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lightweight-cobot/doc/lwc-doc/docs/getting-started/configuration.en.md
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Даниил Грабарь 3a5bc28bba feat: add release-to-move TCP gizmo control in Webots
Add a native Webots marker for setting the active tool's TCP position and
orientation. Dragging edits the preview; releasing the mouse submits one
complete, checked joint trajectory with configured TCP speed limits.
Unreachable targets reset the marker to the current TCP.

Preserve coordinate, joint, and control-file commands through motion
reservations and a controller action proxy. Give the gizmo lowest priority
and finish its committed trajectory before dispatching queued regular
commands, including waits longer than the former two-second service timeout.

Place the patron TCP at its working end, 55.2 mm along local Z, and use the
flange TCP when no tool is attached. Add digital_twin.tcp_gizmo configuration,
ROS interfaces, launch integration, and regression coverage.

Document operation, configuration, tool attachment, speed limits, and
troubleshooting in both Russian and English.

Validation: 42 Python tests and 8 C++ tests passed. Webots regressions covered
one action per release, translation and rotation with and without a tool,
unreachable targets, and ordinary commands waiting for gizmo completion.
2026-09-17 17:11:53 +03:00

7.9 KiB

System configuration

Main configuration file

All system parameters are stored in a single file: cobot-setting.yaml in the project root. It is the single source of truth for the robot IP address, ports, configuration paths, planner settings, and web server settings.

!!! info "No manual configuration is needed before installation" When you run cobot setup, the wizard offers to configure this file automatically in step 2. Return to this section when you want to change parameters after the initial installation.

!!! danger "Do not edit the file manually" Use only cobot robot-setup. The interactive wizard validates values and prevents syntax errors. Editing the YAML manually may cause parsing errors and prevent the system from starting.

cobot robot-setup

robot section — robot parameters

Controls the connection to the physical KUKA controller through FRI.

robot:
  name: "iiwa7"
  ip: "192.170.10.2"
  port: 30200
  fri_cycle_ms: 10
  description: pkg://iiwa_description/urdf/iiwa7.urdf.xacro
Parameter Description Recommendation
name Robot model Do not change: iiwa7
ip KUKA controller IP address Change to the actual controller address
port FRI UDP port Default: 30200; change only if the port conflicts
fri_cycle_ms FRI cycle: 5 ms = 200 Hz, 10 ms = 100 Hz Use 10 for stable operation or 5 for high-precision tasks
joint_position_tau FRI command EMA time constant, s 0.04; 0 disables smoothing
description Path to the robot URDF Do not change

Motion always uses JointTrajectoryController. The position command is smoothed before FRI transmission with robot.joint_position_tau; no velocity filter is applied.


digital_twin section — simulator

Configures the Webots environment and RViz visualization.

digital_twin:
  tcp_gizmo:
    enabled: true
    publish_period: 0.032
    command_timeout: 0.3
    state_timeout: 0.5
    max_linear_speed: 0.50
    max_angular_speed: 0.4
  webots:
    world: pkg://iiwa_description/worlds/iiwa.wbt
    transform: "-0.25 0 0.79"
    rotation: "0 0 1 0"
    controller_timer: "50"
    cameras:
      - pkg://iiwa_config/config/cameras/d455_top.yaml
  rviz:
    config: pkg://iiwa_config/config/rviz/rviz_moveit.rviz
Parameter Description
webots.world Path to the simulator .wbt world
webots.transform Robot base offset in the world [x y z], in meters
webots.rotation Base orientation [x y z angle], in radians
webots.cameras List of YAML configurations for connected cameras
rviz.config Path to the RViz configuration

TCP gizmo in Webots

Select the TCP marker, translate or rotate it with the native Webots gizmo, and release the left mouse button. Holding the button only changes the preview. Releasing it submits one complete trajectory. Another drag is accepted after that trajectory finishes. An unreachable target or a colliding trajectory resets the marker to the current TCP.

