Introduction

OpenRTM-aist RT System Editor Introduction

The OMG has developed the Robot Technology Component (RTC) specification as a way to increase the efficiency of robot development. Based on this specification, AIST has developed the OpenRTM-aist. RT System Editor is one of the development tools included in this architecture. It is used for manipulating RT Components in a real-time graphical interface. It is a plugin for the Eclipse IDE, and interacts seamlessly with other Eclipse plugins.

Target Audience

This document is targetted at those who already have an understanding of the basic principles of RT Components. Details of the RTC specification and use can be found at the OMG and AIST.

Screenshot

Functionality Outline

RT System Editor allows the manipulation of RT Components in real time using a graphical interface.

Operating Environment

The following software is required to use RT System Editor.

Limitations

RT System Editor is designed for OpenRTM-aist. It may no work with other RTC platforms.

Summary

The views used by RT System Editor are described below.

• Functionality Outline
• Starting Name Service View
• Connecting to a name server
• Deleting a name server
• Displaying a name server's contents
• Changing the Name Service View scope
• Filtering the Name Service View
• Deleting Name Service Entries
• Adding and Deleting Objects
• Adding Contexts
• Deleting Zombie Objects

OpenRTM-aist uses name servers for management and publication of RT Components. The Name Service View allows the display and editing of these name services.

Functionality Outline

The RT Name Service view provides the ability to graphically manipulate RT Components in real-time. The offered functionality is as follows:

Starting Name Service View

From the Window menu, select Display View and then Name Service View.

The standard Eclipse Property view can be displayed in the same way.

Connecting to a name server

Click on the Add Name Server button or select Add Name Server from the context menu.

In the Connect Name Server dialog, enter the IP address and port of the name server. If the port is omitted, the default port as configured in the RT System Editor settings is used. This defaults to 2809.

When Eclipse is restarted, the name servers that were connected in the previous session will be automatically connected again. If they don't exist, it will attempt to connect to localhost:2809.

Deleting a name server

To delete a connected name server, click the Delete from View button.

Displaying a name server's contents

If a name server has components registered with it, they can be displayed in a tree layout.

The icons displayed in the view are described below.

The Name Service View is always observing connected name servers and updating the display. The update period can be configured in the RT System Editor settings. The display can also be refreshed manually. Click the Refresh button at the top of the view or select Refresh from the context menu to do so.

Changing the Name Service View scope

When the Name Service View becomes crowded with too many RT Components, the view's root can be moved down the tree. Right-click on the tree node you wish to make the new root and select Go Into.

Select Go Back to move the root up one level, or Go Home to move it back to the actual root of the tree.

Filtering the Name Service View

When the Name Service View becomes crowded with too many RT Components, a filter can be created to limit what is displayed. Click the Name Service View Filter button to add a filter.

In the displayed Name Service Filters dialog, select the items to hide from the view.

Check the items you wish to exclude, and they will be hidden in the Name Service view display. Check Naming object name and enter a name to hide objects who's name matches. The object name condition can be a match against the start of the name or a partial match.

Deleting Name Service Entries

Objects registered with a name service can be deleted from that service using the Name Service View. Right-click on the object to delete and select Delete from Name Service from the context menu.

Adding and Deleting Objects

The Name Service View can be used to register objects to a name service. To add an object, right-click on the context it should be a child of and select Add Object from the context menu.

In the Add Object dialog, enter the object's name, type and IOR.

Adding Contexts

Contexts can be added to and deleted from name servers using the Name Service View. To add a context, right-click on the context it should be a child of and select Add Context from the context menu.

Enter the name and kind of the context in the Add Context dialog. The kind can be one of the following.

Deleting Zombie Objects

The Name Service view has a function to delete all zombie objects at once. Click the Kill All Zombies button at the top of the view to do remove all zombie objects.

The Configuration View displays the configuration of the selected component, and allows it to be edited. The left lists available configuration sets, while the right displays the properties of the selected configuration set.

Changes made in the Configuration View will not take effect until the Apply button is pressed. Edited values are highlighted.

To edit a configuration value, click the Edit Value button to display the dialog below.

