Requires Python 2.7 and using our davinci0 machine.

Use the following core API:

• dvrkArm.py: an API wrapping around the ROS messages to get or set positions.
• dvrkClothSim.py for moving the arms.

Performing our experiments involves several steps, due to loading a separate neural network (using a Python3 virtualenv). Roughly, the steps are:

1. Activate the robot via roscore, then (in a separate tab) run ./teleop in ~/catkin_ws and click HOME.

2. In another tab in ~/catkin_ws/src/zivid-ros/zivid_samples/launch, run the camera capture script:

roslaunch zivid_samples sample_capture_py.launch 

This will open up rviz, and generate some flashing lights.

3. In yet another tab, set up a new Python 3 virtualenv, and run python load_net.py. See call_network/README.md for detailed instructions. This script runs continuously in the background and checks for any new images in the target directory.

4. Check the configuration file in config.py which will contain a bunch of settings we can adjust. In particular, adjust which calibration data we should be using. They are in the form of text files.

5. Finally, run python run.py for experiments, using the system Python. This requires some keyboard strokes. The code runs one episode and then terminates. Repeat for more episodes.

Other helpful pointers:

• You can run python camera.py, using the system Python on our machine (i.e., not a virtualenv). The main method shows how to periodically query and save images from the camera into .png files. We import this in code above.

• For quick testing of the da vinci with resorting to the machinery of the experimental pipeline, use python dvrkClothSim.py (for generic motion) or one of the test scripts in tests/ (for calibration accuracy).

• For calibration, we do this to can map from neural network coordinates to actions. We use a grid of known points, and then apply bilinear interpolation to approximate positions everywhere else.

Here's a minimal working example. Put this set of code in tests/test_01_positions.py:

import sys
sys.path.append('.')
import dvrkArm

if __name__ == "__main__":
    p = dvrkArm.dvrkArm('/PSM1')
    pose_frame = p.get_current_pose_frame()
    pose_rad = p.get_current_pose()
    pose_deg = p.get_current_pose(unit='deg')

    print('pose_frame:\n{}'.format(pose_frame))
    print('pose_rad: {}'.format(pose_rad))
    print('pose_deg: {}'.format(pose_deg))

    targ_pos = [0.04845971,  0.05464517, -0.12231114]
    targ_rot = [4.65831872, -0.69974499,  0.87412989]
    p.set_pose(pos=targ_pos, rot=targ_rot, unit='rad')

and run python tests/test_01_positions.py. This will print out pose information about the dvrk arm, which can then be used to hard code some actions. For example, above we show how to set the pose of the arm given pre-computed targ_pos and targ_rot.