drone_automation

Controller for drone automation using MAVROS

Contents

• controller.py: Contains core controller class
• waypoint.py: Waypoint controller class for drone to traverse a list of points
• depth_processor.py: A node to process point cloud depth map
• utils.py: A collection of utility functions for converversion, unwrapping etc.

Requirements

• ROS
• MAVROS
• PX4 Firmware
• PX4 Gazebo for MAVLink

You can follow the steps given here for setting up your environment

Usage

To set up this package

cd catkin_ws/src
git clone https://github.com/threewisemonkeys-as/drone_automation.git 
cd ..
catkin build
source devel/setup.bash

Demo in empty world

roslaunch drone_automation iris_empty_world.launch
rosrun drone_automation waypoint.py

Demo warehouse world with lidar, camera or depth

Models for the iris quadcopter with either depth, fpv or rplidar have been included. You can demo them in the warehouse gazebo world. For example

roslaunch drone_automation iris_depth_warehouse.launch
rosrun drone_automation waypoint.py

The relevant topics should be displayed in RViz

API Example

controller.py contains the core Controller class. This can be used as follows

# Initialises controller object with its publishers, subscribers and clients
drone = DroneController()

# Drone takes off and lands
drone.takeoff(2)
drone.land()

waypoint.py contains a WaypointController class which inherits from Controller. It can be used to traverse a path

# Initialises controller object with its publishers, subscribers and clients
wc = WaypointController()

# Drone takes off, traverses given points and lands
path = [(6, 0, 2), (6, 4, 2)]
wc.takeoff()
wc.traverse_path(path)
wc.land()

TODO

• Add waypoint controller
• Use setpoint_velocity with proportional control
• Incorporate obstacle detection using LIDAR / Camera

Resources

• GAAS (Generalized Autonomy Aviation System) Guide
• PX4 Development Guide MAVROS Example