Pre-requisites

Before operating the ROVO3, ensure you have:

  • Read and understood the safety guidelines

  • Access to the robot’s network (wired or wireless)

  • A computer with ROS2 Jazzy installed (for visualization)

Important

This manual is for the R&D kit and contains additional information about the ROVO3 tracked robot. For powering on and basic usage of the ROVO3, refer to the ROVO3 product documentation provided with the robot. This is an extension of the robot manufacturer documentation for ROS2 users.

Operating Modes

Important

The ROVO3 has 2 Modes:

  1. Radio Controller Mode - For this mode please reference the ROVO3 manufacturer’s manual.

  2. ROS2 Mode - This is the default for robots that are pre-configured with ROS. In this mode the joystick of the ROVO3 controller nor the gears work. Only the emergency stop button works. The robot has to be controlled via ROS (i.e., Logitech controller, webserver, or ROS2 services).

To re-enable radio control mode, turn off the rovo-platform via ROS2 services and this will re-enable the radio controller.

Robot App

The ROVO3 comes with pre-installed ROS2 software. The robot’s onboard computer runs Ubuntu 24.04 LTS with ROS2 Jazzy. Core drivers and services start automatically on boot via systemd services.

Robot Webserver

The ROVO3 features a web-based control interface accessible at:

URL: http://192.168.131.1:9000

Default Credentials:

  • Username: admin

  • Password: mybotshop

The webserver provides:

  • Real-time robot visualization (3D model)

  • Joystick teleoperation

  • Service management (start/stop ROS nodes)

  • Map visualization

  • Battery monitoring

  • Rosbag recording

  • VNC remote desktop access

Charging Robot

To charge the ROVO3:

  1. Power off the robot

  2. Connect the charger to the charging port

  3. Monitor the charging status via the charger LED

  4. Disconnect when fully charged

Charging Controller

The ROVO3 uses an integrated Battery Management System (BMS) for safe charging and discharging operations.

Emergency Stop

The ROVO3 is equipped with emergency stop buttons. When pressed:

  • All motor power is immediately cut

  • The robot enters a safe parking state

  • Services continue running but motion commands are ignored

To resume operation after emergency stop:

  1. Clear the emergency condition

  2. Release the emergency stop button

  3. Reset the gear to neutral, then re-engage

Power On

To power on the ROVO3:

  1. Release the emergency stop button by turning it clockwise

  2. Press the power button to turn on the robot

  3. Wait for the robot to boot up completely (approximately 1 minute)

  4. Release the emergency stop button by turning it clockwise on the remote controller

  5. Power on the ROVO remote controller

  6. Press the vibration button on the Logitech controller to ensure it is powered on

  7. Press up arrow on the Logitech controller to go to a higher gear (you should see the gear change in the ROVO Controller)

  8. Now with LB + Left Joystick you can move the robot forward/backward and LB + Right Joystick for yaw left/right

  9. Press down arrow on the Logitech controller to go to a lower gear

Warning

Please note that the robot ROS2 driver cannot operate without the powering of the ROVO3 Remote Controller for safety reasons and inclusion of the emergency stop functionality. The robot by default starts in ROS2 mode. To deactivate it simply go to the webserver and disable the rovo services. While in ROS2 mode only the emergency stop will work from the ROVO Controller.

Power Off

To safely power off the ROVO3:

  1. Set the gear to neutral (gear 0)

  2. Stop all running applications

  3. Press the main power switch to turn off

Basic Operation

Remote Control

The ROVO3 supports multiple teleoperation methods:

  1. Logitech Joystick - Highest priority, requires deadman switch

  2. Steamdeck Controller - Wireless control via Steamdeck

  3. Web Interface - Browser-based joystick control

  4. Keyboard Teleop - ROS2 teleop_twist_keyboard

Network Interface

Network Table

IP Address

Device

Username

Password

192.168.131.1

Robot MCU

robot

mybotshop

192.168.131.1:9000

Webserver

admin

mybotshop

192.168.131.150

Steamdeck

deck

mybotshop

192.168.131.200

Router

SSID

mybotshop

192.168.131.200

Router-Web

admin

Admin1232025

192.168.131.20

Ouster Lidar

x

x

Warning

Do not set your computer’s IP to any of the above reserved addresses.

Note

The robot login credentials are:

  • Username: robot

  • Password: mybotshop

Ethernet Connection

  1. Power on the robot

  2. Connect a LAN cable to the robot’s ethernet port (topmost port on demo units)

  3. Configure your computer’s network settings

Static Network Connection

For first-time connection, configure a static IP on your computer:

  1. Go to Settings > Network > + (add new connection)

  2. Select Manual in IPv4 settings

  3. Set the following:

    • Address: 192.168.131.51

    • Netmask: 24

  4. Save and restart your network

Verify the connection:

# Check your local IP
ifconfig

# Ping the robot
ping 192.168.131.1

# SSH into the robot
ssh -X robot@192.168.131.1
# Password: mybotshop