OMPL Visual Tools

The OMPL Visual Tools is a library for visualizing and debugging Open Motion Planning Library algorithms in Rviz.

Formally named ompl_rviz_viewer until August 2014, this project spun out of an internship at Willow Garage. Video

The ompl_visual_tools was originally develped for testing cost-based algorithms in a two dimensional space with a third dimension displayed as cost. The space is specified as a grey scale cost map image that can be passed in to the program. The lighter (closer to white) each pixel of the image is, the “higher the cost” is considered to be. Black is considered no cost. Additionally, absolute obstacles can be specified by defining a max limit to the cost, such that any value above that threshold is considered an obstacle.

This little program is similar to the OMPL.app that is distributed with OMPL, but instead uses RViz for visualization and is more streamlined for considering costs and experience-based planning.

Developed by Dave Coleman at the University of Colorado Boulder and Willow Garage

Status:

• Travis CI
• Devel Job Status
• AMD64 Debian Job Status

How to Build

sudo apt-get install ros-indigo-ompl-visual-tools

Usage

This library can be integrated into your project to easily view a 2D, 3D or robot planning environment in Rviz.

First, load the visualizer:

    // The visual tools for interfacing with Rviz
    ompl_visual_tools::OmplVisualToolsPtr visual_tools_;

    // Load the tool for displaying in Rviz
    visual_tools_.reset(new ompl_visual_tools::OmplVisualTools(BASE_FRAME));
    visual_tools_->setSpaceInformation(si_);
    visual_tools_->setGlobalScale(100);

    // Clear current rviz makers
    visual_tools_->deleteAllMarkers();

Two Dimensions with optional cost map

To test with a 2D environment with a cost map:

    // Cost in 2D
    ompl::base::CostMap2DOptimizationObjectivePtr cost_map_;
    cost_map_->max_cost_threshold_percent_ = max_cost_threshold_percent;
    cost_map_->loadImage(image_path);

    // Pass cost to visualizer
    visual_tools_->setCostMap(cost_map_->cost_);

To view the cost map in Rviz:

    visual_tools_->publishCostMap(cost_map_->image_);

To view the start and goal location:

    visual_tools_->publishState(start, rviz_visual_tools::GREEN,  rviz_visual_tools::XLARGE, "plan_start_goal");
    visual_tools_->publishState(goal,  rviz_visual_tools::ORANGE, rviz_visual_tools::XLARGE, "plan_start_goal");

To view the solution path:

      // Interpolate solution
      simple_setup_->getSolutionPath().interpolate();

      // Show path
      visual_tools_->publishPath( simple_setup_->getSolutionPath(), rviz_visual_tools::GREEN, 1.0, "final_solution");

And to see more of what the planner was doing:

      // Visualize the explored space
      visual_tools_->publishGraph(planner_data, rviz_visual_tools::ORANGE, 0.2, "tree");

      // Visualize the sample locations
      visual_tools_->publishSamples(planner_data);

MoveIt! Robot Planning

See moveit_visual_tools for more information about tools this class can use with MoveIt!. For OMPL-specific features:

First, set the state space that MoveIt! has chosen for your robot in OMPL:

``` // Create a state space describing our robot’s planning group ompl_interface::ModelBasedStateSpaceSpecification model_ss_spec(moveit_robot_model, joint_model_group);

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Changelog for package ompl_visual_tools

2.3.2 (2016-01-13)

• Removed usage of publishSamples in demo
• Updated README
• Added travis support
• Contributors: Dave Coleman

2.3.1 (2015-12-07)

• catkin lint cleanup
• Contributors: Dave Coleman

2.3.0 (2015-12-05)

• Fixed API changes in rviz_visual_tools
• Contributors: Dave Coleman

2.2.1 (2015-01-07)

• Fix typo
• Added missing images
• Fix install space
• Contributors: Dave Coleman

2.2.0 (2014-10-31)

• Fix for RvizVisualTools
• Upgrade to new moveit_visual_tools API
• API changes for moveit_visual_tools
• Added gitignore
• New publishState() functions
• New publishRobotState function
• Formatting, new callback parameter
• Deprecated publishSamples functions
• Added publishSpheres functions to correspond to moveit_visual_tools ones
• Improved visualizationStateCallback
• New publishRobotGraph function
• New convertRobotStatesToTipPoints function
• Fixing display database mode
• Made publish functions return bool
• Disable 3D option
• publish cost map with non-static ID numbers
• New publishSampleIDs function. Restructured publishSamples interface to use moveit_visual_tools version
• Updated publishSampels() functions
• Reduced size of published spheres
• Contributors: Dave Coleman

2.1.1 (2014-08-11)

• Removed debug output
• Removed hard-coded base_frame name
• Improved memory usage
• Cost ptr bug fix
• Removed setOptimizationMethod()
• Contributors: Dave Coleman

2.1.0 (2014-08-08)

• Removed getSolutionPlannerName that is not available in OMPL released version
• Updated README
• Renamed file to rrt_demo.cpp
• Cleanup since change to moveit_visual_tools
• Specify OMPL version
• Fixed marker topic path
• Contributors: Dave Coleman

2.0.1 (2014-08-07)

• Updated README
• Removed lightning dependencies
• Renamed ompl_rviz_viewer to ompl_visual_tools
• Initial
• Contributors: Dave Coleman