Publications / 2024 Proceedings of the 41st ISARC, Lille, France
In construction teleoperation, particularly in disaster restoration, delicate manipulation of heavy machinery is crucial, based on a thorough understanding of the surroundings. Current practices have utilized multiple viewpoints to facilitate a thorough understanding of the site's 3D spatial layout. However, challenges might arise as visual cues within the surroundings could create distractions for teleoperators. Drawing from visual search theory and Gibsons perception theory, exploring visual prompts in teleoperation interface could enhance performance by directing attention to key visual cues, reducing cognitive workload. Nonetheless, the evaluation of different visual prompts from human factors perspectives has been underexplored. Addressing challenges of potential distraction from multiple viewpoints and inappropriate visual prompts, this study emphasizes the necessity of exploring different visual prompts to most effectively guide operators attention in given work environments. The experiment, designed with low and high visual cue environments, focuses on debris removal and extended 3D Fitts' law tasks, evaluating spatial awareness and depth perception during teleoperation. The experiments were conducted with participants in construction-related fields with industrial experience. Performance measurements and subjective ratings with open-ended discussion was conducted. The findings show visual prompts' effects on distraction and visibility conditions concerning task-oriented difficulty levels in teleoperation. The experimental results can inform the optimal design of visual prompts in human-machine interface for teleoperation for complicated construction environments, highlighting the importance of the considerations of environments and task characteristics.