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ROSbot XL - quick start

ROSbot XL is a versatile indoor mobile robot platform, purpose-built for research, education, and application development. With increased payload capacity, higher max speed, and enhanced carrying ability compared to ROSbot 3, ROSbot XL can be a good base for your custom application. With the flexibility to integrate different sensors and other equipment, ROSbot XL allows users to tailor the platform to their specific project requirements. Alternatively, you can choose from a range of pre-configured packages tailored to specific applications, such as indoor navigation and mobile manipulation.

The robot supports various computing platforms, including Raspberry Pi, Intel NUC, and NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano, with Ethernet-based communication to its built-in microcontroller running micro-ROS. Open-source ROS 2 drivers and a user-friendly interface make it easy to operate the robot right out of the box, whether through a web-based interface or gamepad control, providing an intuitive experience for both beginners and experts.


Helpful links
OS version

This guide is based on the latest OS image for Jazzy and Humble ROS distributions.

Read more about OS reinstallation.

Preparation​

Unboxing​

What's in the box:

  • ROSbot XL
  • a Wi-Fi 2.4GHz / 5GHz antenna
  • a USB-C charger
  • an Ethernet cable
  • a gamepad
  • a set of regular (pneumatic) wheels
  • two Allen keys: 2.5mm and 4mm
  • a camera stand for mounting external cameras on the ROSbot.

rosbot_xl

Connect Battery​

caution

The robot is shipped with the battery disconnected.

You need to connect the battery before the first use:

  • Use a 2.5mm Allen key to unscrew the battery cover located at the bottom of the ROSbot XL.
  • Once opened, you will see a 4-pin white connector (plug) and a socket. Insert the plug into the socket.
  • Install the battery cover back to its place.

The robot is now ready for the next steps.

Mount External Components​

If you want to mount an external camera, LIDAR, or any other equipment on your ROSbot, first you need to run the cable through the robot's cover. The video below demonstrates how to do that.


Then, attach the equipment to the cover and plug it into the appropriate connector inside the robot.

Install the System Image for ROSbot​

ROSbot XL comes with 3 SBC options, setup instructions vary slightly between them, so please select your version below.

info

ROSbot XL comes with a pre-installed ROS Humble OS image. If you have just received your brand new ROSbot XL, you can skip this step.

In some situations, you may need to restore the ROSbot system to its default settings:

  • If the system is accidentally damaged,
  • To update the OS to the latest version with supported documentation,
  • To erase all user changes and revert to factory settings.

For instructions on how to reinstall the operating system, please refer to the OS reinstallation guide.

Setting up​

Access the Robot Terminal​

To perform the initial network configuration, you need to access ROSbot's Linux terminal. There are two options:

ROSbot is basically a computer running Ubuntu, so let's open it like a standard PC.

  1. Plug in a display with HDMI, mouse and keyboard into the USB port on the rear panel of ROSbot.
  2. Turn on the robot and wait until it boots.
  3. Open the terminal with the Ctrl + Alt + t shortcut

using etcher for flashing ROS system image

info

ROSbot's graphical desktop environment requires about 2 minutes to start during the first boot. Subsequent boots require only about 1 minute after power on.

Wi-Fi Setup​

Netplan

ROSbot XL uses netplan instead of a graphical Wi-Fi manager. It allows you to have all physical network interfaces configured from a single text file.

To find available Wi-Fi networks, use the following Linux command:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
sudo nmcli dev wifi rescan
nmcli dev wifi

To connect your ROSbot to a Wi-Fi network, edit /etc/netplan/01-network-manager-all.yaml file, e.g. with nano:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
sudo nano /etc/netplan/01-network-manager-all.yaml

And modify lines 22-23 by replacing "PLACE_YOUR_WIFI_SSID_HERE" with your SSID (Wi-Fi network name) and "PLACE_YOUR_WIFI_PASSWORD_HERE" with your Wi-Fi password:

See the Netplan configuration file
/etc/netplan/01-network-manager-all.yaml
network:
  version: 2
  renderer: NetworkManager

  ethernets:

   all-eths:
      match:
        name: eth*
      dhcp4: no
      dhcp6: no
      optional: true
      addresses:
        - 192.168.77.2/24

  wifis:
    # ========================================
    # standard Wi-Fi config (client)
    # ========================================
    wlan0:
      dhcp4: true
      dhcp6: true
      optional: true
      access-points:
        "PLACE_YOUR_WIFI_SSID_HERE":
          password: "PLACE_YOUR_WIFI_PASSWORD_HERE"

