations where it’s too dangerous to send in firefighters. A teleoperated vehicle is being developed for exactly this purpose. This thesis has its base in research that previously has been conducted within Human-Robot Interaction and interface design for teleoperated vehicles. In this study, a prototype was developed to be able to simulate the experience of driving a teleoperated vehicle. It visualised the intended interface of the operator and simulated the operating experience. The development followed a User-Centered Design process and was evaluated by users. After the final evaluation a design proposal, based on previous research and user feedback, was presented. The study discusses the issues discovered when designing an interface for a teleoperated vehicle that uses two cameras for maneuvering. One challenge was how to fully utilize the two video feeds and create an interplay between them. The evaluations showed that users could keep better focus with one larger, designated main feed and the second one being placed where it can be easily glanced at. Simplicity and were to display sensor data were also shown to be important aspects to consider when trying to lower the mental load on the operator. Further modifications to the vehicle and the interface has to be made to increase the operators awareness and confidence when maneuvering the vehicle.