Notice: Repository Migration (Effective Oct 1)

As of October 1, the MELFA ROS2 Driver has moved to the official Mitsubishi Electric GitHub organization. Please access the new page here: https://github.com/MitsubishiElectric

MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC INDUSTRIAL ROBOT MELFA ROS2 DRIVER

1. Overview

MELFA ROS2 Driver, co-developed with ROS-Industrial Consortium Asia Pacific, provides a suite of tools to enable the creation of advance solutions using our industry proven platform. Mitsubishi Electric provides a ROS 2 driver, ROS 2 GPIO controllers, robot description files and moveit_config packages for each robot; optimized in-house by our developers to ensure high performance.

Introducing the next generation of intelligent robots, incorporating advanced solutions technology and “e-F@ctory”, technologies and concepts developed and proven using Mitsubishi Electric’s own production facilities that go beyond basic robotic performance to find ways of reducing the TCO in everything from planning and design through to operation and maintenance. </br>

• Learn more
• Robot catalog

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2. MELFA ROS2 Driver Feature

MELFA ROS2 Driver consists of six main components: melfa_bringup, melfa_description, melfa_driver, melfa_io_controllers, melfa_msgs, various moveit_config packages.

melfa_bringup

• provides launch files for robot bringup

melfa_description

• contains robot descriptions
• ros2_controllers

melfa_driver

• supports ros2_control.
• provides real time communication¹ hardware interface with our CR800/860-R/Q/D robot controllers via rtexc api ².
• connects to the robot controller via rtexc api to control the robot via MELFA BASIC VI³ MXT⁴ command. The robot position command, robot state & I/O data are transmitted through this connection.
• includes quality of life features built into rtexc api such as user configurable disconnection detection and debugging tools.

melfa_io_controllers

• supports ros2_control.
• user configurable io controllers.
• provides ROS 2 controllers for GPIO control

melfa_msgs

• provides ROS 2 msgs for MELFA robots

melfa_robot-model_moveit_config

• provides example MoveIt config and launch files for MELFA robots
• supports OMPL, Pilz Industrial Planner, CHOMP and MoveIt Servo.
• optimized by our developers to ensure high performance in speed and accuracy.

Introduction

• First of all, thank you for contributing!
• Please follow the guidelines below to contribute to the project.

Disclaimer

1. lease note that the MELFA ROS 2 Driver has not received safety certification.
2. By using this driver, users acknowledge the potential for physical damage, personal injury, or destruction of hardware, and assume all responsibility for its use.
3. Users shall assume all risks and legal liabilities. Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and the developers shall not be held liable for any damage or injury whatsoever.
4. It is highly recommended to test in a simulation environment before executing any motions on the robot.

Types of Contributions

This project accepts the following categories of contributions.

1. Bug Reports: If you find a bug, please create an Issue to report it. Provide as much detail as possible, including steps to reproduce the issue and relevant screenshots.
2. Feature Requests: If you have ideas for new features, please open an Issue for discussion. Please explain the details of the feature and its potential benefits/use cases.
3. Code Contributions: If you would like to contribute code, please follow the workflow and steps described below.
4. Documentation: Improving documentation is also a valuable contribution. This includes updating existing documents, adding new guides, or fixing typos.
5. Testing: You can contribute by testing the project and reporting any issues found. Writing unit tests or integration tests for the codebase is also highly appreciated.
6. Security Vulnerabilities: For security reasons, please do not report vulnerabilities via Issues or Pull Requests. Instead, please send them to our mailing list: melfa-ros2-contact@pc.MitsubishiElectric.co.jp

Contribution Workflow

1. Check/Create an Issue: Search existing Issues to see if the same problem or proposal has already been reported. If not, create a new Issue and provide as much detail as possible.
2. Fork the Repository: Fork the repository to your GitHub account and clone it to your local machine.

    git clone https://github.com/Mitsubishi-Electric
    

1. Create a branch: Create a new branch for your work using a clear, descriptive name.

    git switch -c feature/feature-name
    

1. Make changes: Make your changes in the new branch. Please ensure your code follows the project’s coding standards.
2. Commit the changes: Commit changes using a clear and descriptive commit message.

    git add <Staged changes>
    git commit -s -m "Add feature-name"
    

Using the -s flag automatically appends the Signed-off-by: line required for the Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO) mentioned below.

1. Push your changes: Push the changes to your forked repository.

    git push origin feature/feature-name
    

1. Create a Pull Request: On GitHub, create a Pull Request against the original repository.Clearly describe your changes and link any related issues.

Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO)

This project adheres to the Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO).(https://developercertificate.org/)
The DCO is a framework for contributors to verify that they have the right to submit their contributions and that they are doing so under the project’s license terms.

（Japanese Reference Translation）

1 Agreeing to the DCO
　By contributing to this project—whether through commits, Pull Requests,patches, or any other form—you agree to the terms of 　 the Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO).

2 Appending the Signed-off-by traile
　All commits must contain a Signed-off-by: line.

　Signed-off-by: Full Name <email address>
  

　Example: Signed-off-by: Taro Yamada taro@example.com

3 How to add 　Signed-off-by: The line is automatically appended when you use the following command.

　git commit -s
  

　or

　git commit --signoff
  

4 Commits in a Pull Request

• A Signed-off-by: line is required for every commit included in a Pull Request.
• When adding or amending commits, please double-check that each one still contains a valid sign-off.

5 Important Notes

• When using code or text from third parties, please ensure you have the appropriate rights and permissions.
• For joint works, please obtain the necessary consent from all co-authors.
• If your contribution was created as part of your duties for a company or organization, please verify that you are authorized to submit it.
• Please note that the Signed-off-by: line does not constitute a transfer of copyright ownership.

Issue and Pull Request Guidelines

• Issue: Please provide as much detail as possible for bug reports and feature suggestions. Including reproduction steps and screenshots is highly appreciated.
• Pull Request: Please link any related issue numbers and provide a concise description of your changes.
• GitHub provides additional documentation on forking a repository and creating a pull request.

Communication

• Please leverage the Issues or Discussions tabs for any questions or project-related conversations.
• While we aim to respond as promptly as possible, please understand that it may take some time to provide a thorough reply. We appreciate your patience.

Licensing

Any contribution that you make to this repository will be under the Apache License, Version 2.0, as dictated by that license.