Telerobotics over communication networks

In this paper, we explore control and networking research questions in telerobotics over communication networks. The network introduces random delays in the feedback control loop which affect the stability and performance of the control system. Multimedia telerobotics may require a number of communication channels, each may require considerable resources. Control input and sensory data have strict timing requirements and visual feedback requires high bandwidth to support the necessary frame rates. We use robust control theory, /spl mu/-synthesis, to handle worst case time delay. The tradeoffs between the worst case delay bounds and robust performance parameters are searched through real-time experiments over different communication protocols and media. Experiments are conducted on a mobile robot platform over a campus network.