Connecting and Testing the Development Workstation - RethinkRobotics/sdk-docs GitHub Wiki

The Development Workstation has been set up with Ubuntu 12.04 LTS and ROS Groovy - instructions here.
The RSDK software has been installed on to your Development Workstation - instructions here.
The Baxter Research Robot has been set up in its workspace and any purchased accessories have been installed - instructions here.
Additional Hardware Required:
- 1 Ethernet switch
- 2 Ethernet cables

User can ping Baxter from a connected Development Workstation - validating network connectivity
User can execute this command from a connected Development Workstation - validating that ROS messages work across the network connection

$ rostopic echo /rosout
You have setup your Baxter, your Development Workstation, and connected your whole system. You are now ready to run the robot using a sample program.

Steps for Connecting to Baxter

Physically connect Baxter to the Development Workstation
- Connect power to the ethernet switch
- Connect Baxter to a port on the ethernet switch with an ethernet cable
- Connect the Development Machine to the ethernet switch with a second ethernet cable
Additional network setup details can be found here
Set up the ROS environment

$ source /opt/ros/groovy/setup.sh
Find the IP address of the robot. See the Networking page for details.
Possible Options:
- Link-Local (Avahi) addressing: Use <Baxter's hostname>.local to find Baxter on the network. Baxter's hostname is set to the serial number on the back by default. Rebooting the robot may be required if the network cable was not plugged in at startup.
- Local Router DHCP: Reserve a static IP or use hostname resolution.
- Register on Organization Network: You can get Baxter's MAC Address from the Field Service Menu (FSM) and use it to register for a static IP address on your network.
(Optional) Add the IP address of the robot (refered to as the <Baxter IP Address> on this page) to the /etc/hosts file on the Development Workstation.
Ping the robot from the development workstation to check for connectivity.

$ ping <Baxter IP Address>
Set the ROS_MASTER_URI environment variable

$ export ROS_MASTER_URI=http://<Baxter IP Address>:11311
List rostopics using the rostopic command

$ rostopic list
Show output on /rosout topic

$ rostopic echo /rosout