Starting with ROS 2 on Modern Gazebo

Use modern Gazebo to simulate MP-series and ROX robots.

Note

As of May 2025, key updates to the simulation, such as support for different ROX variants other than ROX Argo, as well as support for MP-Series robots, have been provided. This updates are only for ROS 2 versions Jazzy and above.

Please contact us directly if you require a simulation with all the new updates in Humble.

ROX

Setup Environment Hooks

Attention

This step is for the Humble and Iron versions

In order for Gazebo to open the models for the robots and the objects in the environment. It is essential to define the gz model path for loading these objects. For example, if there is workspace called rox_ws, then the path should be defined as follows:

export GZ_SIM_RESOURCE_PATH=~/rox_ws/src/rox:~/rox_ws/src/neo_gz_worlds/models/

Attention

• Here we define the path for both the robot models and as well as the object models.
• Please update the path according to your workspace.

Launch

Launching the simulation of ROX is fairly easy

ros2 launch rox_bringup bringup_sim_launch.py

Launch Arguments

Attention

Certain arguments such as arm_type and gripper_type are available only for certain robots. It is recommended to check for the arguments by adding the –show-launch-arguments tag at the end of the above command.

Attention

Available on Jazzy and above distributions

Arguments (pass arguments as '<name>:=<value>'):

'imu_enable':
    Enable IMU - Options: True/False
    (default: 'False')

'd435_enable':
    Enable Realsense - Options: True/False
    (default: 'False')

'scanner_type':
    Scanner Type. Valid choices are: ['', 'nanoscan', 'psenscan']
    (default: 'nanoscan')

'arm_type':
    Arm Types
. Valid choices are: ['', 'ur5', 'ur10', 'ur5e', 'ur10e', 'ec66']
    (default: '')

'rox_type':
    ROX Drive Type
. Valid choices are: ['', 'argo', 'argo-trio', 'diff', 'trike']
    (default: 'argo')

'use_ur_dc':
    Set this argument to True if you have an UR arm with DC variant
    (default: 'False')

'gripper_type':
    Gripper Types - Supported Robots [mpo-700, mpo-500]
. Valid choices are: ['', '2f_140', '2f_85']
    (default: '')

'headless_simulation':
    Run Gazebo in headless mode (no GUI) - Options: True/False
    (default: 'False')

Robot can be moved using the keyboard as shown in the Image below:

Video Tutorial

MP Series

The MP-series simulation is included in each robot repository, allowing users to switch between the real robot and simulation in the same workspace.

For launching the simulation of MPO-700:

ros2 launch neo_mpo_700-2 bringup_sim.launch.py

For launching the simulation of MP-400:

ros2 launch neo_mp_400-2 bringup_sim.launch.py

For launching the simulation of MPO-500:

ros2 launch neo_mpo_500-2 bringup_sim.launch.py

For launching the simulation of MP-500:

ros2 launch neo_mp_500-2 bringup_sim.launch.py

Launch Arguments

Attention

Certain arguments such as arm_type and gripper_type are available only for certain robots. It is recommended to check for the arguments by adding the –show-launch-arguments tag at the end of the above command.

Arguments (pass arguments as '<name>:=<value>'):

'world':
    Simulation world to load. Valid choices are: ['', 'neo_workshop']
    (default: 'neo_workshop')

'arm_type':
    Arm Types
. Valid choices are: ['', 'ur5', 'ur10', 'ur5e', 'ur10e', 'ec66']
    (default: '')

'imu_enable':
    Enable IMU - Options: True/False
    (default: 'False')

'd435_enable':
    Enable Intel RealSense D435 camera if true
    (default: 'False')

'scanner_type':
    Type of laser scanner to use
. Valid choices are: ['', 'sick_s300', 'sick_microscan3']
    (default: 'sick_s300')

'gripper_type':
    Gripper Types
. Valid choices are: ['', '2f_140', '2f_85']
    (default: '')

'use_docking_adapter':
    Enable docking adapter if true
    (default: 'False')

Video Tutorial

Worlds

neo_workshop

Experience the testing area situated in our campus through this world.

Note

This specific work is available in the neo_gz_world package.

More worlds coming soon…

Navigation

Please see Nav2 - ROS 2 Navigation Stack for more information on navigation in simulation.

Manipulation

Please see the manpulation section here in the Starting with ROS 2 on the Robot for getting started with manipulation.

Followed by the neo_ur_moveit_config for controlling the mobile manipulator with the MoveIt package.

Gripping in Simulation

The ROX Gazebo simulation supports the Robotiq 2F-85 and 2F-140 grippers mounted on a UR arm. The instructions below apply only to simulation.

Note

Clone the ros2_robotiq_gripper repository on GitHub into your ROS 2 workspace’s src directory. If you used robot-setup-tools to set up the workspace, this step is already taken care of.

Launch ROX with the desired arm and gripper. For example, to use a UR5e with a 2F-85:

ros2 launch rox_bringup bringup_sim_launch.py arm_type:=ur5e gripper_type:=2f_85

Use gripper_type:=2f_140 for the 2F-140. The launch starts the selected gripper’s position_controllers/GripperActionController automatically. Gazebo provides the simulated hardware; leave mock hardware disabled.

In another terminal, source the workspace and send a gripper command:

source /opt/ros/jazzy/setup.bash
ros2 action send_goal /robotiq_2f_85_gripper_controller/gripper_cmd control_msgs/action/GripperCommand "{command: {position: 0.3, max_effort: 50.0}}"

The position value is the driving joint angle in radians, not the distance between the fingers. Use 0.0 to open the gripper and increase the angle to close it. The joint range is 0.0 to 0.8 for the 2F-85 and 0.0 to 0.7 for the 2F-140. For the 2F-140, change the action name to /robotiq_2f_140_gripper_controller/gripper_cmd.

Note

These commands control joint position. The max_effort field does not enforce a gripping-force limit in this position-controlled Gazebo setup. Successful completion of a command does not confirm that an object is held.