When there are multiple configuration sets, the tabs at the top of the dialog will allow the set currently being edited to be changed (10). Configuration parameters can specify an editing widget. When a widget is defined, the widget will be displayed for that parameter and the parameter can be edited using it (11). Widgets may be sliders, spin boxes or radio buttons. When no widget is specified, a text box is used as the default. Parameters may also have limits specified. When the widget type is a slider or spin box, these limits are required. When not specified in these cases, the widget will default to a text box. #br

For those parameters that have limits specified, range checks will be performed. Parameters that fail the range check are highlighted in red in the dialog. When the OK button is pressed, an error dialog is displayed if there are any parameters that fail their range check.

If the Apply checkbox (12) in the editing dialog is checked and the OK button is pressed, the changed configuration values are applied, as with pressing the Apply button in the main window (9).
The information displayed in the Configuration View is updated and cached when the selected RTC changes. Because of this, if the same RTC remains selected, differences between the displayed and actual information may appear. When applying changes to configuration parameters, the entire configuration will be overwritten, so care must be taken that old values do not overwrite new values. Also, the RTC specification allows for all sorts of property value types, but RT System Editor can only edit string-based values. When a property's value is not a string, it can be displayed but cannot be edited (except for clearing the value).

When a manager is selected in the Name Service view, the Manager Control view becomes active and allows control of the selected manager.

To load a module, click the Loadable Modules button and select a module in the displayed list of loadable modules, then click the Load button. Alternatively, enter the URL of the module into the URL entry field and click the Load button.

To unload a module, click the Loaded Modules button and selected a loaded module from the list, then click the Unload button.

To create a new component, first click the Create button. Select the type of component to create and click OK. The new component will be registered with the name server by the manager. It will be visible in the list displayed by the Active Components button.

Component types are specified by modules loaded into the manager. The Parameter text box allows parameters for the component to be specified. These should be entered in URL parameter format, e.g. "param1=value1&param2=value2". The following general parameters are available for all components.

Configuration set values can also be set using the paramater text box. The format for these is "conf.NNNN.PPPP=VVVV". NNNN is the configuration set name, PPPP is the parameter name, and VVVV is the value. The example below illustrates setting parameters in an instance of the ConsoleIn component. A configuration set called "mode1" is created and the parameters "input_mode" and "input_cycle" are set.

Other parameters may be settable as well, depending on the component.

The composite component view displays the public information about the selected composite component, as well as change which ports are publically available.

Settings edited in the composite component view are not applied until button ⑥ is pressed. Changed but not applied values are highlighted in red. Ports selected in the system editor are highlighted in yellow.

Composite component ports that are connected to ports of other components in the system editor are highlighted in grey and cannot be edited.

The Property View displays the profile information of the selected RTC or connector. Unlike the Configuration View, this information updates continuously, even if the same component remains selected.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　For RT Components　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　For composite components　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　For managers

For details on the information contained in an RTC Profile, see the "RT Name Service View Operation Manual." Connector profile information contains the Name, DataType, InterfaceType, Dataflow ype and Subscription Type. The icons are described below.

In the RTC specification, there is a RTC LifeCycleState per ExecutionContext. Even if there are multiple states, only the STATE used by the first ExecutionContext will be displayed.

• Outline
• Basic operation
  • Opening the System Editor
  • Adding RTCs to the System Editor
  • Changing RTC States
  • Connecting Ports
  • Removing port connections
  • Disconnecting all ports

Outline

The System Editor graphically displays the state of RTCs in real time. It also allows the ports to be connected and the state of RTCs to be controlled in order to build and contorl a complete system.

Basic operation

The connection method between the ports of RTC and the method of performing RTCare explained.

Opening the System Editor

To open a new System Editor, click the Open New System Editor button in the toolbar or select Open New System Editor from the File menu.

Adding RTCs to the System Editor

To add an RTC to the System Editor, drag and drop them from the Name Service View into the System Editor.

Changing RTC States

Using the system diagram, the selected RTC can be moved between the various states - Activate, Deactivate, Reset, Finalize, Exit, Start and Stop. This can also be done through the Name Service View.

The meaning of these actions is described below.

In addition, in order to easily manage an entire system, the System Editor allows all contained components to be activated, deactivated, started and stopped at once using buttons in the tool bar or the context menu.

Using the "All" actions, ExecutionContexts other than the first can also be used. The result may differ from controlling each component individually.

Connecting Ports

The System Editor can be used to connect ports. Drag and drop between two ports to connect them.

After dragging and dropping, a dialog will be displayed requesting the necessary information for the connection.

