gazebosim/gz-sim

What it solves

Gazebo Sim provides a high-fidelity environment for simulating robots, allowing developers to test and develop robotic systems without needing physical hardware. It bridges the gap between virtual design and real-world deployment by providing accurate physics, rendering, and sensor data.

How it works

It integrates several specialized components to create a complete simulation ecosystem:

• Physics and Graphics: Uses high-performance physics engines via Gazebo Physics and realistic 3D rendering (including OGRE v2) for lighting, shadows, and textures.
• Sensors: Simulates a wide array of hardware including laser range finders, 2D/3D cameras, IMUs, GPS, and force-torque sensors, including the ability to add noise to the data.
• Interfacing: Users can interact with the simulation through a graphical user interface (GUI), custom plugins, or asynchronous message passing via TCP/IP transport for remote server execution.
• Models: Supports standard SDF (Simulation Description Format) for building new models and provides access to a library of existing robots (like TurtleBot and PR2) and environments via Gazebo Fuel.

Who it’s for

Robotics developers and researchers who need to validate robot behaviors, test sensor configurations, and develop control systems in a safe, virtual environment.

Highlights

• Multi-Engine Physics: Support for multiple high-performance physics engines.
• Extensible Architecture: Ability to create custom plugins for robot, sensor, and environment control.
• Remote Execution: Socket-based message passing allows the simulation to run on remote servers.
• Comprehensive Sensor Suite: High-fidelity simulation of diverse sensors including Kinect-style and contact sensors.