Robobo Developer
The main element that makes a Robobo a robot compatible with ROS is the application Robobo Developer.
This application implements a proxy over the Robobo framework that makes it compatible with the ROS communications system.
Robobo publishes all their sensors, in raw format, using a set of ROS topics, one for each sensor. A detailed explanation of each topic can be found at Documentation of Robobo Sensor Topics.
Regarding robot actuation, Robobo provides a set of ROS service to command its movement and other actions. A detailed explanation can be found at Documentation of Robobo Services.
Installation of the Robobo Developer application must be done directly from the Google Play app store on any Android 5.1 or higher compatible device:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mytechia.robobo.app.ros.robobodeveloper
When you first run the application, it will ask for permission to take photos, record videos, record audio and access multimedia content.
After that, the application shows the Pairing page.
The smartphone and the robobo base must be paired by Bluetooth in order to be able to communicate between them. If the Bluetooth is not activated, the application will show an error that will guide you to the Bluetooth configuration screen to enable it. If the desired Robobo base does not appear in the devices list, it may not be paired. For pairing the Robobo and the smarphone, turn on the Robobo base without being connected to the battery charger and go to the Bluetooth configuration screen of the phone, activate the discovery of nearby devices and, when it appears, select it to connect.
To run the application, select the desired robobo robotic base (i.e: ROB_P09) in the pairing page and press the START button. If everything went well, the initial *ROS application page* appears, with an IP address, a Robobo face, a camera image and values of the acceleration and orientation are provided.
After this, all modules must be running, including the Robobo module which publishes the topics and starts all available services
On the contrary, if you prefer to use your own computer or another device as a ROS Master, in the pairing page, press the 'SETUP' button and then press 'ROS Options', disable the 'Local ROS Master' option, enter the remote master URL (do not forget to include the port) and finally press 'SAVE'. After this, each time the application starts, it will search the specified ROS Master to publish its services and topics
