Additional Simulation Worlds
================================
In addtion to the default ``ridgeback_world.launch`` file, ``ridgeback_gazebo`` also contains ``spawn_ridgeback.launch``,
which is intended to be included in any custom world to add a Ridgeback simulation to it.
To add a Ridgeback to any of your own worlds, simply include the ``spawn_ridgeback.launch`` file in your own world's launch:
.. code-block:: xml
Clearpath also provides an additional suite of simulation environments that can be downloaded separately and used
with Ridgeback, as described below.
Clearpath Gazebo Worlds
------------------------
The Clearpath Gazebo Worlds collection contains 4 different simulation worlds, representative of different
environments our robots are designed to operate in:
* Inspection World: a hilly outdoor world with water and a cave
* Agriculture World: a flat outdoor world with a barn, fences, and solar farm
* Office World: a flat indoor world with enclosed rooms and furniture
* Construction World: office world, under construction with small piles of debris and partial walls
Ridgeback is supported in Office and Construction Worlds.
Installation
---------------
To download the Clearpath Gazebo Worlds, clone the repository from github into the same workspace as your Ridgeback:
.. code-block:: bash
cd ~/catkin_ws/src
git clone https://github.com/clearpathrobotics/cpr_gazebo.git
Before you can build the package, make sure to install dependencies. Because Clearpath Gazebo Worlds depends on
all of our robots' simulation packages, and some of these are currently only available as source code, installing
dependencies with ``rosdep install --from-paths [...]`` will likely fail.
All four simulation environments need the ``gazebo_ros`` package. The Inspection World also needs the ``uuv_gazebo_worlds``
package, which can be installed by running
.. code-block:: bash
sudo apt-get install ros-$ROS_DISTRO-uuv-gazebo-worlds
Once the dependencies are installed, you can build the package:
.. code-block:: bash
cd ~/catkin_ws
catkin_make
source devel/setup.bash
Running the Office Simulation
--------------------------------
Office World is a small indoor environment representing a commercial office space. It features several large, open
areas with furniture, as well as a narrow hallway with smaller offices and meeting rooms. It is intended to simulate
missions in commercial spaces, such as facilitating deliveries, security monitoring, and inspecting equipment.
.. image:: images/ridgeback_office_world.png
:alt: Ridgeback in the Office World
To launch Office World with a Ridgeback, run the following command:
.. code-block:: bash
roslaunch cpr_office_gazebo office_world.launch platform:=ridgeback
To customize Ridgeback's payload, for example to add additional sensors, see :ref:`customizepayload`.
Once the simulation is running you can use rviz and other tools as described in :doc:`Simulating` and :doc:`Navigating`
to control and monitor the robot. For example, below we can see the ``gmapping_demo`` from ``ridgeback_navigation`` being
used to build a map of the office world:
.. image:: images/ridgeback_office_gmap.png
:alt: Ridgeback building a map of the office with gmapping
You can see the complete layout of the office world below:
.. image:: images/office_world.png
:alt: Office World
Running the Construction Simulation
--------------------------------------
Construction World is the same basic layout as Office World, representing the same office space under construction/rennovation.
It is an indoor environment with small hills of debris/rubble, partial walls, and piles of construction supplies. It
is designed to simulate missions in any sort of construction site.
.. image:: images/ridgeback_construction_world.png
:alt: Ridgeback in the Construction World
To launch Construction World with a Ridgeback, run the following command:
.. code-block:: bash
roslaunch cpr_office_gazebo office_construction_world.launch platform:=ridgeback
To customize Ridgeback's payload, for example to add additional sensors, see :ref:`customizepayload`.
Once the simulation is running you can use rviz and other tools as described in :doc:`Simulating` and :doc:`Navigating`
to control and monitor the robot.
You can see the complete layout of the office below:
.. image:: images/construction_world.png
:alt: The layout of Construction World
.. _customizepayload:
Customizing Ridgeback's Payload
-------------------------------
To customize Ridgeback's payload you must use the environment variables described in :doc:`package`. For example,
to equip Ridgeback with a Sick LMS-1xx lidar, as pictured in several of the images above, run
.. code-block:: bash
export RIDGEBACK_LASER=1
before launching the simulation world.
You can also add additional sensors by creating a customized URDF and setting the ``RIDGEBACK_URDF_EXTRAS`` environment
variable to point to it.
For example, let's suppose you want to equip Ridgeback with an Intel RealSense D435 camera. First, install the ``realsense2_camera``
and ``realsense2_description`` packages, along with the gazebo plugins:
.. code-block:: bash
sudo apt-get install ros-$ROS_DISTRO-realsense2-camera ros-$ROS_DISTRO-realsense2-description ros-$ROS_DISTRO-gazebo-plugins
Then create your customized URDF file, for example ``$HOME/Desktop/realsense.urdf.xacro``. Put the following in it:
.. code-block:: xml
true301.51843516666666671.0122901111111111640480RGB80.0150.00.2true30realsensecolor/image_rawcolor/camera_infodepth/image_rect_rawdepth/camera_infodepth/color/pointsfront_realsense_gazebo0.1058.00.000000010.000000010.000000010.000000010.0000000100000
This file defines the additional links for adding a RealSense camera to the robot, as well as configuring the ``openni_kinect``
plugin for Gazebo to simulate data from a depth camera. The camera itself will be connected to the Ridgeback's ``front_mount``
link, offset 5cm towards the front of the robot.
Now, set the ``RIDGEBACK_URDF_EXTRAS`` environment variable and try viewing the Ridgeback model:
.. code-block:: bash
export RIDGEBACK_URDF_EXTRAS=$HOME/Desktop/realsense.urdf.xacro
roslaunch ridgeback_viz view_model.launch
You should see the Ridgeback model in rviz, with the RealSense camera mounted to it:
.. image:: images/ridgeback_rviz_realsense.png
:alt: Ridgeback with a RealSense D435 connected to it
To launch the customized Ridgeback in any of the new simulation environments, similarly run:
.. code-block:: bash
export RIDGEBACK_URDF_EXTRAS=$HOME/Desktop/realsense.urdf.xacro
roslaunch cpr_office_gazebo office_world.launch platform:=ridgeback
You should see Ridgeback spawn in the office world with the RealSense camera:
.. image:: images/ridgeback_office_realsense.png
You can view the sensor data from the RealSense camera by running
.. code-block:: bash
roslaunch ridgeback_viz view_robot.launch
and adding the camera & pointcloud from the ``/realsense/color/image_raw`` and ``/realsense/depth/color/points`` topics:
.. image:: images/ridgeback_rviz_office_realsense.png
:alt: Ridgeback with a RealSense in rviz showing pointcloud and RGB topics