Downloads & Resources

Software Downloads

ROS 2

ROS 2 Humble (Ubuntu 22.04)

• Download: https://docs.ros.org/en/humble/Installation.html
• Desktop Install: sudo apt install ros-humble-desktop
• Tutorials: https://docs.ros.org/en/humble/Tutorials.html

ROS 2 Iron (Latest)

• Download: https://docs.ros.org/en/iron/Installation.html
• For newer features and hardware support

NVIDIA Isaac

Isaac Sim

• Download: https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/omniverse/download/
• Requires: Omniverse Launcher
• GPU: NVIDIA RTX 2080 or better
• Docs: https://docs.omniverse.nvidia.com/isaacsim/

Isaac ROS

• GitHub: https://github.com/NVIDIA-ISAAC-ROS
• Installation: https://nvidia-isaac-ros.github.io/getting_started/index.html
• Packages: Perception, VSLAM, Image Processing, DNN Inference

Jetson SDK

• JetPack: https://developer.nvidia.com/embedded/jetpack
• For Jetson Orin, Xavier, Nano
• Includes: CUDA, TensorRT, cuDNN, VPI

Simulation Tools

Gazebo Classic

• Download: https://classic.gazebosim.org/download
• Ubuntu: sudo apt install gazebo11
• Models: https://github.com/osrf/gazebo_models

Gazebo Ignition (Fortress)

• Download: https://gazebosim.org/docs/fortress/install
• Modern architecture, better performance
• Ubuntu: sudo apt install ignition-fortress

Unity

• Download: https://unity.com/download
• Unity Hub: Manage multiple versions
• Unity Robotics Hub: https://github.com/Unity-Technologies/Unity-Robotics-Hub

AI & ML Frameworks

PyTorch

• Download: https://pytorch.org/get-started/locally/
• CUDA support: pip3 install torch torchvision --index-url https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cu118

TensorFlow

• Download: https://www.tensorflow.org/install
• With GPU: pip install tensorflow[and-cuda]

Hugging Face Transformers

• Install: pip install transformers
• Models: https://huggingface.co/models
• Includes: BERT, GPT, Llama, CLIP

Vision & Perception

OpenCV

• Install: pip install opencv-python opencv-contrib-python
• Docs: https://docs.opencv.org/

YOLOv8 (Ultralytics)

• Install: pip install ultralytics
• GitHub: https://github.com/ultralytics/ultralytics
• Models: https://docs.ultralytics.com/models/yolov8/

Segment Anything (SAM)

• GitHub: https://github.com/facebookresearch/segment-anything
• Install: pip install segment-anything
• Checkpoint: Download from repo

MiDaS (Depth Estimation)

• GitHub: https://github.com/isl-org/MiDaS
• Models: Auto-downloaded via torch.hub

Speech & Language

Whisper (Speech Recognition)

• GitHub: https://github.com/openai/whisper
• Install: pip install openai-whisper
• Models: tiny, base, small, medium, large

Llama 3

• Hugging Face: https://huggingface.co/meta-llama
• Install: pip install transformers
• Quantized models available via Ollama

Ollama (Local LLM Runtime)

• Download: https://ollama.ai/download
• Models: Llama 3, Mistral, Phi, CodeLlama
• Usage: ollama run llama3

Datasets

Robotics Datasets

Open X-Embodiment

• URL: https://robotics-transformer-x.github.io/
• 1M+ robot trajectories across 22 robot types
• Tasks: Manipulation, navigation, bimanual

RoboNet

• URL: https://www.robonet.wiki/
• 15M video frames from 7 robot platforms
• Self-supervised learning benchmark

BridgeData V2

• GitHub: https://github.com/rail-berkeley/bridge_data_v2
• 60K demonstrations for manipulation
• Everyday household tasks

Vision Datasets

COCO (Object Detection)

• URL: https://cocodataset.org/
• 330K images, 80 object categories
• Bounding boxes, segmentation masks

ImageNet

• URL: https://www.image-net.org/
• 14M images, 20K categories
• Pre-training for vision models

Cityscapes (Autonomous Driving)

• URL: https://www.cityscapes-dataset.com/
• Urban street scenes
• Semantic segmentation annotations

3D & Depth Datasets

ScanNet

• URL: http://www.scan-net.org/
• RGB-D scans of indoor scenes
• 3D semantic segmentation

ShapeNet

• URL: https://shapenet.org/
• 3D CAD models (chairs, tables, etc.)
• For grasp planning and simulation

Robot Assets

URDF Models

ROS Robot Models

• GitHub: https://github.com/ros-simulation
• TurtleBot, PR2, Husky, Jackal

Fetch & Freight

• GitHub: https://github.com/fetchrobotics/fetch_ros
• Mobile manipulation robot

Franka Emika Panda

• GitHub: https://github.com/frankaemika/franka_ros
• 7-DOF collaborative arm

Isaac Sim Assets

NVIDIA Asset Library

• Location: /Isaac/ in Omniverse Content Browser
• Robots: Franka, Carter, Jetbot, ANYmal
• Environments: Warehouse, office, outdoor

SketchFab

• URL: https://sketchfab.com/
• 3D models (convert to USD)
• Filter: "Downloadable" and "CC licensed"

Learning Resources

Online Courses

ROS 2 for Beginners

• Udemy: https://www.udemy.com/course/ros2-for-beginners/
• YouTube: The Construct (free)

Modern Robotics (Northwestern)

