Tele-robotic Interface Design in Context: A Case for Recursive Design

Satellites have useful lifetimes of only a few decades; however, these could easily be extended if consumable resources could be replaced. Many groups are now exploring the possibility of using unmanned orbital robots to perform satellite servicing operations. These orbiting robots are currently semi-autonomous and require monitoring and control by highly trained ground teams in order to complete their activities. This provides for a unique and tightly constrained operating environment with very particular interface needs. Here, we document the process we used for developing a tele-robotic interface specific to NASA's Restore-L mission, and describe the choices and considerations we weighed when implementing our designs. We discuss the technical and mission parameters as well as the social and operational context of our work, and articulate the need for a design framework that is capable of better connecting these two domains.