> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cyberwave.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Live Teleoperation

> Control physical robots in real time through their digital twins from anywhere in the world.

## What is Live Teleoperation?

Live Teleoperation lets you control a physical robot in real time through its [digital twin](/use-cyberwave/digital-twins) in the Cyberwave dashboard. Operator inputs — keyboard, gamepad, or SDK commands — are sent to the robot via Cyberwave's low-latency MQTT and WebRTC infrastructure, while live video and telemetry stream back to the browser.

<Info>
  Teleoperation requires a physical robot connected through [Cyberwave
  Edge](/edge/overview). The Edge Core bridges your hardware to the cloud in
  real time.
</Info>

***

## How It Works

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="1. Operator Input" icon="keyboard">
    Send commands from the dashboard UI, a keyboard/gamepad controller, or the [Python SDK](/tools/python-sdk) using `cw.affect("live")`.
  </Card>

  <Card title="2. Cloud Relay" icon="cloud">
    Cyberwave routes commands through MQTT to the Edge Core running on the robot's
    host machine.
  </Card>

  <Card title="3. Robot Execution" icon="robot">
    The Edge Core translates commands into hardware-level actions and streams sensor data back.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

```mermaid theme={null}
flowchart LR
    A["Operator\nBrowser"] <-->|"MQTT / WebRTC\ncommands + video"| B["Cyberwave\nCloud"]
    B <-->|"Serial / USB\ndriver commands"| C["Robot\nHardware"]
    D[Edge Core] -->|MQTT| B
```

***

## Supported Control Methods

| Method                  | Description                                                                                                                           |
| ----------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Keyboard controller** | Assign a keyboard controller to a twin in the dashboard — move joints or navigate with key bindings                                   |
| **Gamepad**             | Use a USB or Bluetooth gamepad for more intuitive control of mobile robots and arms                                                   |
| **Leader arm**          | Teleoperate a follower arm using a physical leader arm (e.g. SO101 leader/follower setup)                                             |
| **Python SDK**          | Send commands programmatically with `cw.affect("live")` — see the [SDK docs](/tools/python-sdk#affect-simulation-vs-live-environment) |

***

## Switching Between Simulation and Live

The same [environment](/use-cyberwave/environment-editor) supports both modes. In **Simulation** mode, your actions affect the digital twin only. Switch to **Live** mode to drive the physical robot.

**From the dashboard:** use the mode toggle in the environment header.

**From the SDK:**

```python theme={null}
from cyberwave import Cyberwave

cw = Cyberwave()

cw.affect("simulation")
robot = cw.twin("the-robot-studio/so101")
robot.joints.set("shoulder_pan", 45, degrees=True)  # moves the digital twin

cw.affect("live")
robot.joints.set("shoulder_pan", 45, degrees=True)  # moves the physical robot
```

***

## Live Video Streaming

During teleoperation, live camera feeds from the robot are streamed via WebRTC directly into the dashboard. You can view one or multiple camera feeds alongside the 3D digital twin view.

Supported camera types:

* **Standard cameras** (USB/CSI via OpenCV)
* **Intel RealSense** (RGB + depth)

The media service also exposes a twin-scoped MQTT command channel for media-control operations on active WebRTC streams. This lets edge drivers and teleoperation clients request media-service actions without changing the WebRTC signaling topics.

See the [Python SDK video streaming docs](/tools/python-sdk#video-streaming-webrtc) for details on setting up camera streams from edge devices.

***

## Prerequisites

<Steps>
  <Step title="Digital Twin configured">
    Create a [digital twin](/use-cyberwave/digital-twins) for your robot in an
    [environment](/use-cyberwave/environment-editor).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Edge Core installed">
    Install and configure [Cyberwave Edge](/edge/overview) on the machine
    connected to the robot hardware.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Hardware paired">
    Pair the physical robot with the digital twin via the CLI — see the [Edge
    overview](/feature-reference/edge/overview).
  </Step>
</Steps>

***

## Latency

A small delay between operator input and robot response is expected in any teleoperation system. The Cyberwave teleoperation stack uses WebRTC for video and MQTT for control commands, keeping end-to-end latency low enough for hands-on robot work.

***

## Video Walkthroughs

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Go2 Digital to Physical" icon="dog" href="/tutorials/go2-digital-to-physical">
    End-to-end: catalog to physical robot deployment with a Unitree Go2
  </Card>

  <Card title="Rover AI Inspection" icon="robot" href="/tutorials/rover-ai-mission">
    Autonomous rover mission with AI-driven analysis in simulation
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

***

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="Python SDK" icon="code" href="/tools/python-sdk">
    Full SDK reference for live robot control
  </Card>

  <Card title="Digital Twins" icon="clone" href="/use-cyberwave/digital-twins">
    Configure twin capabilities and sensors
  </Card>

  <Card title="Workflows" icon="diagram-project" href="/use-cyberwave/workflows">
    Automate operations with visual workflows
  </Card>
</CardGroup>