The gizmo controls the active tool's tcp link independently of planning.pose_link. For patron, TCP is at the chuck's working end, 55.2 mm along local Z from the patron link origin. Without a tool, it coincides with the link_ee flange. Regular Cartesian commands also use this point when planning.pose_link: tcp.

The gizmo has the lowest motion priority. It is unavailable during regular motion. If a coordinate, joint, or file command arrives while a committed gizmo trajectory is running, that command waits for the trajectory to finish before proceeding.

tcp_gizmo parameter Description
enabled Set to false to disable the gizmo at the next launch; simulation only
publish_period State update period, seconds
command_timeout Maximum age of an incoming target, seconds; not a delay after dragging
state_timeout Maximum age of robot feedback, seconds
max_linear_speed TCP linear speed cap, m/s
max_angular_speed TCP angular speed cap, rad/s

Mouse release is detected directly, so no idle timer is needed. Joint limits, acceleration, and deceleration can reduce speed below the configured cap. The trajectory interpolates joint positions to reach the requested TCP pose; a straight Cartesian path is not guaranteed.

See the simulation guide for the operating sequence.


tool section — active tool

Specifies which gripper or tool is attached to the robot.

tool:
  active: "patron"
Value Description
none No tool
patron Patron chuck/gripper

Available tools are defined in src/iiwa_config/config/tools.yaml. To add a tool, describe it there and then set its name in tool.active.

Apply tool selection through cobot robot-setup, which updates the tool description and SRDF. Rebuild the project and restart the simulation after changing tools.


planning section — motion planning

Configures MoveIt 2 and the trajectory planner.

planning:
  pose_link: "tcp"
  planning_group: "iiwa_arm"
  default_frame: "base_link"
  default_planner: "ompl"
  planning_attempts: 3
Parameter Description Recommendation
pose_link TCP link used for Cartesian targets Must match the URDF frame; do not change without updating the URDF
planning_group Planning group from the SRDF Do not change: iiwa_arm
default_frame Default reference frame Do not change: base_link
default_planner Planner: ompl or pilz_industrial_motion_planner ompl is general purpose; pilz produces predictable trajectories
planning_attempts Number of planning attempts after failure Increase for difficult trajectories

web section — REST API and MCP server

Configures the FastAPI server used to control the robot over HTTP and MCP for AI-agent integration.

web:
  enabled: true
  host: "0.0.0.0"
  port: 8007
  endpoints: pkg://iiwa_config/config/api_endpoints.yaml
  joint_limits: pkg://iiwa_config/config/moveit/joint_limits.yaml
Parameter Description
enabled Enable (true) or disable (false) the web server
host Listening address: 0.0.0.0 for all interfaces or 127.0.0.1 for local access only
port HTTP API port; default: 8007
endpoints Path to the REST endpoint description
joint_limits Path to joint limits used for command validation

After startup, the REST API is available at http://<host>:8007, and MCP is available at /mcp.


foxglove section — Foxglove Studio monitoring

Foxglove Studio visualizes and monitors ROS 2 topics in real time.

foxglove:
  enabled: true
  port: 8765
  debug: false
  address: 0.0.0.0
Parameter Description
enabled Enable or disable Foxglove Bridge
port WebSocket port used by Foxglove Studio; default: 8765
debug Detailed logging for the bridge process
address WebSocket listening address

The remaining parameters (tls, topic_whitelist, min_qos_depth, and others) are intended for advanced configuration and normally do not need to be changed.


What to change and what to keep

Parameter Action
✅ robot.ip Must be changed to the controller IP address
✅ robot.fri_cycle_ms Select 10 (standard) or 5 (high frequency)
✅ tool.active Set the active tool
✅ web.enabled Set to false if the web interface is not needed
⚠️ planning.* Change only when another planner or other parameters are required
❌ robot.description Do not change; this is the URDF path
❌ controller.moveit.* Do not change; these are package-internal MoveIt configuration paths
❌ digital_twin.webots.world Do not change unless you understand the Webots world structure