Install Cartographer Launch

This guide explains how to install and configure Cartographer launch files for SLAM.

Prerequisites

Before installing Cartographer, ensure you have the latest version of the common platform repository and a ROS2 workspace set up.

Steps

1. Navigate to the Repository

Change to the common platform directory:

cd ~/repos/common_platform

2. Stash Current Changes

Save any uncommitted changes:

git stash

3. Switch to Main Branch

Ensure you’re on the main branch to get the latest updates:

git checkout main

4. Pull Latest Changes

Get the most recent updates from the repository:

git pull

5. Restore Stashed Changes

Apply your previously stashed changes back:

git stash pop

6. Copy Launch File

Copy the Cartographer launch file to your ROS2 workspace:

cp launch/cartographer_simple.launch.py ~/ros2_ws/src/cartographer_ros/cartographer_ros/launch/

7. Navigate to ROS2 Workspace

Change to your ROS2 workspace directory:

cd ~/ros2_ws/

8. Build Cartographer Package

Build the Cartographer ROS package with symlink installation:

colcon build --packages-select cartographer_ros --symlink-install

Next Steps

After completing these steps, Cartographer should be ready to use. You can now launch SLAM mapping with the configured launch file.