ROS 2

ROS 2
Name	ROS 2
Developer	Open Robotics; Willow Garage; Open Source Robotics Foundation
Initial release	2017
Programming language	C++; Python; Java; Rust
Operating system	Ubuntu; Debian; macOS; Microsoft Windows; QNX; RTOS
License	BSD license

ROS 2 is a flexible, open-source robotics middleware framework designed to support research, industry, and commercial deployment of robotic systems. It provides libraries and tools for robot perception, planning, control, simulation, and hardware interfacing while enabling interoperability across heterogeneous platforms such as Ubuntu, Windows, and real-time operating systems like QNX. ROS 2 is developed by contributors from academic institutions, companies, and foundations with an ecosystem spanning simulation engines, hardware vendors, and standards organizations.

Overview

ROS 2 is a middleware and software ecosystem supporting modular robotics applications through reusable packages and community-maintained stacks. It emphasizes industrial needs such as deterministic scheduling, secure communication, and cross-platform support, integrating with simulation projects and vendors across the robotics industry including Open Robotics, Willow Garage, Clearpath Robotics, PAL Robotics, Boston Dynamics, and Universal Robots. Core components interoperate with frameworks and tools from other domains such as Gazebo (software), Ignition Gazebo, MoveIt!, OpenCV, PCL (Point Cloud Library), and TensorFlow. The ecosystem engages contributors from universities like MIT, Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Tokyo, and companies such as Amazon Robotics, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Intel Corporation, and Bosch.

History and Development

Development of ROS 2 followed the original ROS project initiated at Willow Garage and later shepherded by Open Robotics and the Open Source Robotics Foundation. Early design discussions involved participants from DARPA programs and research labs at MIT and Stanford University to address limitations found during deployment in industrial and field robotics projects including collaborations with NASA and ESA. Major milestones included integration of quality-of-service features driven by requirements from Toyota Motor Corporation, Audi, Honda, and projects funded by agencies like the National Science Foundation and Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. Community releases have been coordinated with contributors from corporations such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Research, Intel Labs, NVIDIA Research, Siemens, Hitachi, and Bosch Research.

Architecture and Core Concepts

ROS 2 adopts a modular architecture built around nodes, topics, services, actions, and parameters similar in spirit to earlier middleware efforts at Willow Garage but redesigned for distributed systems used in industrial projects by ABB and KUKA. Key abstractions include executable nodes that implement algorithms from labs like ETH Zurich and University of Oxford interacting over publish–subscribe topics and request–reply services used in projects at Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory and Carnegie Mellon University. The framework supports middleware abstraction layers enabling multiple vendors and standards bodies—such as Object Management Group collaborations and industrial partners including Siemens AG—to provide implementations. Tooling around package management, build systems, and continuous integration integrates with platforms and services like GitHub, GitLab, Jenkins, and Travis CI used by academic and corporate teams including EPFL and Imperial College London.

Communication Middleware and DDS Integration

ROS 2's communication leverages the Data Distribution Service (DDS) standard developed by the Object Management Group with implementations from vendors such as RTI Connext, eProsima, PrismTech, CoreDX, and ADLINK Technology. DDS provides fine-grained Quality of Service (QoS) controls required by automotive and aerospace integrators like Toyota, Ford Motor Company, Boeing, and Lockheed Martin. Integration enables interoperability with industrial middleware stacks and standards efforts involving AUTOSAR, OPC Foundation, and research consortia at institutions such as Fraunhofer Society and TNO. DDS-based transport supports scenarios demonstrated in projects by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, European Space Agency, and corporate labs at Siemens and GE Research.

Security and Real-Time Features

Security features in ROS 2 reflect contributions from cybersecurity and standards groups including work aligned with IETF and ISO efforts, and implementations influenced by vendors like Microsoft and Red Hat. The security model includes authentication, encryption, and access control policies important to deployments in defense and healthcare applied by organizations such as DARPA, NATO, and Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. Real-time capabilities have been advanced via support for PREEMPT_RT, QNX, and integration with real-time middleware used by companies like Wind River and research groups at TU Delft and KTH Royal Institute of Technology to enable deterministic control loops for industrial automation from ABB and Siemens.

Supported Platforms and Tooling

ROS 2 supports major operating systems including distributions from Canonical (company), Debian Project, Microsoft, and Apple Inc. and real-time operating systems like QNX used by automotive suppliers such as Continental AG and Bosch. Toolchains and developer tools interoperate with ecosystems from NVIDIA Corporation, Intel Corporation, ARM Limited, and cloud services such as Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure. Simulation and verification tools including Gazebo (software), Ignition Robotics, Webots, and V-REP have been integrated through collaborations with academic labs at University of Pennsylvania and companies like Cyberbotics. Package repositories and CI/CD workflows leverage hosting and orchestration services provided by GitHub, Docker, Inc., Kubernetes, and Jenkins.

Adoption, Use Cases, and Community Contributions

ROS 2 is used across research projects and commercial products in sectors including automotive, aerospace, logistics, healthcare, and academia with adopters like Toyota Research Institute, Amazon Robotics, NASA, Boeing, Siemens Mobility, Boston Dynamics, and Clearpath Robotics. Use cases include autonomous vehicles demonstrated by Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory pilots, aerial robotics projects at ETH Zurich, underwater systems at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and industrial manipulators from ABB and KUKA. The community comprises contributors from universities such as MIT, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Tokyo, and corporations including Open Robotics, Sony Corporation, Bosch, and Microsoft Research who publish packages, middleware adapters, simulation models, and tools under permissive licenses. Major conferences and venues where ROS 2 work is presented include IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, ICRA, IROS, ROSCon, and workshops sponsored by foundations like IEEE and ACM.

Category:Robotics software