Support for this emerging standard operating system for robots adds to existing support for ROS 1 and C++ and will give developers the flexibility to be able to integrate SLAMcore’s vision-based SLAM (location, mapping and perception) software into a wider range of robot and autonomous product designs.
As commercial deployment of autonomous machines accelerates, designers and developers of robotics systems are turning to the capabilities of ROS 2 open-source software. The latest version of SLAMcore’s SDK, which is now available, allows SLAMcore customers to integrate its cutting-edge spatial intelligence into any robot using ROS 2 as its core middleware.
SLAMcore now provides ROS 2 users with significant benefits including:
- Enhanced SLAM efficiency for better memory and processor utilization – providing accurate, real-time position (in 6 degrees of freedom) running locally on minimal compute/memory – freeing compute/memory for product capabilities.
- Full 3D mapping and path planning – offering accurate, dense, 3D voxel-based maps for accurate maps of the robot’s surroundings for navigation purposes.
- Potential for semantic object maps – providing access to future SLAMcore capabilities including semantic object identification and labelling within maps.
SLAMcore algorithms make use of several enhancements in ROS 2, specifically the upgraded Nav 2 stack supporting fully autonomous navigation and enhanced support for embedded processors.
SLAMcore’s vision-based SLAM allows full 3D mapping and path planning within ROS 2 and supports the development of semantic mapping to add understanding of objects within a map. The fine-grain control of memory and processor functions enabled in ROS 2 further enhances the efficiency of SLAMcore’s algorithms allowing developers to use smaller, less power hungry and more cost-effective embedded processors for SLAM.
ROS 2 has been developed over the last couple of years to extend the benefits of the pioneering open-source Robot Operating System (ROS) into rapidly emerging new robotics applications and represents a powerful platform that further accelerates the effective deployment of highly capable autonomous machines.
Key contributors including AWS regard ROS 2 as a fundamental building block for the next generation of robot deployments.
Owen Nicholson, CEO SLAMcore added, “Our customers are looking to deploy robots in real-world and at-scale situations and are turning to vision-based SLAM systems for efficient mapping, location and positioning. Integrating SLAMcore’s leading spatial intelligence with ROS 2 designs is a straightforward and highly cost-effective approach for them to quickly address complex SLAM challenges and move projects forward faster.”
