AMR Simple Motion Control

Keyboard-controlled motion of a simulated AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot) in Gazebo. The control node publishes Twist commands to /qrb_robot_base/cmd_vel, forwarded through ros_gz_bridge to the Gazebo differential-drive system, with odom feedback confirming actual robot motion.

Data Flow

simple_motion → /qrb_robot_base/cmd_vel → ros_gz_bridge → Gazebo → /qrb_robot_base/odom

Prerequisites

• QIR SDK installed
• Display connected (GUI mode) or headless verification

Build from Source

Step 1: Install Dependencies

radxa@airbox$

sudo apt install -y \
  ros-jazzy-ros-gz \
  ros-jazzy-gz-ros2-control \
  ros-jazzy-ros2-controllers

Step 2: Clone and Build

radxa@airbox$

git clone https://github.com/qualcomm-qrb-ros/qrb_ros_simulation.git
cd qrb_ros_simulation
source /opt/ros/jazzy/setup.bash
colcon build --cmake-args -DBUILD_TESTING=OFF

Run (GUI Mode)

Terminal 1 — Start Gazebo simulation from a desktop terminal:

radxa@airbox$

source /opt/ros/jazzy/setup.bash
source ~/qrb_ros_simulation/install/setup.bash
ros2 launch qrb_ros_sim_gazebo gazebo_robot_base.launch.py \
  namespace:=qrb_robot_base enable_laser:=false enable_imu:=false

Once the Gazebo window opens, click the play button at the bottom-left to start the simulation.

Terminal 2 — Start the controller:

radxa@airbox$

ros2 run simulation_sample_amr_simple_motion simple_motion

Keyboard Controls

Key	Command	Twist Value
i	Forward	linear.x = 0.5
,	Backward	linear.x = -0.5
j	CCW turn	angular.z = 0.5
l	CW turn	angular.z = -0.5
k	Stop	linear.x = 0.0
q	Quit

Verification

After pressing i to send a forward command, the AMR in the Gazebo window should move visibly. Confirm via the odom topic:

radxa@airbox$

source /opt/ros/jazzy/setup.bash
ros2 topic echo /qrb_robot_base/odom --field pose.pose.position.x

Expected: position.x grows from approximately 0.

Headless Mode

To run without a display, use headless mode for the Gazebo server and ros_gz_bridge only:

radxa@airbox$

source /opt/ros/jazzy/setup.bash
source ~/qrb_ros_simulation/install/setup.bash
ros2 launch qrb_ros_sim_gazebo gazebo_robot_base.launch.py \
  namespace:=qrb_robot_base enable_laser:=false enable_imu:=false \
  headless:=true

Extension: Navigation and SLAM

Enable LiDAR and IMU for a full sensory setup:

ros2 launch qrb_ros_sim_gazebo gazebo_robot_base.launch.py \
  namespace:=qrb_robot_base \
  enable_laser:=true \
  enable_imu:=true \
  enable_odom:=true \
  enable_odom_tf:=true

Available interfaces:

Topic	Type
/qrb_robot_base/cmd_vel	Twist
/qrb_robot_base/odom	Odometry
/qrb_robot_base/joint_states	JointState
/qrb_robot_base/tf	TFMessage
/qrb_robot_base/scan	LaserScan (requires enable_laser:=true)
/qrb_robot_base/imu	Imu (requires enable_imu:=true)

This foundation supports Nav2 navigation, 2D SLAM, obstacle avoidance, path planning, and more (additional packages required).

Note: The cross-machine topology described in the official document (x86 host running Gazebo + Q900 controlling via DDS) has not been verified. If using this setup, ensure ROS_DOMAIN_ID matches and the network supports multicast between the host and Q900.