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Version: 7

Kinova Gen3 7DoF Hardware Setup Guide

This how-to guide covers Kinova Gen3 7DoF steps for setting up the arm, gripper, and (optional) embedded wrist camera, along with network configuration.

Required Hardware​

The MoveIt Pro Technical Specifications Document details the hardware and software requirements for running MoveIt Pro along with a list of the current features.

Aside from the arm, a Robotiq (2F-85 or 2F-140) gripper is also required. The default gripper supported by MoveIt Pro is a Robotiq 2f 85 model gripper.

The full list of parts needed to perform this hardware installation is:

  • 1x computer to run MoveIt Pro and robot drivers

  • 1x ethernet cable

  • 1x Kinova Gen3 7dof robot arm

  • 1x Robotiq 2f 85 model gripper

    • 4x M5 x 0.8mm, 25 mm length socket head screws for attaching gripper to the wrist

Note: The Robotiq gripper can optionally be attached to the Kinova Gen3 arm via a Robotiq coupling with an externally routed USB cable to connect it to the control PC. This may be necessary if an additional force torque sensor (FTS) is installed on the wrist of the Kinova Gen3 arm and the Robotiq gripper cannot be directly connected to the wrist.

The following sections detail how to get all the required hardware connected and running MoveIt Pro.

1. Assemble the Arm Hardware​

The Kinova Gen3 robot arm is packaged fully assembled, the user just needs to mount it, attach the Robotiq gripper, and plug in the power cable to turn it on. The Kinova Gen3 User Guide includes details on mounting and gripper attachment.

2. Set Up Computer​

For the best hardware performance for the Kinova Gen3, we recommend setting up the control computer to run Debian Bookworm. We use this OS to take advantage of the real-time kernel for commanding the robot hardware.

3. Connect Computer​

The computer has two network interfaces: one to connect to the Internet and another to connect to the robot via a peer-to-peer network.

At this point, you should have made the following cable connections:

Computer:

  • Power cable
  • Ethernet cable for LAN
  • Ethernet cable to Kinova Gen3

Kinova:

  • Power cable
  • Eithernet cable to computer

4. Change Computer Network Settings​

With the computer set up and connected to the robot and local network, we will now set IP addresses for each of the ethernet connections.

The computer has two network interfaces (one to connect to the Internet and another to connect to robot's Control Box), and each needs a different connection profile. To set these up, click the arrow in the upper right corner of the screen, and then click "Settings" > "Network".

First, unplug the ethernet cable between the computer and your network infrastructure. One of the two Wired interfaces will now show up as "Cable unplugged". Click the gear icon next to that Wired adapter. - Under the "Identity" tab, give this profile a name (like "Internet"). - Click "Apply" to accept the default values for the other settings. - Plug the ethernet cable back in.

Now, click the gear icon next to the other network adapter. - Under the "Identity" tab, assign a name to the connection profile, such as "Robot". - Under the "IPv4" tab, select "Manual" as the "IPv4 Method". - Enter 192.168.1.12 for the Address, and 255.255.255.0 for the Netmask. - Click "Apply".

To verify this setup worked properly, check to make sure you can ping the robot ip address from the host computer. The default IP address for the kinova is 192.168.1.10.

5. Use the Arm with MoveIt Pro​

You can run MoveIt Pro with your Kinova using the kinova_gen3_site_config in the MoveIt Pro example workspace with moveit_pro run -c kinova_gen3_site_config.

Your hardware is now ready for use with MoveIt Pro!

6. (Optional) Configure Embedded Wrist Camera​

If the Kinova has an embedded wrist camera, uncomment the line in the agent_bridge.xml file here to launch the wrist camera driver and set vision: "true" in the config.yaml file here to render the wrist camera links in the URDF.

7. (Optional) Configure Robotiq Gripper with External USB Connection​

If the Robotiq gripper is connected to the control PC via USB, set use_internal_bus_gripper_comm: false in the config.yaml file here to specify the gripper communications are not being routed through the Kinova.