rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
jazzy

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
kilted

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
lyrical

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
rolling

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro ardent showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro bouncy showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro crystal showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro eloquent showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro dashing showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro galactic showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro foxy showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
iron

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro lunar showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro jade showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro indigo showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro hydro showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro kinetic showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro melodic showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

CONTRIBUTING

No version for distro noetic showing humble. Known supported distros are highlighted in the buttons above.

rosx_introspection repository

rosx_introspection

ROS Distro
humble

Repository Summary

Checkout URI	https://github.com/facontidavide/rosx_introspection.git
VCS Type	git
VCS Version	master
Last Updated	2026-05-30
Dev Status	DEVELOPED
Released	RELEASED
Contributing	Help Wanted (-) Good First Issues (-) Pull Requests to Review (-)

Packages

Name	Version
rosx_introspection	3.1.0

README

ROS X Introspection

A runtime message parser and introspection library for ROS. It can deserialize any ROS message into key/value pairs without compile-time type knowledge.

Supported schema formats

ROS .msg (ROS1 and ROS2 message definitions)
DDS IDL (OMG IDL 4.2 subset)

The subset the OMG IDL currently supported are:

enums
unions
@key and @optional
multi-dimensional arrays
struct inheritance

Build modes

The library compiles in two modes:

ROS2 (colcon/ament)
Standalone (vanilla CMake, no ROS dependency)

ROS1 .msg schemas and the ROS1 serialization format (ROS_Deserializer) are still supported at runtime, but the catkin build system is no longer maintained.

How it works

To parse a message at runtime, you need:

The type name (e.g. sensor_msgs/JointState or my_pkg::MyIdlMessage)
The schema definition (a .msg file or IDL text)
A raw memory buffer containing the serialized message

The raw buffer is typically obtained from:

rosbag::MessageInstance or topic_tools::ShapeShifter in ROS1.
GenericSubscription or rosbag2_storage::SerializedBagMessage in ROS2.
MCAP files (works without ROS).

Output writers

The MessageWriter interface allows different output formats from the same deserialization walk:

Writer	Description
`FlatMessageWriter`	Produces a `FlatMessage` (vector of key/value pairs). Default output.
`MsgpackMessageWriter`	Writes MessagePack binary directly, bypassing `FlatMessage`.
`JsonMessageWriter`	Produces a JSON document (requires `ROSX_HAS_JSON=ON`).

Custom writers can be implemented by subclassing MessageWriter.

Building and testing

# Standalone build (no ROS)
cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build build
ctest --test-dir build

Benchmarks

The MCAP benchmark measures deserialization throughput on real bag files:

cmake -S. -B build -DBUILD_BENCHMARKS=ON
cmake --build build

# Run with different output writers
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer flat
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer msgpack
./build/mcap_benchmark path/to/file.mcap --writer json

The IDL benchmark measures CDR deserialization performance:

./build/idl_benchmark

Python binding

cmake -S. -B build_python -DROSX_PYTHON_BINDINGS=ON
cmake --build build_python

PYTHONPATH=build_python/python python3 python/mcap_ros_parser.py path_to_your_rosbag.mcap

rosx_introspection repository

ROS Distrohumble

Repository Summary

Packages

README

ROS X Introspection

Supported schema formats

Build modes

How it works

Output writers

Building and testing

Benchmarks

Python binding

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

ROS Distrojazzy

Repository Summary

Packages

README

ROS X Introspection

Supported schema formats

Build modes

How it works

Output writers

Building and testing

Benchmarks

Python binding

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

ROS Distrokilted

Repository Summary

Packages

README

ROS X Introspection

Supported schema formats

Build modes

How it works

Output writers

Building and testing

Benchmarks

Python binding

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

ROS Distrolyrical

Repository Summary

Packages

README

ROS X Introspection

Supported schema formats

Build modes

How it works

Output writers

Building and testing

Benchmarks

Python binding

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

ROS Distrorolling

Repository Summary

Packages

README

ROS X Introspection

Supported schema formats

Build modes

How it works

Output writers

Building and testing

Benchmarks

Python binding

CONTRIBUTING

rosx_introspection repository

ROS Distrohumble

Repository Summary

Packages

README

ROS X Introspection

Supported schema formats

Build modes

How it works

Output writers

ROS Distro
humble

ROS Distro
jazzy

ROS Distro
kilted

ROS Distro
lyrical

ROS Distro
rolling

ROS Distro
humble

ROS Distro
humble

ROS Distro
humble

ROS Distro
humble

ROS Distro
humble

ROS Distro
humble