Getting Started with the Robot Software

This section will guide you through setting up the Carter robot software.

Before you get started with software setup on the Carter robot, you will need the following:

• Wired Internet Connectivity (Ethernet RJ45)

• WiFi Connectivity

  • Preferably 802.11k/v/r for better roaming experience on both the

    host (laptop/tablet/phone) and client (robot). Note that the robot currently supports 802.11k)

• Carter V2.3 (Orin)

• Browser enabled device (Chrome or Edge) such as a PC/laptop

  • The Carter robot and browser-enabled device should be connected to

    the same network

• An HDMI-compatible display to configure the network on the robot

1. Set up an account at https://catalog.ngc.nvidia.com/

2. Contact your NVIDIA admin to be added to the EA org for Isaac 2.0 (ea-isaac).

3. After you are granted access, you will receive an invite link in an Email to confirm membership in the EA org

4. Obtain an API Key, which will be necessary to download the docker containers from NGC.

Follow these steps to connect the Carter robot to the local WiFi network:

1. Connect the robot to a display using the HDMI port on the rear

   interface panel (refer to the Robot Components section for the HDMI port location).

2. Connect the robot to wired Ethernet Port (using RJ45 connector) on

   the rear interface panel

3. Connect the keyboard with touchpad to the rear interface panel.

4. Log in to the robot (Contact NVIDIA for the robot password).

5. Follow the WiFi instructions for Ubuntu.

6. Once WiFi is configured, disconnect the HDMI Monitor and Keyboard.

To control, deploy, launch, and debug applications, you have to connect to the robot.

First, you must get the IP address of the robot. Assuming you have the robot connected to a display and a keyboard with touchpad from the previous section, follow these instructions:

1. Use CTRL+ALT+t to open a terminal.

2. Find the IP address of the WiFi by running ifconfig wlan0. You

   should see an output similar to below. The IP address is highlighted with a red rectangle.

3. Record the IP address, in this case it is 10.110.66.127. This IP

   address will be used for connecting in all further tutorials and may need to be retrieved again if it changes.

4. SSH into the robot:

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   bob@jetson:~/isaac$ ssh ROBOTUSER@ROBOT_IP
           

   1. Use a computer that is connected to the same WiFi network as your

      robot

   2. Assuming you are on a Linux computer, open a terminal with

      `CTRL+ALT+t` and run `ssh <USER>@<ROBOT_IP>`. In this case, it would be `ssh nvidia@10.110.66.127`

   3. Enter the password to log in to the robot (contact NVIDIA for the

      robot password). The tutorials/tools in the following sections will be run from this SSH connection.

   Note

   The login will timeout for security, and the HDMI will turn off after a while due to inactivity; so retry if the screen goes black.

The Carter robot comes preinstalled with the Isaac Joystick application, which allows you to test out the robot’s controls.

Use the following to pull the docker container and the app run the following commands:

            

            
$HOME/run_joystick.sh
        

You should hear the Carter beep, indicating that you can now move it around. To move the robot, press and hold the L1 button and use the thumbsticks to navigate manually. The robot is configured to move at a maximum speed of 1.1m/s to ensure safe operation.

To stop the app, Press Ctrl+C on the PC.

After testing the Joystick application, you are ready to try out various use cases with this robot.

Isaac 2.0 Early Access features two important use cases:

1. Map Creation

2. Autonomous Navigation

The tutorial sections will walk you through these two workflows.