Teleoperation 27 . Teleoperation

This chapter presents an overview of the teleoperation of robotics systems, starting with a historical background, and including the description of an up-to-date specific teleoperation scheme as a representative example to illustrate the typical components and functional modules of these systems. Some specific topics in the field are particularly discussed, for instance, control algorithms, communications channels, the use of graphical simulation and task planning, the usefulness of virtual and augmented reality, and the problem of dexterous grasping. The second part of the chapter includes a description of the most typical application fields, such as industry and construction, mining, underwater, space, surgery, assistance, humanitarian demining, and education, where some of the pioneering, significant, and latest contributions are briefly presented. Finally, some conclusions and the trends in the field close the chapter. The topics of this chapter are closely related to the contents of other chapters such as those on Communication in Automation, Including Networking and Wireless (Chap. 13), Virtual 27.1 Historical Background and Motivation .................................... 450