Self-Driving RC Car - Ros2 Workspace

This shared Ros2 workspace is a team effort to create self driving RC cars for indoor and outdoor navigations. Our next major goal is to participate in the RoboMagellan Competition at RoboGames 2024.

Installing on Desktop

1. Install ROS Iron

   sudo apt install ros-iron-desktop-full

2. Install Colcon

   sudo apt install python3-colcon-common-extensions

3. Clone the Repository

   git clone https://github.com/berickson/car_ws.git --recurse-submodules

4. Install Dependencies

   rosdep install --from-paths src --ignore-src -r -y

5. Prepare udev rules for Lidar

   Copy the following text into /etc/udev/rules.d/99-rplidar-udev.rules to expose lidar on /dev/rplidar:

   # expose lidar on /dev/rplidar
   #
   KERNEL=="ttyUSB*", ATTRS{idVendor}=="10c4", ATTRS{idProduct}=="ea60", MODE:="0777", SYMLINK+="rplidar"

   To apply the rules, log out and back in, or run:

   sudo udevadm control --reload-rules && sudo udevadm trigger

6. Prepare udev rules for Oak-D

   echo 'SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="03e7", MODE="0666"' | sudo tee /etc/udev/rules.d/80-movidius.rules
   sudo udevadm control --reload-rules && sudo udevadm trigger

   Reboot or unplug and plug camera for rules to take effect

7. Get machine ready for Platformio. This avoids "Can not find working Python 3.6+ Interpreter. Please install the latest Python 3 and restart VSCode"

   sudo apt install python3-venv

Building the Project

colcon build

Equipment

GPS: https://www.amazon.com/Compass-Precision-Receiver-Navigation-Compatible/dp/B08NY9JSZ3

To-Do List

• Resolve Nav2 Build Errors Ideally, Nav2 should not be required as a submodule. The current setup was necessary to access header files for the nav2_line_following_controller.

• Implement Docker ROS builds and nodes should run from Docker containers. This is particularly important for headless car operations, but less so for the simulator and RViz.

• Develop a Single Codebase Strategy Most of the code should remain the same, with a simple method to swap parameters for specific cars. Different cars will likely have varying IMUs, Sensors, etc., which will need to be accommodated.