RBE 3002
This is the index page for RBE 3002 wiki topics. RBE 3002 is the fourth class of the four-course unified robotics sequence introducing foundational theory and practice of robotics engineering from the fields of computer science, electrical engineer-ing and mechanical engineering.The focus of this course is navigation, position estimation and communications. Concepts of dead reckoning, landmark updates, inertial sensors, and radio location will be explored. Control systems as applied to navigation will be presented. Communication, remote control and remote sensing for mobile robots and tele-robotic systems will be introduced. Wireless communications including wireless networks and typical local and wide area networking protocols will be discussed. Considerations will be discussed regarding operation in difficult environments such as underwater, aerospace, hazardous, etc. Laboratory sessions will be directed towards the solution of an open-ended problem over the course of the entire term.
The WPI course catalog recommends taking RBE 3001 (Unified Robotics 3: Manipulation), ES 3011 (Controls Engineering), MA 2621 (Probability for Applications), or MA 2631 (Probability) before taking this course.
Gompei the goat suggests having an understanding of Python and linux before taking this course. Often students get overwhelmed trying to learn python, linux, and ROS all at the same time. RBE 3001 is not a required prerequisite because the subject matter does not coincide much. In fact some students have been able to succeed in this class without taking 3001. However, do expect to play a little catchup regardless. As always, this being a Unified Robotics course, expect a lot of work.
Lab Overview
The five labs lead into a final project based on autonomous navigation of an unknown environment. Topics covered in the laboratory include an introduction to Ubuntu and ROS, Drive commands, path planning, rviz visualizations, and frontier exploration.
If something doesn't work, check the ROS Troubleshooting page first.
RBE3002 ROS Cheatsheet contains some of the frequently used ROS commands in this course. (TBD)
Ubuntu
Ubuntu is the culmination of decades of opensource software development. Ubuntu in philosophy means "an ethical concept" or "humanity towards others". The Linux kernel which runs underneath Ubuntu was first started by Linus Torvalds as a graduate project. He wanted to develop a free version of Unix. It is important to realize that the entire Linux, Ubuntu, Ros system is open source and was developed in part by individuals like yourself. Ubuntu is free to use and modify for any purpose. Ubuntu is maintained and released by the company Canonical.
Python
Python is used successfully in thousands of real-world business applications around the world, including many large and mission critical systems. Python is a higher level object oriented programming language that has many benefits. Python programs are usually much shorter than the equivalent C programs.
Robot Operating System (ROS)
ROS is not an operating system. ROS is a framework for programs to communicate with each other. ROS is completely open source and has many tools and features that make it very powerful. It was originally developed by Willow Garage for the PR2 robot. These robots are valued at $400,000 each and millions were spent on its development. Scott Hassan was the founder of Willow Garage and co-founder of Yahoo. Archie the WPI PR2 can be observed next door in the ARC Lab. There are numerous tools to help make your development and debugging easier. The tools include RVIZ, Gazeebo, and RQTGraph. The combination of a common interface, powerful tools, Open Source licensing,and being widely accepted has pushed ROS to be the new standard for robotics development.
ROS Troubleshooting- start here if something doesn't work!
