Cepheus ROS1 Noetic Release

Welcome to the official public repository for Cepheus by RigBetel Labs.

Purpose:
This repository hosts essential documentation and code for Cepheus Robot, facilitating transparency and collaboration.

Privacy:
Certain sensitive packages and scripts have been excluded to maintain privacy standards.

Contents:

Documentation: Detailed guides and technical specifications.
Codebase: Essential source code for Cepheus Robot.
Resources: Supplementary materials and dependencies.

Contact:
For inquiries and collaboration opportunities, reach out to RigBetel Labs.

1. Installation
2. Connection
3. NUC Instructions
4. Package Description
5. Launch Sequence
- 5.1 Map Generation
- 5.2 Autonomous Navigation
6. Important Low level Topics
7. Cepheus Robot Parameters
8. Diagnostic Tests
9. Joystick Control Instructions
10. LED indicators Instructions

1. Installation

cd ~/ros1_ws/src  # Assuming ros1_ws is the name of the workspace

Clone the repository into your workspace:

git clone https://github.com/rigbetellabs/cepheus.git

Install dependent packages:

cd ~/ros1_ws/src/cepheus
cat requirements.txt | xargs sudo apt-get install -y

Note

Check if you already have the lidar packages installed; if not, get the packages from repos below.

if using YDLIDAR

cd ~/ros1_ws/src/
git clone https://github.com/rigbetellabs/ydlidar_ros.git

if using RPLIDAR

cd ~/ros1_ws/src/
git clone https://github.com/rigbetellabs/rplidar_ros.git

Note

Custom joystick control script currently runs on the robot, enabling waypoint storage and navigation through joy buttons. This node can be accessed on:

cd ~/ros1_ws/src/
git clone https://github.com/rigbetellabs/joy_with_waypoint_nav.git

Build the workspace:

cd ~/ros1_ws
catkin_make

2. Connection

Initial Wifi Setup

Note

By default, the robot is programmed to be started up automatically upon bootup, with its ros running locally without the need for any wifi network.

Follow the steps below to connect the robot to your desired Wifi network

1. Create a mobile hotspot

Initiate a hotspot from your smartphone/laptop with the credentials

Hotspot Name: admin
Hotspot Password: adminadmin

2. Start the robot

Power on the robot and wait until it connects to your hotspot network

On powering on:	When connected to hotspot:

3. SSH into the robot

Connect your laptop/remote device to the same hotspot

Open a new terminal, and enter the SSH credentials

ssh "your-robot-name"@"your-robot-ip"  
pwd: "your-robot-password"

Tip

The robot name and password have been provided to you while deployment, they have also been marked on the PC present inside the robot. IP can be seen on the display of robot once connected

Method1	Method2

4. Connect to Wifi

Enter the following command on the ssh terminal to check available networks

sudo nmcli dev wifi list --rescan yes

Connect to your wifi network

sudo nmcli device wifi connect "your-wifi-name" password "your-wifi-password"

Important

This will close the ssh pipeline and no response will be recieved over it further. Wait for about 30 seconds for robot to be connected to your wifi, once connected it will show the wifi name along with the IP address on the robot display.

4. SSH using your Wifi

Now the robot is connected to your Wifi network! You can now shutdown your mobile hotspot, connect your remove device to the same wifi and access the robot using SSH:

To use your PC as a Slave Device to your Cepheus:

nano ~/.bashrc
export ROS_MASTER_URI=http://"ip address of the robot":11311
export ROS_IP="ip address of your pc"

3. NUC Instructions

Instructions to remove Intel NUC from robot

Step1	Step2	Step3

USB ports Configuration

Important

Connect the USB ports as per the following diagram:

4. Package Description

4.1 cepheus_description

Holds the robot description including URDF, STL, config files for RVIZ, and Gazebo.

File	Description	Nodes Launched
`display.launch`	Visualize the URDF of the robot in RVIZ.	RVIZ, robot_state_publisher, joint_state_publisher
`gazebo.launch`	Visualize the Robot in an empty world within Gazebo.	Gazebo, robot_state_publisher

4.2 cepheus_firmware

Provides sensor and actuation topics.

File	Description	Nodes Launched
`bringup.launch`	Brings up all the sensors and actuators on the robot	robot_state_publisher, joint_state_publisher, serial_node, joy, auto_joy_teleop, lidar_node
`demo.launch`	Single launch file to start all nodes for mapping and navigation, accepts waypoints via joystick control.	brings up bringup.launch, server_bringup.launch and cepheus_navigation.launch all at once
`ydlidar_x2.launch`	Launch file for YDLIDAR X2 lidar configuration.	ydlidar_node
`ydlidar_x4.launch`	Launch file for YDLIDAR X4 lidar configuration.	ydlidar_node
`rplidar_a3.launch`	Launch file for RPLIDAR A3 lidar configuration.	rplidar_node
`odom_pub.py`	Publishes odometry from TF published by Cartographer.	odom_publisher
`network_pub.py`	Retrieves and publishes the Wifi/Hotspot network data	network_status
`diagnostics_test.py`	Diagnostics tests for the robot in case of unusual behaviour	diagnostics_test

4.3 cepheus_gazebo

Simulation environment for Cepheus in Gazebo.

