The Effects of Communication Delay on Human Performance and Neurocognitive Responses in Mobile Robot Teleoperation

TL;DR

This study investigates how communication delays affect human performance and brain responses during mobile robot teleoperation, revealing critical delay thresholds and neurocognitive markers that inform better system design.

Contribution

It provides the first systematic analysis of neurocognitive responses to communication delays in robot teleoperation, identifying perceptual thresholds and EEG features linked to delay perception.

Findings

Performance degrades significantly at 200-300 ms delays.

EEG features show delay-dependent changes, especially in frontal theta/beta and parietal alpha bands.

Delay thresholds of 100-200 ms for early perception and saturation at 400 ms were identified.

Abstract

Communication delays in mobile robot teleoperation adversely affect human-machine collaboration. Understanding delay effects on human operational performance and neurocognition is essential for resolving this issue. However, no previous research has explored this. To fill this gap, we conduct a human-in-the-loop experiment involving 10 participants, integrating electroencephalography (EEG) and robot behavior data under varying delays (0-500 ms in 100 ms increments) to systematically investigate these effects. Behavior analysis reveals significant performance degradation at 200-300 ms delays, affecting both task efficiency and accuracy. EEG analysis discovers features with significant delay dependence: frontal $\theta/\beta$-band and parietal $\alpha$-band power. We also identify a threshold window (100-200 ms) for early perception of delay in humans, during which these EEG features first exhibit significant differences. When delay exceeds 400 ms, all features plateau, indicating saturation of cognitive resource allocation at physiological limits. These findings provide the first evidence of perceptual and cognitive delay thresholds during teleoperation tasks in humans, offering critical neurocognitive insights for the design of delay compensation strategies.