In this episode I talk to Florian Lier about what his team ToBI is doing to program Pepper the robot for the Robocup@Home competition.

We will explain the whole architecture they are using to program Pepper with ROS for the competition including:

• In which computer to run which code
• ROS wrappers for NaoQi
• How to use a good Pepper simulation using Morse simulator
• Which environments to use to develop robot behaviors, and where to find them
• How they are integrating with automatic regression tests

Selected quote from the interview:

We are using a meta-build system that has templates for ROS, combined with some recipes on which you define the type of software you want to deploy. You put the recipes into a system description that is what you deploy into the ICI servers.

Florian Lier

Related links:

• Follow Florian Lier on LinkedIn
• ToBI (Team of Bielefeld) team for the Robocup@Home competition
• Robocup@Home competition
• ToBI teal qualification video for Robocup
• ROS Navigation stack
• Yolo (deep learning) with ROS using Darknet
• NaoQi framework for programming Pepper
• ROS wrappers for NaoQi by Softbank
• Morse simulation
• ToBI simulation with Morse
• Public git of ToBI (not yet online)
• Gazebo simulator
• Nate Koening (Gazebo simulator main developer)
• Podcast interview to Louise Poubel (Gazebo developer)
• SCXML with Bonsai
• Frederic Siepmann
• ToBI middleware RSB
• Cognitive Interaction Toolkit Link 1
• Cognitive Interaction Toolkit Link 2
• Cognitive Interaction Toolkit Link 3
• FlexBe Behavior Development for robots
• SMACH (ROS State Machines)