  This paper reports on insights by robotics researchers that participated in a
5-day robot-assisted nuclear disaster response field exercise conducted by
Kerntechnische Hilfdienst GmbH (KHG) in Karlsruhe, Germany. The German nuclear
industry established KHG to provide a robot-assisted emergency response
capability for nuclear accidents. We present a systematic description of the
equipment used; the robot operators' training program; the field exercise and
robot tasks; and the protocols followed during the exercise. Additionally, we
provide insights and suggestions for advancing disaster response robotics based
on these observations. Specifically, the main degradation in performance comes
from the cognitive and attentional demands on the operator. Furthermore,
robotic platforms and modules should aim to be robust and reliable in addition
to their ease of use. Last, as emergency response stakeholders are often
skeptical about using autonomous systems, we suggest adopting a variable
autonomy paradigm to integrate autonomous robotic capabilities with the
human-in-the-loop gradually. This middle ground between teleoperation and
autonomy can increase end-user acceptance while directly alleviating some of
the operator's robot control burden and maintaining the resilience of the
human-in-the-loop.
