Franka Simulation Server

A high-fidelity Genesis simulation server that communicates with the Franka robot's network protocol, enabling seamless switching between simulation and hardware.

Overview

The Franka Simulation Server provides a drop-in replacement for the real Franka robot, implementing the complete libfranka network protocol. This allows developers to:

• Test and debug robot controllers in simulation before deployment
• Develop applications that work identically on both simulation and hardware
• Validate error handling and safety features
• Experiment with different control strategies risk-free

Related Projects

• libfranka-python - Python bindings for libfranka
• franka-gym - Franka gym implementation

Preview Video

• Native libfranka control

• With Python

Architecture

In this repository, we only provide the simulation server backend with Genesis connection.

The libfranka python bindings will become available in a separate repository.

The system consists of several key components:

1. libfranka Interface Layer

   • Implements the standard Franka robot network protocol
   • Handles TCP command interface and UDP state updates
   • Maintains protocol compatibility all libfranka versions

2. Genesis Simulation Backend

   • Physics-based robot simulation using the Genesis engine
   • Real-time joint state computation and dynamics

3. State Management

   • Complete robot state tracking and synchronization
   • Accurate error reporting and status updates
   • Real-time state transmission (1kHz update rate)

4. Control Modes

   • Joint Position Control
   • Joint Velocity Control
   • Joint Torque Control
   • Supports seamless switching between modes

Key Features

• Protocol Compatibility: Full implementation of the Franka robot network protocol
• Real-time Simulation: High-frequency state updates and control (1kHz)
• Multiple Control Modes: Supports position, velocity, and torque control
• Error Handling: Replicates real robot error states and recovery

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Python 3.10+
• genesis-world
• numpy
• pinocchio

Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone [email protected]:BarisYazici/libfranka-sim.git

# Install the package
pip install -e .

Basic Usage

# Start the simulation server
python3 run_server.py -v

without visualization

python3 run_server.py

In your application, use standard libfranka commands The simulation will respond exactly like the real robot

Configuration

Switching Between Simulation and Hardware

To switch between simulation and hardware:

1. Update the robot IP address in your application:

   • Use localhost or 127.0.0.1 for simulation
   • Use the real robot's IP for hardware

2. No other changes needed - your application code remains identical

Development Status

The simulation server currently implements all major features of the Franka robot:

• Complete network protocol implementation
• All joint interfaces
• Real-time state updates
• Visualization support
• Genesis connection
• libfranka python bindings
• Advanced collision detection (in progress)
• Error handling and recovery (planned)
• Cartesian interfaces (planned)
• Return mass, coriolis, gravity, and inverse dynamics (Robot models) (planned)
• Gripper simulation (planned)

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please read our contributing guidelines and submit pull requests to our repository.

License

This project is licensed under the Apache License Version 2.0 - see the LICENSE file for details.

Acknowledgments

• Franka Robotics GmbH for the original libfranka implementation
• The Genesis Simulator team for the physics engine