---
updatedAt: 2025-11-11T01:48:26.000Z
agentTools:
  projectIndex: https://docs.formant.io/llms.txt
---

# Add buttons to your teleoperation interface

> 📘 A new teleoperation experience is here.
>
> We've released a new teleoperation experience. See the Getting Started guide for documentation on creating an observability dashboard.
>
> The documents in this section refer to the legacy teleoperation experience.

This guide will teach you how to overlay your teleoperation interface with interactive buttons.

# Step 1: Navigate to device teleoperation settings

1. In Formant, in the upper-left corner, open the menu and click **Settings**.
2. Click **Devices**, and then click on the device you want to configure.
3. Click on the **Teleoperation** tab to open the teleoperation configuration page.

# Step 2: Configure a button

## ROS

Formant supports the `std_msgs/Bool` data type.

1. In the teleoperation configuration page, scroll down to **Buttons** and click the **plus (+) icon**.
2. Click **Add ROS Topic**.
3. Configure your button as follows:

<Image align="center" src="https://files.readme.io/b7399c2-Screenshot_2023-09-11_at_2.59.38_PM.png" />

| Property                          | Usage                                                                    |
| :-------------------------------- | :----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Topic name - e.g. `/camera/front` | Enter the topic to which this button should publish `true` when clicked. |
| Label for your button             | This is the text that will appear on the button during teleoperation.    |

4. Click **Done**.
5. (Optional) If you want to add an additional status topic:
   1. Click on the button you just created.
   2. Add the status topic to **Status topic name - e.g.`/boolean/topic`** .

## API

1. In the teleoperation configuration page, scroll down to **Buttons** and click the **plus (+) icon**.
2. Click **Add from API**.
3. Enter the name of the function which handles button input. Formant will send a value of `true` to this function when the button is clicked.
4. Click **Done**, and then click **Save** to confirm your teleoperation settings.

For an example of handling button clicks during teleoperation via the Formant Agent SDK, see [GitHub: `teleop.py`](https://github.com/FormantIO/formant/blob/master/examples/python/formant_module/agent/teleop.py).

# Step 3: Verify your work in teleoperation mode

1. In your device view, in the upper-right corner, click the **three dots >> Teleop**, or enter **Shift + T**.
2. If you have **Control safety switch** enabled, click the **Unlock** button to reveal the teleoperation controls.
3. Verify that your buttons are showing up as expected:

<Image alt="buttons in the teleoperation view" align="center" src="https://files.readme.io/4973ba9-Screenshot_2023-11-03_at_1.15.57_PM.png">
  Buttons in the teleoperation view.
</Image>

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