The http://www.ros.org/ website announced the new package bebop_autonomy as a ROS driver for Parrot Bebop Drone:

http://www.ros.org/news/2015/09/new-package-bebop-autonomy-ros-driver-for-parrot-bebop-drone.html.

The instructions for loading the ROS software and using it for Bebop are well described at http://bebop-autonomy.readthedocs.org/en/latest/.

http://bebop-autonomy.readthedocs.org/en/latest/installation.html.

The features to be incorporated into bebop_autonomy and the status of these features can be found in the documentation found at: https://media.readthedocs.org/pdf/bebop-autonomy/latest/bebop-autonomy.pdf.

To load the bebop_autonomy software, first get the required Ubuntu packages with the following command:

$ sudo apt-get install build-essential python-rosdep python-catkin-tools

Create the Bebop workspace bebop_ws and download software from GitHub:

$ mkdir -p ~/bebop_ws/src
$ cd ~/bebop_ws
$ catkin init
$ git clone https://github.com/AutonomyLab/bebop_autonomy.git src/bebop_autonomy

Use rosdep to install the bebop_autonomy package dependencies:

$ rosdep update
$ rosdep install --from-paths src -i

Then, build the workspace:

$ catkin build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=RelWithDebInfo

Be patient as this may take up to 15 minutes on some systems.

Get the Bebop teleop tools with the following commands:

$ cd ~/bebop_ws/src
$ git clone https://github.com/ros-teleop/teleop_tools.git

Then, repeat the update, install, and build steps again:

$ cd ~/bebop_ws
$ rosdep update
$ rosdep install --from-paths src -i
$ catkin build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=RelWithDebInfo

Once the software is loaded and the files are built, add the following statement in the .bashrc file:

source ~/bebop_ws/devel/setup.bash

Alternatively, issue the following command at a terminal:

$ source ~/bebop_ws/devel/setup.bash

Remember, adding the statement to the .bashrc file will apply it to each new terminal window opened. The source command at the terminal will only apply to that terminal window.

Also, check your ROS package path with the following command:

$ echo $ROS_PACKAGE_PATH

The path /home/<username>/bebop_ws/src should be displayed as one of the paths on the screen.

The software download creates a number of packages that are used to control Bebop. The bebop_autonomy package is actually a metapackage with a package.xml file that lists three other packages as follows:

Another package teleop_tools is not considered in this book.

Before flying Bebop, review the Bebop User's Guide available at http://www.parrot.com/usa/support/parrot-bebop-drone/.

Read the instructions in that document for the following points:

$ ping 192.168.42.2

PING 192.168.42.2 (192.168.42.2) 56(84) bytes of data.

64 bytes from 192.168.42.2: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=0.012 ms

64 bytes from 192.168.42.2: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=0.016 ms

Now, it is time to launch the bebop_driver node and use commands to perform a takeoff and landing. Launch Bebop with the following command:

$ roslaunch bebop_driver bebop_node.launch

Explore the nodes and topics:

$ rosnode list

The output should be as follows:

/bebop/bebop_driver
/rosout

Then type the following command:

$ rostopic list

This will produce a long list, in which the following topics are of interest in getting Bebop to take off and land:

/bebop/takeoff
/bebop/land
/bebop/reset
/bebop/navigate_home

Note that in both the lists, the namespace (ns) is bebop and items are listed as /bebop/<node> or /bebop/<topic>.

Take off

Watch it fly. Bebop goes straight up 1 meter after you execute the following command:

$ rostopic pub /bebop/takeoff std_msgs/Empty --once

The output should be as follows:

publishing and latching message for 3.0 seconds

The following rqt_graph shows the topic /bebop/takeoff sent to the node /bebop/bebop_driver to start the takeoff process. The /rostopic_14655.. node on the left represents the rostopic command issued for takeoff.

Bebop takeoff node graph

$ rostopic pub /bebop/land std_msgs/Empty --once

publishing and latching message for 3.0 seconds