• Coursera: https://www.coursera.org/specializations/modernrobotics
• Textbook: http://hades.mech.northwestern.edu/index.php/Modern_Robotics
• Free PDF and Python library

Deep Learning for Robotics (Berkeley)

• CS 287: https://sites.google.com/view/berkeley-cs287-fa23
• Lecture videos and slides

Underactuated Robotics (MIT)

• Course: https://underactuated.csail.mit.edu/
• Focus: legged robots, manipulation
• Drake simulator tutorials

Books

Probabilistic Robotics

• Authors: Thrun, Burgard, Fox
• Topics: SLAM, localization, Kalman filters
• PDF: Often available from university libraries

Modern Robotics

• Authors: Lynch, Park
• Free PDF: http://hades.mech.northwestern.edu/index.php/Modern_Robotics
• Python/MATLAB code included

Introduction to Autonomous Mobile Robots

• Authors: Siegwart, Nourbakhsh, Scaramuzza
• Topics: Sensors, localization, navigation

YouTube Channels

The Construct

• URL: https://www.youtube.com/@TheConstructsim
• ROS 2 tutorials, simulations

Articulated Robotics

• URL: https://www.youtube.com/@ArticulatedRobotics
• URDF modeling, ROS 2 hardware integration

Robotics Back-End

• URL: https://www.youtube.com/@RoboticsBackEnd
• ROS 2 programming tutorials

IEEE Spectrum Robotics

• URL: https://www.youtube.com/@IEEESpectrum
• Latest robotics research and demos

Communities & Forums

ROS Discourse

• URL: https://discourse.ros.org/
• Official ROS community forum

Reddit r/robotics

• URL: https://www.reddit.com/r/robotics/
• General robotics discussions

NVIDIA Isaac Forums

• URL: https://forums.developer.nvidia.com/c/omniverse/isaac/589
• Isaac Sim, Isaac ROS support

ROS Answers

• URL: https://answers.ros.org/
• Q&A for ROS-specific issues

Tools & Utilities

CAD to URDF Converters

Fusion 360 to URDF

• GitHub: https://github.com/syuntoku14/fusion2urdf
• Export Fusion 360 designs to ROS

SolidWorks to URDF

• Plugin: http://wiki.ros.org/sw_urdf_exporter
• Official SolidWorks exporter

Blender USD Exporter

• Built into Blender 3.0+
• Export to Isaac Sim compatible format

Visualization Tools

FoxGlove Studio

• Download: https://foxglove.dev/
• Modern alternative to RViz
• Web-based, cross-platform

PlotJuggler

• GitHub: https://github.com/facontidavide/PlotJuggler
• Real-time ROS data plotting
• Install: sudo apt install ros-humble-plotjuggler

Meshlab

• Download: https://www.meshlab.net/
• 3D mesh viewer and editor

Development Tools

VS Code ROS Extension

• Install: Search "ROS" in VS Code Extensions
• Syntax highlighting, autocomplete
• Launch file debugging

Terminator

• Install: sudo apt install terminator
• Multiple terminal panes
• Great for ROS development

Docker Images

• ROS Official: https://hub.docker.com/_/ros
• Isaac Sim: https://catalog.ngc.nvidia.com/orgs/nvidia/containers/isaac-sim
• Pre-configured environments

Hardware Vendors

Development Boards

NVIDIA Jetson

• Orin Nano: https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/autonomous-machines/embedded-systems/jetson-orin/
• Budget: $499, AGX: $1999

Raspberry Pi

• Pi 5: https://www.raspberrypi.com/products/raspberry-pi-5/
• Budget robotics platform

Cameras

Intel RealSense

• D435i: Depth + RGB + IMU ($329)
• D455: Longer range ($389)
• Store: https://www.intelrealsense.com/

ZED 2/2i

• Stereo camera with AI
• ZED 2: $449, ZED 2i: $599
• Store: https://store.stereolabs.com/

OAK-D

• Depth AI camera ($149)
• On-device neural network processing
• Store: https://shop.luxonis.com/

Robot Kits

TurtleBot 4

• Mobile robot platform ($1,395+)
• ROS 2 native
• Store: https://clearpathrobotics.com/turtlebot-4/

Franka Emika FR3

• 7-DOF collaborative arm
• Research version: Contact Franka
• Website: https://www.franka.de/

Research Papers

Foundational Papers

RT-2: Vision-Language-Action Models

• Paper: https://robotics-transformer2.github.io/

PaLM-E: Embodied Multimodal Language Model

• Paper: https://palm-e.github.io/

Diffusion Policy for Visuomotor Control

• Paper: https://diffusion-policy.cs.columbia.edu/

OpenVLA: Open Vision-Language-Action Model

• Paper: https://openvla.github.io/

Conferences

ICRA (International Conference on Robotics and Automation)

• Papers: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/conhome/1000639/all-proceedings

RSS (Robotics: Science and Systems)

• Papers: https://roboticsconference.org/

CoRL (Conference on Robot Learning)

• Papers: https://www.robot-learning.org/

Stay Updated

arXiv Robotics

• URL: https://arxiv.org/list/cs.RO/recent
• Latest robotics research preprints

Robotic Process Newsletter

• URL: https://www.therobotreport.com/
• Weekly robotics industry news

Andrej Karpathy's Zero to Hero

• URL: https://karpathy.ai/zero-to-hero.html
• Deep learning fundamentals

This resource list is continuously updated. Check official websites for latest versions and pricing.