    # ========================================
    # access point Wi-Fi config
    # replace "channel" with the number permitted in your country
    # https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WLAN_channels
    # ========================================
    # wlan0:
    #   dhcp4: yes
    #   addresses:
    #     - 192.168.78.1/24
    #   access-points:
    #     "rosbotap":
    #       band: "5GHz"
    #       channel: "149"
    #       mode: "ap"
    #       password: "husarion"

then save the file (with ctrl+o if using nano) and apply the new network setup:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
sudo netplan -d apply

You can check to which Wi-Fi network your ROSbot is connected by using this command:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
sudo iwgetid

To find your IP address (for the wlan0 network interface) type:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
ip -4 addr show wlan0 | grep -oP '(?<=inet\s)\d+(\.\d+){3}'

Save this IP address for the next step.

Complex Wi-Fi setups

If your Wi-Fi network setup is more complex (eg. if you want to connect to Eduroam based Wi-Fi that is popular in many universities), visit netplan configuration examples and netplan documentation.

Usage​

Remote Access​

While ROSbot is connected to a Wi-Fi network, you can access it by using its IPv4 address by SSH:

user@mylaptop:/home/user$
ssh husarion@<ROSBOT_IP>

Launch the ROS Driver​

At this stage, your ROSbot should be up and running, with a remote (LAN or VPN) connection from your laptop.

Now let's start the ROS Driver that brings up the rosbot_xl_ros package and the Micro-ROS Agent (for interfacing with the firmware running on the STM32 Microcontroller).

ROS 2 API

You will find a ROS 2 API for the ROSbot XL here.

Flash Firmware​

Access your ROSbot's terminal and run:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
~/flash_firmware.sh

Start the Driver​

To launch basic ROSbot XL ROS 2 nodes, paste the following command in the ROSbot's terminal:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
~/ros_driver_start.sh

At this point, ROS nodes from the containers are available at the level of the host operating system.

Check available ROS topics:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
ros2 topic list

ROS2 topic list

info

If you don't have ROS 2 Humble natively installed on your OS (e.g. if you're using Nvidia Jetson Nano), access the rosbot-xl container:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
docker exec -it rosbot-xl bash

Now you can run the following command to check the topics:

root@a837c86387c2:/ros2_ws#
ros2 topic list

Control Robot with teleop_twist_keyboard​

Launch a teleop_twist_keyboard ROS node for manual ROSbot control:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
ros2 run teleop_twist_keyboard teleop_twist_keyboard

After running the command, you will see the usage instruction:

list of ROS2 topics at ROSbot XL

Helpful Resources​

Reference Projects​

Now you know how to run core ROSbot XL ROS nodes.

Running ROS natively is fine for relatively small projects. For more complex ones, a full dockerized setup is a better approach.

warning

If you're planning to try the next demos, make sure to stop the basic setup first by running the following command:

husarion@rosbotxl:/home/husarion$
~/ros_driver_stop.sh

Find available projects below:

linkdescription
rosbot-xl-gamepadControl the robot manually using a Logitech F710 gamepad
rosbot-xl-autonomyAutonomous mapping & navigation demo for ROSbot XL. Using navigation2 and slam_toolbox
rosbot-xl-manipulationUsing ROSbot XL with OpenMANIPULATOR-X. Read more about this project in the dedicated tutorial (including Gazebo simulation)
rosbot-xl-telepresenceControlling ROSbot XL over the Internet with a live video feed

Here is an example of a map generated with the rosbot-xl-mapping project, which can be used in the rosbot-xl-navigation.

map example

ROS 2 Tutorials​

ROS 2 (Robot Operating System 2) provides libraries and tools to help software developers create robotic applications. We've put together a series of ROS 2 Tutorials dedicated for this platform that serve as a practical introduction to ROS 2. You can run them on any of our ROSbots, either on a physical robot or in the simulation environment. These step-by-step guides are tailored to accommodate both beginners embarking on their ROS 2 journey and experienced users looking to deepen their understanding of robot navigation.