ROS2 Development Setup — BonicBot A2

New to ROS2? Start by connecting directly to the robot via SSH — no installation needed.
Want simulations or advanced tools? Jump to setting up a Docker dev environment.

Choose Your Approach

Option 1: Connect to the Real Robot via SSH

The fastest way to start. No installation needed — just SSH in and run ROS2 commands directly on the robot.

Connect

ssh username@ROBOT_IP

Replace ROBOT_IP with your robot’s actual IP address:

# Example
ssh username@192.168.1.50

Enter the robot’s password when prompted. You’re now in the robot’s terminal.

Try These ROS2 Commands

# See all active topics
ros2 topic list
 
# Stream live laser scan data
ros2 topic echo /scan
 
# List all running nodes
ros2 node list
 
# Send a velocity command to move the robot
ros2 topic pub /cmd_vel geometry_msgs/msg/Twist

Option 2: Development Environment (Docker Setup)

Use this approach when you need:

• RViz — 3D visualization
• Gazebo — robot simulation
• Navigation2 — autonomous navigation
• SLAM — mapping and localization

Docker gives you a ready-to-use ROS2 environment without manually managing dependencies. Your workspace is stored in a Docker-managed volume (bonicbot-data) that persists across container recreations — no data loss if you accidentally recreate the container.

Step 1 — Install Docker

Pick your operating system:

Step 2 — Pull the BonicBot Docker Image

docker pull autobonicsofficial/bonicbot:latest

Step 3 — Create the Development Container

⚠️ Run this only once. After creation, use docker start to reopen the container (see below).
The bonicbot-data volume is created automatically by Docker if it doesn’t exist — no setup needed.

docker run -it \
  --name bonicbot-dev \
  --network host \
  -e DISPLAY=$DISPLAY \
  -v /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix \
  -v ~/bonicbot-data:/root \
  autobonicsofficial/bonicbot:latest

xhost +local:docker

docker run -it \
  --name bonicbot-dev \
  --network host \
  -e DISPLAY=$DISPLAY \
  -v /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix \
  -v ~/bonicbot-data:/root \
  autobonicsofficial/bonicbot:latest

docker run -it \
  --name bonicbot-dev \
  -v ~/bonicbot-data:/root \
  autobonicsofficial/bonicbot-a2:latest

Reopening the Container

You only create the container once. Every subsequent session:

# Start the container
docker start bonicbot-dev
 
# Open a terminal inside it
docker exec -it bonicbot-dev bash

💡 Need multiple terminals? Run docker exec -it bonicbot-dev bash again in a new terminal window — each call opens an independent shell inside the same container. This is common in ROS2 development.

Stopping the Container

When you’re done developing:

docker stop bonicbot-dev

What You Can Do Inside the Container

Once inside, your full development environment is ready:

• 🤖 Run Gazebo simulations
• 🗺️ Build maps with SLAM
• 🧭 Test Navigation2 workflows
• 📊 Visualize with RViz
• 🔧 Write and test ROS2 packages — connect to the real robot or run in simulation

Troubleshooting

xhost +local:docker

echo $DISPLAY

wsl --update

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER

docker start bonicbot-dev
docker exec -it bonicbot-dev bash

Next Steps

Ready to go deeper? Follow the complete hands-on guide: