Ouster standalone?

[denzle]

Hi Mathieu,

So i've finally got back to using Rtab and seen a load of changes since version 20, which i'm slowly getting used to. One big update i noticed was the ability to use VLP-16 in the standalone software. Are there any plans to include Ouster or is possible to ask for them be included, it would be an absolute game changer for me if it were. If theres anyhting i can do to help with launch files, data, ros bags, testing etc please do let me know.

Regrds
Dan

[matlabbe]

Yes, the addition of lidar support in standalone is fairly new. Currently there is only one lidar driver (VLP16): https://github.com/introlab/rtabmap/tree/master/corelib/include/rtabmap/core/lidar (using this API).

The ouster could be a nice addition because it comes with an internal IMU, which is very useful for deskewing. I only used ouster in the past with ROS, not sure how their API (without ROS) is easy to use directly. Looking at ouster_client code could be a good start. However, I don't have access to an ouster anymore since I left the university, so it could be hard for me to create a driver for it.

Regards,
Mathieu

[denzle]

Many thanks for the reply. I'll have a look around for a suitable API or contact ouster directly. Hopefully they or other users have something put together especially as Ouster purchased velodyne.

Would a remote connection to my unit be possible or of any use? If It meant getting a standalone setup I'd even consider sending my sensor out to you.

I'm working on a european space agency biomass mapping project with Aberystwyth Uni so the ability to incorporate lidar in standalone form would be unbelievably useful. Even more so if it could be run with a realsense camera for better odometry or tag recognition.

If there's anything I can do to help please don't hesitate to let me know. But I'll have a look to see if I can make some progress in API and driver.

Dan

[matlabbe]

I looked more in depth and realized that ouster_example is not a ros package anymore (all ros stuff moved to ouster_ros) but a standalone c++ library to access the ouster.

This client_example requires a sensor to test with. However, this lidar_scan_example uses PCAP + JSON inputs. I could start integrating "lidar_scan_example". It seems I can download some PCAP and JSON files from the examples here https://static.ouster.dev/sensor-docs/#sample-data, IMU data seem also available from the PCAP files.

As a side note, they integrated KISS-ICP to their sdk: https://static.ouster.dev/sdk-docs/python/slam-api-example.html, don't know if it could be any help for you. I may integrate KISS-ICP to rtabmap, based on the ros example, it seems easy to integrate! Added feature-request here.

cheers,
Mathieu

[denzle]

Thank you so much Mathieu for your time I really appreciate you looking into this for me. We've been having chats with colleagues throughout Europe for further methods to validate SAR and aerial/satellite derived lidar with ground based methods. Having used rtabmap for my research masters I know what it's capable of. If ouster sensors were able to be used via standalone it could become our standard software for various validation mapping sessions across our whole network. This would be such a great asset especially as there are many people not keen on coding or script writing (ros), just wanting a more plug and play capability. With rtabmaps versatility for use with multiple sensors I'm really pushing hard for wider integration and use with my colleagues.