ROS - Robot Operating System

The Robot Operating System ( ROS ) is a set of software libraries and tools for building robot applications. ROS 2 is the latest version, designed to enhance security, improve distributed system communication, and support real-time performance, addressing some of the limitations of ROS 1.

What do I need before installing ROS 2?

ROS 2 is available for Ubuntu Linux 22.04, 24.04, and Windows.

This article provides a quick solution to install ROS 2 for Ubuntu on Arm. You can use Ubuntu 22.04 LTS or Ubuntu 24.04 LTS.

Confirm you are using an Arm machine by running:

    

        
        
uname -m

    

The output should be:

    

        
        aarch64

        
    

If you see a different result, you are not using an Arm computer running 64-bit Linux.

What are the ROS 2 dependencies?

First, install the general dependencies:

    

        
        
sudo apt update
sudo apt install curl software-properties-common build-essential -y

    

How do I Install ROS 2 for Ubuntu on Arm?

You can install ROS 2 using the APT package manager.

The Ubuntu package lists do not include ROS 2, so you need to add the repository.

    

        
        
sudo curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ros/rosdistro/master/ros.key -o /usr/share/keyrings/ros-archive-keyring.gpg
echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/ros-archive-keyring.gpg] http://packages.ros.org/ros2/ubuntu $(lsb_release -cs) main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ros2.list > /dev/null
sudo apt update

    

Install the ROS 2 dependencies:

    

        
        
sudo apt install -y \
        python3-pip \
        python3-rosdep \
        python3-colcon-common-extensions

    

There are two LTS releases of ROS 2, Jazzy Jalisco and Humble Hawksbill, which you can install based on your Ubuntu version.

• For Ubuntu Linux 24.04, you should install Jazzy Jalisco.
• For Ubuntu Linux 22.04, you should install Humble Hawksbill.

How can I install ROS 2?

Install ROS 2 based on your Ubuntu version:

    

        
        

    # Install ROS2 packages
    sudo apt install -y ros-jazzy-desktop
    # Initialize rosdep
    sudo rosdep init
    rosdep update
  

    

    

        
        

    # Install ROS2 packages
    sudo apt install -y ros-humble-desktop
    # Initialize rosdep
    sudo rosdep init
    rosdep update
  

    

How do I configure the environment?

Add ROS 2 setup to your shell startup script:

    

        
        

    echo "source /opt/ros/jazzy/setup.bash" >> ~/.bashrc
    source ~/.bashrc
  

    

    

        
        

    echo "source /opt/ros/humble/setup.bash" >> ~/.bashrc
    source ~/.bashrc
  

    

Confirm ROS 2 is installed by using printenv:

    

        
        
printenv ROS_DISTRO

    

The output should print either jazzy or humble, depending on your Ubuntu version.

How can I test the ROS 2 installation?

In one terminal run a talker:

    

        
        
ros2 run demo_nodes_cpp talker

    

The output is similar to the messages shown below, indicating that ROS 2 is publishing the “hello world” string along with a sequence number.

    

        
        [INFO] [1741389626.338343545] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 1'
[INFO] [1741389627.338329328] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 2'
[INFO] [1741389628.338317118] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 3'
[INFO] [1741389629.338322551] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 4'
[INFO] [1741389630.338318200] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 5'
[INFO] [1741389631.338334884] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 6'
[INFO] [1741389629.338322551] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 7'
[INFO] [1741389630.338318200] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 8'
[INFO] [1741389631.338334884] [talker]: Publishing: 'Hello World: 9'
...

        
    

Then, open another terminal and run the listener:

    

        
        
ros2 run demo_nodes_cpp listener

    

If you see “I heard [Hello World: ]” in the second terminal as shown below, it means ROS 2 has been successfully installed.

    

        
        [INFO] [1741389927.137762134] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 1]
[INFO] [1741389928.125120177] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 2]
[INFO] [1741389929.125042010] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 3]
[INFO] [1741389930.125046472] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 4]
[INFO] [1741389931.125055785] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 5]
[INFO] [1741389932.125434760] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 6]
[INFO] [1741389933.125044887] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 7]
[INFO] [1741389934.125124370] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 8]
[INFO] [1741389935.125036222] [listener]: I heard: [Hello World: 9]
...

        
    

You are now ready to use ROS 2.

Where can I learn more about ROS 2?

• Explore the ROS 2 Tutorials
• Learn about ROS 2 Command Line Tools