To understand the value of this integration, one must look at the unique strengths of each platform. By combining them, engineers create a system that is both rock-solid and highly intelligent.
The integration of CoDeSys and ROS 2 represents a significant milestone in the evolution of industrial automation. By combining the strengths of CoDeSys in industrial control with the flexibility and modularity of ROS 2, developers can create powerful and scalable control applications that leverage the best of both worlds. The benefits of this integration, including improved flexibility, increased scalability, enhanced interoperability, and faster development, make it an attractive solution for a wide range of industrial automation applications. As the industrial automation landscape continues to evolve, the integration of CoDeSys and ROS 2 is likely to play a key role in shaping the future of industrial control systems.
class Commander(Node): def (self): super(). init ('plc_commander') self.pub = self.create_publisher(Twist, '/cmd_vel', 10) timer_period = 0.05 # 50ms self.timer = self.create_timer(timer_period, self.timer_callback)
Combining CODESYS and ROS2 allows engineers to leverage the strengths of both platforms simultaneously. This approach offers several key advantages: codesys ros2
. While common, these often have higher latency compared to native shared memory implementations. Key Benefits Reliability
This is the most efficient approach, ideal for high-speed motion control.
Eliminates the middleman translator; ROS2 treats the CODESYS PLC as just another native node. To understand the value of this integration, one
: You install the library, add it to your project, and import the example PLCopenXML project to get started. 2. OPC UA (Open Platform Communications)
Mira watched the new morning shift from the mezzanine as a fleet of robots danced between stations. She remembered the first night when the two systems had merely eyed each other across an electrical divide. Now they conversed in a hybrid tongue—deterministic reliability fused with adaptive intelligence. It wasn’t perfect; there were still edge cases and a continuous need for careful mapping between worlds. But the plant had gained something more than productivity: an architecture that respected the strengths of both CODESYS and ROS 2, married by disciplined interface contracts and sober safety thinking.
OPC UA is the gold standard for industrial interoperability. Most modern CODESYS runtimes include a built-in OPC UA server. On the robotics side, developers can use Python or C++ libraries ( opcua-asyncio or open62541 ) inside a ROS2 node to act as an OPC UA client. By combining the strengths of CoDeSys in industrial
Select the variables you want to expose to ROS2 (e.g., lrTargetPosition , lrActualVelocity , xEmergencyStop ).
+------------------------------------+ +------------------------------------+ | ROS2 Network | | CODESYS Environment | | [Nav2] [MoveIt] [AI/Vision] | | [IEC 61131-3 Logic] [EtherCAT] | | | | | | | | | | | +---------------------------+ | | +-------------------------+ | | | ROS2 Node / DDS | | | | PLC Runtime System | | +--+-------------+-------------+-----+ +-----+------------+------------+--------+ | | +================= COMMUNICATION ==============+ (OPC UA / MQTT / DDS) Communication Strategies Between CODESYS and ROS2
What (such as UDP, OPC UA, or MQTT) do you prefer for the bridge? Share public link
: The ROS2 node translates ROS2 messages ( sensor_msgs , nav_msgs ) into OPC UA variables, which the CODESYS PLC reads during its cyclic execution. 3. Shared Memory (For Single-IPC Deployments)