File	Description	Nodes Launched
`cepheus_warehouse.launch`	Warehouse environment spawning and simulation.	robot_state_publisher, gazebo_ros

4.4 cepheus_navigation

Autonomous navigation of the robot using move_base in a known as well as an unknown environment.

File	Description	Nodes Launched
`amcl.launch`	Localize the robot in the environment.	amcl
`move_base.launch`	Node responsible for moving the robot, avoiding obstacles.	move_base
`cepheus_navigation.launch`	Launches `move_base` with pre-saved or online-generated map.	cartographer_occupancy_grid_node, map_server, rviz, move_base

4.5 cepheus_odometry

Rtabmap, Ekf and Cartographer based odometry packages.

File	Description	Additional Information
`carto_odometry.launch`	Launches Cartographer node for lidar-based odometry.	cartographer_ros, cartographer
`icp_fuse.launch`	Launches Rtabmap-ICP and EKF nodes for lidar and IMU fused odometry.	icp_odometry, ekf_localization_node, alpha_beta_filter

4.6 cepheus_slam

Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) for the robot.

File	Description	Additional Information
`cepheus_slam`	Generates a map of the environment using Cartographer.	cartographer_occupancy_grid_node
`map_saver.launch`	Saves the generated map for navigation.	map_server

5. Launch Sequence

Note

By default, the robot is programmed to be started up automatically upon bootup, with its ros running locally without the need for any wifi network. To get into the development mode of the robot, ssh into the robot and run

cd ros1_ws/src/cepheus
./development.sh

This will stop all your local ros servers permanently and allow you to test your launch files according to will. If you need the robot to be upstart upon bootup again, you can always enable it using

cd ros1_ws/src/cepheus
./demo.sh

Simulation

roslaunch cepheus_gazebo cepheus_warehouse.launch

The gazebo world looks like this:

Real Robot

roslaunch cepheus_firmware bringup.launch joy:=true # Set true to get joystick control

Odometry packages

For cartographer-based odometry:

roslaunch cepheus_odometry carto_odometry.launch

For rtabmap and ekf based odometry:

roslaunch cepheus_odometry icp_fuse.launch

5.1 Map Generation

For mapping with manual control:

Using Cartographer:

roslaunch cepheus_slam carto_slam.launch

Using Gmapping:

roslaunch cepheus_slam gmapping_slam.launch

For mapping with autonomous navigation:

Using Cartographer:

roslaunch cepheus_navigation cepheus_carto_navigation.launch exploration:=true

Using Gmapping:

roslaunch cepheus_navigation cepheus_gmap_amcl.launch exploration:=true

To save the map:

roslaunch cepheus_slam map_saver.launch

5.2 Autonomous Navigation in the Saved Map

Using Cartographer:

roslaunch cepheus_navigation cepheus_carto_navigation.launch exploration:=false map_file:=your_map

Using AMCL:

roslaunch cepheus_navigation cepheus_gmap_amcl.launch exploration:=false map_file:=your_map

Note

Upon powering on the robot you'll be able to see the bootup animation on the robot

Note

Once the robot is booted up and bringup.launch is initiated, you'll get to see the robot transition to READY mode

6. Low-Level ROS Topics

`/battery/percentage`

This topic provides information about the remaining battery percentage of the robot.

Battery Percentage	Beeping Sounds
100 - 20	No beeping
20 - 15	Beep every 2 minutes
15 - 10	Beep every 1 minute
Below 10	Very frequent beeping
0 (Complete Discharge)	Continuous beep

Tip

To ensure you are aware of the robot's battery status, pay attention to the beeping sounds, especially as the battery percentage decreases.

Caution

Do not drain the battery below 10 %, doing so can damage the battery permanently.

`/battery/voltage`

This topic reports the current battery voltage, ranging from 25.2V at maximum charge to 19.8V at minimum charge.

`/cmd_vel`

The /cmd_vel topic is responsible for receiving velocity commands for the robot. These commands can be generated by teleoperation or the move_base module, instructing the robot on how fast to move in different directions.

`/pid/control`

This topic is of type int and is used to control the Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller. Publishing 0 stops PID control, 1 starts fast PID control, 2 activates smooth PID control, 3 activate supersmooth PID control. Here's an example:

rostopic pub -1 /pid/control std_msgs/Int32 "data: 1"

`/diagnostics/test`

The /diagnostics/test topic is utilized to run diagnostics on the robot. It serves the purpose of identifying and addressing any issues that may arise during the robot's operation. For detailed diagnostics procedures, refer to the documentation.

`/wheel/ticks`

This topic provides an array of ticks for all four wheels of the robot, in the format [lf, lb, rf, rb]. These values represent the encoder readings of the wheel ticks.

`/wheel/vel`

The /wheel/vel topic sends an array of calculated velocities for each wheel on the robot, received via encoders. The format of the array is [lf, lb, rf, rb], representing the actual velocity at which each wheel is moving.

