📦 uvdar_ros_driver

The uvdar_ros_driver is a minimal ROS nodelet-based interface for reading UVDAR module messages over a USB connection. It matches the basic functionality of the UVDAR system running UVDAR firmware, enabling integration with ROS ecosystems.

Installation

Clone this repository and call:

gitman install

Functionality

• Nodelet-based Designed as minimalistic C++ ROS nodelet.

• UVDAR module handling Designed for low-level handling of UVDAR module running UVDAR firmware.

• USB Device Enumeration and connection
  Scans available USB devices and identifies UVDAR-compatible modules by serial number. It simply finds any USB device that have ttyACM. Connects specifically to the correct tty port of USB device defined by the user via uvdar_usb_serial parameter.

• Diagnostic Mode
  When no serial is provided, lists available devices and exits — handy for initial setup and validation.

• Message Decoding via LLCP
  Utilizes LLCP parsing logic to decode messages received over USB.

• ROS Topic Publishing
  Decoded ranging messages are published to:

  /$UAV_NAME/uvdar_driver/distance
  

  using UwbRangeStamped and UwbRange messages.

What’s Missing / To-Do

The current implementation is focused on data acquisition and publishing.

Configuration and control are not yet implemented:

• UVDAR Module Configuration Interface

  • Set UVDAR device address
  • Configure UV LED blinking patterns
  • etc.

• LLCP Encapsulation for Downlink

  • Send structured commands from ROS to UVDAR module
  • Enable bidirectional control and diagnostics via LLCP and USB port