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List:       orocos-dev
Subject:    [Orocos-Dev] Library use for PA-10
From:       peter.soetens () fmtc ! be (Peter Soetens)
Date:       2006-03-14 11:36:37
Message-ID: 200603141135.55466.peter.soetens () fmtc ! be
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On Monday 13 March 2006 20:18, J.D. Yamokoski wrote:
> I am not sure if this belongs in the development list or the more
> general list, but I wanted some feedback from the community about how to
> best use the Orocos library for a particular application. We are
> developing a real-time controller for our Mitsubishi PA-10. For those
> not familiar with the PA-10, communication with the arm is done through
> an arcnet interface with a custom packet structure. To read sensor
> information from the arm (like joint angles or torque values), a command
> or control packet must first be sent. The arm controller then responds
> by sending back sensor readings. Therefore, reading sensors and
> controlling the arm on the PA10 side is a coupled event.

The ControlKernel template needs rework, exactly for the 'confusion' that you 
experience. What if a Sensor is also an Effector ? Where is the interface to 
the robot located, in the Controller Component ? Etc. The current solution 
has far too little answers for these questions.

I advise to start experimenting with the 'TaskContext' as documented in the 
"Component Builder's Manual" <http://www.orocos.org/download.html>. You'll 
recognise a lot if you have read the Control Kernel manual already. Write a 
single component which accesses your robot and then write a Sensor and 
Effector which 'maps' this component to the ControlKernel. Eventually 
(hopefully already in the next release), the 'TaskContext' component you 
wrote will be directly connectable to the ControlKernel's Controller, 
Kinematics etc. 

Peter
-- 
Peter Soetens -- FMTC -- <http://www.fmtc.be>

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