4.1.2. ROS 1

4.1.2.1. Ubuntu packages

This section assumes you already have ROS installed (see www.ros.org). You will need to install a few more packages for the dVRK software:

Ubuntu 18.04Ubuntu 20.04

Ubuntu 18.04 with ROS Melodic:

sudo apt install libxml2-dev libraw1394-dev libncurses5-dev qtcreator swig sox espeak cmake-curses-gui cmake-qt-gui git subversion gfortran libcppunit-dev libqt5xmlpatterns5-dev libbluetooth-dev libhidapi-dev python-vcstool python-catkin-tools

Warning

For any dVRK software version greater than 2.1:

• Ubuntu 16.04 support has been dropped

• Ubuntu 18.04 support requires clang instead of gcc. You will need to install clang with sudo apt install clang and configure your workspace using: catkin config --cmake-args -DCMAKE_C_COMPILER=clang -DCMAKE_CXX_COMPILER=clang++

4.1.2.2. Catkin workspace, clone and build

If you’re using ROS Noetic and the master branch, you can just copy/paste the following block of commands in a terminal. For other configurations, make sure you replace noetic by melodic or whatever version of ROS you’re using. For the devel branches, replace the version number (e.g. 2.3.0 by devel).

# this depends on the ROS version you're using
source /opt/ros/noetic/setup.bash
mkdir -p ~/catkin_ws/src           # create the catkin workspace
cd ~/catkin_ws                     # go in the workspace
catkin init                        # create files for catkin build tool
catkin config --cmake-args -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release # all code should be compiled in release mode
cd src                             # go in source directory to pull code
# make sure you use the correct vcs file
vcs import --input https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jhu-saw/vcs/main/ros1-dvrk-2.3.1.vcs --recursive
catkin build --summary             # ... and finally compile everything
source ~/catkin_ws/devel/setup.bash

To use the development branches, replace the vcs line with:

vcs import --input https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jhu-saw/vcs/main/ros1-dvrk-devel.vcs --recursive

4.1.2.3. Testing

Environment variables

If you have a single catkin workspace for a given user account, you might want to automatically source the setup.bash when you log in. To do so, you should add the following lines at the end of your ~/.bashrc (hidden file in your home directory):

# for ROS
if [ -f ~/catkin_ws/devel/setup.bash ]; then
  . ~/catkin_ws/devel/setup.bash
fi
# for cisst (optional)
if [ -f ~/catkin_ws/devel/cisstvars.sh ]; then
  . ~/catkin_ws/devel/cisstvars.sh
fi

Examples

Use a ROS launch file to start the dVRK in simulated mode with the patient cart only:

source ~/catkin_ws/devel/setup.bash
roslaunch dvrk_model patient_cart.launch generation:=Classic

dVRK with Classic patient cart simulated in RViz

In a second terminal, use a Python test script to make an arm move

source ~/catkin_ws/devel/setup.bash
rosrun dvrk_python dvrk_arm_test.py -a PSM1

The main dVRK ROS node is dvrk_console_json from the dvrk_robot. This node requires configuration files specific to your system.

Notes

• Don’t forget to start a roscore if you’re using rosrun. roslaunch will start a roscore if needed.

• Don’t forget to kill our roscore when you’re done. If you’re working on a shared computer, other users will thank you.