Simulation in Gazebo

In this tutorial, we provide two method to simulate a robot in Gazebo. You can easily run the simulation directly in Docker, or install Gazebo on your local machine and run the simulation there.

1. Running the Simulation in Docker

1.1 Install Docker and Nvidia drivers for Docker:

Docker Installation for Ubuntu

Nvidia drivers for Docker

Linux Post Installation Steps

1.2 Launch container and run simulation:

Launch the Docker container with GUI and GPU support:

cd ~/cmb_ws/src/cartesian_motion_base/.docker
./set_display.sh # For display forwarding
docker compose up -d

Access the Docker container:

docker container exec -it cartesian_motion_sim /bin/bash

Note

You need restart the container if you restart your host machine. docker container start cartesian_motion_sim.

Launch the simulation:

ros2 launch cartesian_sim_bringup cartesian_sim_bringup.launch.py

(or launch the dual-arm simulation)

ros2 launch cartesian_sim_bringup cartesian_sim_bringup.launch.py config_type:=dual_arm

Tip

This simulation uses cartesian_controllers to realize a cartesian control. You can reference cartesian_motion_sim/cartesian_sim_bringup/config/cartesian_gazebo_controllers_*.yaml to see how to config this controller.

Based on the Docker configuration, you can also communicate with the docker environment from your host machine. For example, you can run ros2 topic list in your host machine terminal to see the topics published in the Docker container.

2. Running the Simulation on Your Local Machine

2.1 Install Gazebo and its plugins(if you haven’t already):

sudo apt-get install -y ignition-fortress ros-${ROS_DISTRO}-gazebo-plugins ros-${ROS_DISTRO}-gz-ros2-control ros-${ROS_DISTRO}-ros-gz

Launch the simulation on your local machine (same as in Docker):

ros2 launch cartesian_sim_bringup cartesian_sim_bringup.launch.py

or launch the dual-arm simulation

ros2 launch cartesian_sim_bringup cartesian_sim_bringup.launch.py config_type:=dual_arm

3. Next Setps:

Nice job! Next, we will try to control the robot in simulation using Cartesian Motion Base.