This dialog is used to build a Connector Profile. The Connector Profile must meet the various conditions of the ports. This dialog only allows information that meets these conditions to be entered. If two ports cannot be connected due to conflicting conditions, this is indicated when attempting to drag a connetion between them.

Port connections are broadly divided into data port connections and service port connections. for details, please refer to SystemEditor(PortConnection).

Removing port connections

To remove the connection between two ports, select it and click the Delete button, or right-click it and select Delete from the context menu.

Disconnecting all ports

To disconnect all ports at once, right click on a port and select All Disconnect.

• Creating Composite Components
• Add Child Component
• Delete Child Component
• Deleting a Composite Component
• Decomposing a Composite Component
• Changing ports between public and private

Creating Composite Components

To create a composite component, first select more than one component. Then select Create Composite Component from the context menu.

When creating a composite component, the child components that were selected in the system editor will disappear and a new composite component will take their place. Double-click on this new component, or right-click on it and select Open with System Diagram Editor to open the component's internals in a new system editor.

When saving the system structure, only one component diagram can be saved. Because of this, when displaying the internals of a composite component, any changes to the component diagram will not be saved.

Add Child Component

Open the composite component in a system editor and drag components from the name server view into it to add them as child components. Newly-added components start with all their ports private.

Delete Child Component

Open the composite component in a system editor and delete the unwanted child component. The child component will be removed from the composite component and displayed in the system diagram in which the composite component itself is displayed.

Deleting a Composite Component

Right-click on the composite component and select Delete to remove the composite component from the diagram. If the component is open in another system diagram, a warning dialog will be displayed.

Decomposing a Composite Component

Right-click on the composite component and select Decompose Composite Component. exit() will be sent to the component and the component will terminate. If the component is open in another system diagram, a warning will be displayed. The child components will be displayed in the system diagram in which the composite component was displayed.

Changing ports between public and private

When editing the internals of a composite component, the public ports of child components will be displayed using the following symbols.

To make a port private, right-click on it and select Unexport. To make a port public, right-click on it and select Export.

If a port is connected to another component, it cannot be made private until it is disconnected.

• Saving the System Editor
• Loading a System Editor State
• Loading and Restoring a System Editor state
• Restoring a saved system using the console

Saving the System Editor

The contents of the System Editor can be saved. Select Save or Save As... from the File menu and select a suitable file name.

The profile information dialog will be displayed. Set the required information and click OK. The system information will be saved to the profile.

Loading a System Editor State

To load a previously-saved System Editor state, right-click on the editor and select Open...

After loading, RT System Editor will attempt to get the latest state from remote systems. To restore the system, use the option described below.

Loading and Restoring a System Editor state

To load a previously-saved System Editor state and restore it, right-click on the editor and select Open and Restore...

The following items are restored:

• Port connections
• Configuration information
  ~At restoration time, it will try to search for name servers and retrieve remote components using the component path ID. If Quick Restore is selected, it will first try using the IOR stored in the profile, and only if that fails will it attempt to access a name server. When restoration fails, the error details are displayed. RT System Editor will attempt to restore as much as possible.
  
  fig38ErrorMessageOfRestorationFailure_en.png
  Restoration error display

Note When there are multiple connections between the same ports, the connection lines will not be differentiated.

Restoring a saved system using the console

Saved systems can also be restored using the console. This is accomplished using the RT System Editor "ConsoleRestore" package (distributed separately). In this tool's folder, exectute run.bat, passing it the saved file.
~（Example） C:\tmp\RtcLink\ConsoleRestore>run.bat C:\tmp\save.rtclink

• RTC Display
• Editing the RTC Display

RTC Display

RTCs added to the System Editor are displayed as rectangles with icons indicating the ports. The colour of the rectangle changes to represent the RTC's current state.

The icons and colours are described below.

* The colours can be configured in the RT System Editor settings.
The System Editor updates its display of component states in real time. The update period can be configured using the RT System Editor settings.

Editing the RTC Display

The display of each individual RTC can be changed. This has no effect on the system or the actual component, it is merely changing how the RTC is displayed in the System Editor.

• Move and resize an RTC ~ To move an RTC, drag it with the mouse after selecting it. Resizing is accomplished using the resizing handles around the edges.
  
  fig19RTCMoveSize_en.png
  Moving (left) and resizing (right) an RTC

The location and size are displayed in the status bar.

