Parameter-space transparency analysis of teleoperation systems

A haptic teleoperation system enables an operator to interact with a remote environment. How well the remote environment is presented to the operator is typically referred to as transparency. Common transparency measures for haptic teleoperation consider one or two fixed environments only, usually the extreme cases of freespace and stiff contact. Our approach offers insights on the range of environments for which a system achieves a desired transparency. Therefore, transparency over a range of environment parameters is examined by approximating the impedance displayed to the operator by means of a simple, physically interpretable mechanical impedance. A numerical optimization is used to determine the parameters characterizing this impedance model. This results in an intuitive graphical representation of the transparency of a teleoperation system. As an example, two common teleoperation architectures are analyzed and obtained results are experimentally verified.