7. Cepheus Robot Parameters

Parameter	Value
Wheels Type	Mechanum Wheel
Diameter	0.1m
Wheel Separation Width	0.465m
Wheel Separation Length	0.545m
Motor Type	Planetary DC Geared Motor
RPM	100
Encoder Type	Magnetic Encoder
PPR (Pulses Per Revolution)	498
Microcontroller	DOIT-ESP32 Devkit V1
PC Used	Intel NUC i3 10th Gen
Robot Payload Capacity	100 kgs
Battery Life	About 3 hours
Battery Type	Lithium-ion 6-cell, 22.2V

8. Diagnostic Tests

Overview

The diagnostic tests are designed to ensure the proper functioning of various components of the Cepheus robot. These tests cover motor and encoder connections, motor direction, IMU connections, display connections, and a comprehensive full diagnostic test.

Instructions

Here is a table summarizing the instructions for each diagnostic test:

Test Number	Test Type
0	Full Diagnostic Test
1	Motor and Encoder Test
2	Motor Direction Test
3	IMU Connections Test
4	Display Connections Test

Detailed Instructions

Full Diagnostic Test (Test Number: 0):
- Run the full diagnostic test to check the overall health of the robot.
Motor and Encoder Test (Test Number: 1):
- Check motor and encoder connections.
Motor Direction Test (Test Number: 2):
- Verify motor direction.
IMU Connections Test (Test Number: 3):
- Validate IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) connections.
Display Connections Test (Test Number: 4):
- Confirm proper connections with the display.

How to Run Diagnostics

To run the diagnostic tests, follow these steps:

On your Cepheus terminal, launch the bringup.launch file:
```
roslaunch cepheus_firmware bringup.launch
```
On your slave PC or another terminal of your Cepheus, run the diagnostics test script:
```
python3 diagnostics_test.py
```
The script will guide you through the instructions for each diagnostic test. Follow the on-screen instructions carefully.

Important Notes

It is crucial to execute the tests with caution and follow the on-screen instructions for each test to ensure accurate results.
Ensure that the robot has sufficient space to move during the motor direction test (Test Number: 2).
If any issues are identified during the tests, refer to the specific diagnostic output for guidance on addressing the problem.

By following these instructions, you can perform diagnostic tests on the Cepheus robot to identify and resolve any issues with its components.

9. Joystick Control Instructions

10. LED indicators instructions

Nomenclature

Instructions

Indication type	Indicates
All orange fading effect	ROS not connected

Indication type	Indicates
Blue Sidelights, White Headlights, Red Brakelights	ROS Connected

Indication type	Indicates
Yellow Status/Side lights + beep 1	Autonomous Mode

Indication type	Indicates
Green Status/Side lights flash thrice with buzzer	Goal Reached

Indication type	Indicates
Purple Status/Side lights with beep once	Goal location stored

Indication type	Indicates
Orange Status/Side lights	Clear costmap

Indication type	Indicates
Orange blinking indicator lights	Direction of robot travel

Indication type	Indicates
Red Status/Side lights	Cancel Goal/ Mission Abort

Indication type	Indicates
All Red lights	Emergency button pressed

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 3 Commits
cepheus_description		cepheus_description
cepheus_firmware		cepheus_firmware
cepheus_gazebo		cepheus_gazebo
cepheus_navigation		cepheus_navigation
cepheus_odometry		cepheus_odometry
cepheus_slam		cepheus_slam
img		img
README.md		README.md
install.sh		install.sh
requirements.txt		requirements.txt

rigbetellabs/cepheus

Folders and files

Latest commit

History

Repository files navigation

Cepheus ROS1 Noetic Release

Table of Contents

1. Installation

2. Connection

Initial Wifi Setup

1. Create a mobile hotspot

2. Start the robot

3. SSH into the robot

4. Connect to Wifi

4. SSH using your Wifi

3. NUC Instructions

Instructions to remove Intel NUC from robot

USB ports Configuration

4. Package Description

4.1 cepheus_description

4.2 cepheus_firmware

4.3 cepheus_gazebo

4.4 cepheus_navigation

4.5 cepheus_odometry

4.6 cepheus_slam

5. Launch Sequence

Simulation

Real Robot

Odometry packages

5.1 Map Generation

5.2 Autonomous Navigation in the Saved Map

6. Low-Level ROS Topics

/battery/percentage

/battery/voltage

/cmd_vel

/pid/control

/diagnostics/test

/wheel/ticks

/wheel/vel

7. Cepheus Robot Parameters

8. Diagnostic Tests

Overview

Instructions

Detailed Instructions

How to Run Diagnostics

Important Notes

9. Joystick Control Instructions

10. LED indicators instructions

Nomenclature

Instructions

About

Resources

Stars

Watchers

Forks

Releases

Packages 0

Languages

`/battery/percentage`

`/battery/voltage`

`/cmd_vel`

`/pid/control`

`/diagnostics/test`

`/wheel/ticks`

`/wheel/vel`

Packages