- Rotating an RTC ~Select the RTC, then click the middle mouse button to flip the component horizontally. Hold shift while clicking the middle mouse button to flip the component vertically.

- Removing an RTC from the System Editor ~ To delete an RTC from the editor, select it and click the Delete button, or right-click on it and select Delete from the context menu. This will not have any effect on the running system.

-Moving port connection lines ~To move a line connecting two ports, select the line and use the handles to move it around. Vertical lines can be moved side-to-side, while horizontal lines can be moved up and down.

• Data port connections
• Service port connections

Data port connections

Data port connections connect an Inport and an OutPort. The following dialog is displayed when creating this type of connection.

~For items ②-⑤, the values allowed by RT System Editor are generated by matching character strings from the port lists. Because of this, when both ports only list ANY, it cannot determine the permissable values. For this reason, RT System Editor allows character string entry when both ports only list ANY. When this is possible, it is indicated in the dialog.

Service port connections

A service port connection is between two ServicePorts. The following dialog is displayed when creating this type of connection.

There are no required conditions when connecting service ports. However, if the PortInterfaceProfile between two ServicePorts does not completely match*, a warning will be displayed in the Connector Profile dialog.

~* "Completely match" means the PortInterfaceProfile "type" is the same and the polarity is PROVIDED and REQUIRED, respectively. Note When there are multiple connections between the same ports, the connection lines will not be differentiated.

Outline

The Offline System Editor allows for creation of RT systems by drag and drop of components from a repository into a system diagram. Its operation is generally the same as the online editor, but the state of RT components cannot be changed, nor will component state information be updated.

Functionality

Opening the Offline System Editor

To open a new Offline System Editor, click Open New Offline System Editor in the toolbar, or select Open New Offline System Editor from the File menu.

Adding Component Specifications to the Offline System Editor

To add a component specification to the editor, drag it from the repository view.

Editing Component Specifications with the Offline System Editor

With the exception of executing components, the Offline System Editor is capable of all functions of the System Editor.

RT System Editor

The RT System Editor settings can be accessed from the Window menu's Preferences... option, and selecting RT System Editor.

Connection Period

The connection period determines how often RT System Editor collects the system information and refreshes its information displays. The unit is milliseconds. If zero is specified, no synchronisation is performed.

Setting Colours

This screen allows the colours used in the System Editor to indicate various states to be configured. For information on what each state means, see RTC Display.

Offline Editor

This screen allows the parameters selectable at port connection time to be set. When connecting ports, the selectable values for the options "Interface Type," "Data Flow Type," and "Subscription Type" are as set here. For details on the meaning of these, see the data port connections section.

RT Name Service View

Connection Settings

The connection period determins how often the Name Service View gathers information and refreshes its displays. The unit is milliseconds. If zero is specified, synchronisation is disabled. The default port number determines the default port used in the Connect Name Server dialog when adding a name server to the name service view without explicitly specifying a port.

Synchronisation settings

The timeout value determines how long to wait when attempting to connect during synchronisation. The units are milliseconds.

The effects of the connection period and timeout value are illustrated below. In this example, the period is 1000ms and the timeout is 100ms.

FAQ

The performance of RT System Editor is slow.

A. RT System Editor is constantly gathering information about the system. If a registered object does not exist, it must wait for a timeout. This can cause a large slowdown. Objects that do not exist should be deleted from the Name Service View, as well as any connections to other objects. This should restore performance.

A project called "RT System Editor_Files" has been created in the Eclipse workspace. What is it?

A. RT System Editor stores temporary information at runtime in these files. Do not delete them while RT System Editor is running. When RT System Editor is stopped, it is safe to delete them.

The Name Service View performance is bad

A. The Name Service View is constantly gathering information about objects registered with the name servers. If a registered object does not exist, it must wait for a timeout. This can cause a large slowdown. Objects that do not exist should be deleted from the Name Service View, as well as any connections to other objects. This should restore performance.

There are duplicate connections between two ports in the System Editor. How can I tell them apart?

A. It is not possible to tell many connections apart. Check using the project file.

Acknowledgements

RT System Editor is developed using the following libraries and products. We thank these projects.

Apache Jakarta Commons Lang 2 . 2

Apache Jakarta Commons Lang Copyright 2001-2006 The Apache Software Foundation

This product includes software developed by The Apache Software Foundation.