Enable External Mode for ROS Toolbox Models

External mode enables Simulink^® on your host computer to communicate with a deployed model on your robotics hardware during runtime. External mode allows you to tune block mask parameters and to visualize signals on your model while your model is running. For Robotics System Toolbox™, deployed models are ROS nodes running on the target hardware that communicates with Simulink over TCP/IP.

To use external mode with Robotics System Toolbox models:

1. Open the Configuration Parameters dialog box.

2. On the Hardware Implementation pane, specify the Hardware board as Robot Operating System (ROS). Specify related parameters in Target Hardware Resources.

3. In Target Hardware Resources, set the External mode parameters. Click OK.

4. In the model, set the Simulation mode to External for the model.

5. Run the model.

Your model connects to the Device Address specified in the Connect to ROS Device dialog box which is used to connect to your ROS device when deploying the model.

To configure signal monitoring and data archiving, go to the Code menu and select External Mode Control Panel. You can also connect to the target program and start and stop execution of the model code. For more information, see Host-Target Communication with External Mode Simulation (Simulink Coder).

Related Topics

• Generate a Standalone ROS Node from Simulink®
• Tune Parameters and View Signals on Deployed Robot Models Using External Mode
• Host-Target Communication with External Mode Simulation (Simulink Coder)