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Multi-ROS and Remote Robot Configuration

Agent ROS Bridge supports connecting to multiple ROS endpoints simultaneously, including mixed ROS1/ROS2 environments and remote robots over the network.

Quick Start

Single Local ROS (Auto-Detect)

python run_bridge.py

Multiple ROS Endpoints

Create config/bridge.yaml:

bridge:
  connectors:
    ros:
      auto_detect: false  # Disable auto-detection
      endpoints:
        # Local ROS2
        - id: "local_ros2"
          ros_type: "ros2"
          ros_distro: "jazzy"
          host: "localhost"
          domain_id: 0
        
        # Remote ROS2 robot
        - id: "warehouse_bot_01"
          ros_type: "ros2"
          ros_distro: "humble"
          host: "192.168.1.100"
          domain_id: 42
          topics:
            - "/cmd_vel"
            - "/odom"
            - "/scan"
        
        # Remote ROS1 robot
        - id: "legacy_arm"
          ros_type: "ros1"
          ros_distro: "noetic"
          host: "192.168.1.101"
          port: 11311

Then run:

python run_bridge.py
# Or with explicit config:
BRIDGE_CONFIG=config/bridge.yaml python run_bridge.py

Configuration Options

ROS2 Endpoint

Option Description Default
id Unique identifier for this endpoint (required)
ros_type "ros2" (required)
ros_distro "jazzy", "humble", "iron" "jazzy"
host Hostname or IP address "localhost"
domain_id ROS_DOMAIN_ID for this endpoint 0
auto_discover Auto-discover topics true
topics List of topics to subscribe to []

ROS1 Endpoint

Option Description Default
id Unique identifier for this endpoint (required)
ros_type "ros1" (required)
ros_distro "noetic", "melodic" "noetic"
host Hostname or IP address "localhost"
port ROS_MASTER port 11311
auto_discover Auto-discover topics true
topics List of topics to subscribe to []

Docker Multi-ROS

Run multiple bridge instances with different ROS versions:

# ROS1 bridge
docker-compose --profile ros1 up ros1-bridge

# ROS2 bridge (different port)
docker-compose --profile ros2 up ros2-bridge

Or use a single bridge with configured endpoints:

# Edit config/bridge.yaml with your endpoints
docker-compose --profile multi up multi-bridge

Network Requirements

ROS2 Remote Discovery

ROS2 uses DDS for discovery. For remote robots:

  1. Same Domain ID: Ensure ROS_DOMAIN_ID matches on both sides
  2. Multicast: DDS requires multicast (or use Discovery Server)
  3. Firewall: Open ports for DDS (typically 7400-7500)

Example for remote ROS2:

- id: "remote_bot"
  ros_type: "ros2"
  host: "192.168.1.100"
  domain_id: 42

ROS1 Remote Master

ROS1 uses a central master. For remote robots:

  1. ROS_MASTER_URI: Point to the remote roscore
  2. ROS_HOSTNAME: Set to this machine's IP
  3. Port 11311: Default ROS master port

Example for remote ROS1:

- id: "remote_arm"
  ros_type: "ros1"
  host: "192.168.1.101"
  port: 11311

Querying Multiple Robots

Once connected, query all robots:

wscat -c ws://localhost:8765

# List all robots across all endpoints
> {"command": {"action": "list_robots"}}

# Get topics from a specific robot
> {"command": {"action": "get_topics", "parameters": {"endpoint_id": "warehouse_bot_01"}}}

# Send command to specific robot
> {"command": {"action": "publish", "parameters": {"endpoint_id": "legacy_arm", "topic": "/joint_states", "data": {...}}}}

Use Cases

Warehouse Fleet

  • 10x ROS2 Humble AMRs (domain_id 0-9)
  • 1x bridge connecting to all via domain-specific endpoints

Mixed Legacy/Modern

  • 3x ROS1 Noetic UR arms
  • 2x ROS2 Humble mobile bases
  • 1x bridge managing both generations

Remote Teleoperation

  • Bridge running in cloud (AWS/GCP)
  • Connected to robots in warehouse via VPN
  • Operators control from anywhere

Troubleshooting

ROS2: Cannot see remote topics

  • Check ROS_DOMAIN_ID matches
  • Verify multicast is enabled: ros2 multicast receive / ros2 multicast send
  • Use Discovery Server for WAN: ROS2 Discovery Server

ROS1: Connection refused

  • Verify roscore is running on remote host
  • Check firewall: telnet 192.168.1.101 11311
  • Ensure ROS_MASTER_URI and ROS_HOSTNAME are set correctly

Multiple bridges conflict

  • Each bridge needs unique WebSocket port
  • Use config: transports.websocket.port: 8766 for second bridge