Week 7: Setting Up a New System with Ubuntu, Real-Time Kernel, and ROS 1

Task: Preparing a Second Laptop

This week, I was tasked with setting up a second laptop with Ubuntu 20.04, a real-time kernel, and ROS 1. The assumption was that the Franka Research 3 required a real-time kernel, and that ROS 2 wouldn’t be compatible with the hardware. Therefore, I needed to prepare this system using ROS 1.

Challenges and Learning

I faced numerous challenges while trying to build a real-time kernel on Ubuntu. As a novice in Linux, I spent the entire week diving into the technical details of:

1. Real-time kernels: Understanding why real-time performance is necessary for robotics and how to configure it.
2. ROS 1: Learning about its setup, differences from ROS 2, and troubleshooting issues.
3. Linux System Configuration: Gaining hands-on experience with system installation, configuration, and problem-solving.

Although I didn’t fully resolve all the issues, I made significant progress in understanding how these components work together. It was a challenging but valuable learning experience, and I feel more confident in navigating Linux and ROS systems moving forward.

Stay tuned for more updates!