ROS Network Connection and Exploration

Set up and interact with ROS networks

Connect to ROS to prototype robotics applications and access robotics hardware or simulators over a ROS network. You can create your own ROS network using MATLAB^® or connect to an existing ROS network. To set up a ROS network, start by calling rosinit.

You can access transformations between coordinate systems as ROS topics and use them to transform data in MATLAB. For more information, see Access the tf Transformation Tree in ROS.

The rosrate object helps control the timing of code execution.

Note

As of May 31, 2025, ROS 1 has reached end of life and is no longer officially supported. Migrating to ROS 2 is recommended to access the latest features and updates. For more information on equivalent ROS Toolbox features supporting network connection and exploration, see ROS 2 Network Connection and Exploration.

Functions

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ROS Network Connection

`rosinit`	Connect to ROS network
`rostopic`	Retrieve information about ROS topics
`rosmsg`	Retrieve information about ROS messages and message types
`rosnode`	Retrieve information about ROS network nodes
`rosparam`	Access ROS parameter server values
`rosshutdown`	Shut down ROS system

ROS Parameter Tree

`get`	Get ROS parameter value
`has`	Check if ROS parameter name exists
`search`	Search ROS network for parameter names
`set`	Set value of ROS parameter or add new parameter
`del`	Delete a ROS parameter

ROS Transformations

`rostf`	Receive, send, and apply ROS transformations
`rosApplyTransform`	Transform ROS and ROS 2 message entities into target frame
`rosReadTransform`	Return transformation from ROS or ROS 2 `TransformStamped` message structure (Since R2023b)
`canTransform`	Verify if transformation is available
`transform`	Transform message entities into target coordinate frame
`waitForTransform`	Wait until a transformation is available
`getTransform`	Retrieve transformation between two coordinate frames
`sendTransform`	Send transformation to ROS network

ROS Time

`rostime`	Access ROS time functionality
`rosrate`	Execute loop at fixed frequency
`rosduration`	Create a ROS duration object
`seconds`	Returns seconds of a time or duration

ROS Devices

`rosdevice`	Connect to remote ROS device
`runNode`	Start ROS or ROS 2 node
`stopNode`	Stop ROS or ROS 2 node
`runCore`	Start ROS core
`stopCore`	Stop ROS core
`isNodeRunning`	Determine if ROS or ROS 2 node is running
`isCoreRunning`	Determine if ROS core is running

Objects

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ROS Nodes

`Core`	Create ROS Core
`Node`	Start ROS node and connect to ROS master

ROS Parameters

ParameterTree Access ROS parameter server

ROS Transformations

TransformStamped Create transformation message

Blocks

Blank Message	Create blank message using specified message type
Current Time	Retrieve current ROS time or system time
Set Parameter	Set values on ROS parameter server
Coordinate Transformation Conversion	Convert to a specified coordinate transformation representation

Topics

ROS Network Setup
Summary of ROS network setup and information required for connection.
Execute Code Based on ROS Time
Using a rosrate object allows you to control the rate of your code execution based on the ROS Time /clock topic.

Featured Examples

Get Started with ROS

Set up ROS within MATLAB, and get information about ROS network and ROS messages.

Open Live Script

Connect to a ROS Network

Create a ROS master in MATLAB and connect to an external ROS master.

Open Live Script

Access the ROS Parameter Server

Add and retrieve parameters on the ROS parameter server.

Open Live Script

Access the tf Transformation Tree in ROS

Access available coordinate frames, retrieve transformations between them, and transform points, vectors, and other entities between any two coordinate frames.

Open Live Script

Convert a ROS Pose Message to a Homogeneous Transformation

This model subscribes to a Pose message on the ROS network and converts it to a homogeneous transformation.

Open Live Script

Time Stamp ROS Message Using Current Time in Simulink

Time stamp a ROS message with the current system time of your computer.

Open Live Script