Advanced Modelling and Human Factors for Teleoperation in Space Applications

Teleoperation for space applications has been researched over the past 60 years [1] as it allows us to brings human decision-making to previously inaccessible locations. The problem, still yet to be overcome, is how to perform tasks with the inherent high time delays, as dictated by the large distances and the speed of light [2] (Earth-Mars round-trip signal time is 6 - 44 mins). This is particularly challenging in complex, non-deterministic environments.

There is a trade-off to be made between the value of real-time human decision-making versus the high risk and expense of human spaceflight [3]. The current consensus is for the next stage of human space exploration to be carried out via teleoperation from humans in orbit around target celestial objects, either from, the Deep Space Gateway (DSG) in lunar orbit-Moon [4] or from Deimos orbit-Mars [5], moving beyond teleoperation between the International Space Station (ISS) and Earth [6]. Operating from these locations would keep signal latency within a reasonable range, but would still edge close to the limits to permit human telepresence [3], [2]. A step towards achieving this would be to develop Earth-based high-latency teleoperation, e.g. to conduct In-Orbit Servicing (IOS) on satellites [7] or to provide medical support to the ISS [8]. Greater numbers of human operators are available on Earth compared with the ISS, so, by avoiding the bottleneck of putting humans in space, this would increase testing capacity and allow more rapid development. High-latency teleoperation could also have valuable terrestrial spin-off applications, for example, alongside 'factory-in-a-box' solutions to provide rapidly-deployable remote-expert telepresence in surgical, construction or emergency service applications.