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Installation instructions for CoppeliaSim, PyRep and YCB Dataset

This course uses the robotic simulator CoppeliasSim, the programming language Python and the Python package PyRep, which wrapes CoppeliaSim's API and provides a high-level interface between CoppeliaSim and Python. High-fidelity 3D objects are provided by the YCB Dataset and WTM's YCB API,

Getting Coppeliasim

On Ubuntu 18.04, run the following commands to install CoppeliaSim in your home directory:

cd ~
wget https://www.coppeliarobotics.com/files/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04.tar.xz
tar -xvf CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04.tar.xz
rm CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04.tar.xz

Alternatively, you can download the Edu verion for CoppeliaSim from here and extract the archive manually.

Verify installation:

bash CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/coppeliaSim.sh

This should start CoppeliaSim and open an empty scene. You might get prompted to install aditional video compression libraries, if so, install them with sudo apt-get install libavcodec-dev libavformat-dev libswscale-dev.

Getting Python

For this course, you will be using the programming language Python. Python is pre-installed on Ubuntu verify that you have it: python3 --version
This will likely output Python 3.6.9, if you have Python3 installed.

However, there are a few packages that you should install to ensure a complete development environment. Paste the following into your terminal:

# If you don't have it, install python3 with: sudo apt install python3.6
sudo apt install -y build-essential libssl-dev libffi-dev python3-dev python3-pip python3-venv

Getting PyRep and YCB

We prepared a repository with PyRep and the YCB dataset for you, to streamline the setup process. The below steps clone that repository, install PyRep and download the YCB models.

Install PyRep in virtual environment

Below, we setup the environment variables needef for PyRep to interact with CoppeliaSim, create a virtual environment and install PyRep (and its requirements) in that venv.

#  setup environment variables
echo "# CoppeliaSim:" >> ~/.bashrc
echo "export COPPELIASIM_ROOT=~/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/" >> ~/.bashrc
echo "export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=\$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:\$COPPELIASIM_ROOT" >> ~/.bashrc
echo "export QT_QPA_PLATFORM_PLUGIN_PATH=\$COPPELIASIM_ROOT" >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

# clone the repository TODO: use course repo!
cd ~
git clone https://git.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/5rietz/2021_bsc_project_test.git
cd 2021_bsc_project_test

# create virtualn environment in current working directory
python3 -m venv venv

# activate the venv. This ensures that everything you install is installed in 
# the venv instead of globally
# the prefix (venv) indicates which environment is activated for 
# your current shell
source venv/bin/activate

# install PyRep in the venv
cd myPyRep
pip3 install -r requirements.txt
pip3 install .

Verify installation:

Keep in mind that everytime you restart your shell, you will have to activate the virtual environment again!
If you just followed the guide, you can just run the below command directly:

cd examples
python3 example_turtlebot_navigation.py

Otherwise, first source the virtual environment then set the working directory of your terminal to the examples inside the PyRep folder.

Downloadin YCB Data

In the folder ycb-objects-sim, you find tools to use the YCB objects dataset in CoppeliaSim. However, the models have to be downloaded first and some configuration is due:

  1. Adjust the path in <project_root>/ycb-objects-sim/src/config.py so that it points to the folder data in <project_root>/ycb-objects-sim/src/. This specifies the location where the object will be downloaded to (~3GB).
  2. Add the ycb-objects-sim folder to the PYTHONPATH: For this, edit the script activate.bash in ycb-objects-sim
  3. Run the script, so that your path is modified as specified in the file: source activate.bash
  4. Download the ycb models. Run the following command with your working directory set to ycb-objects-sim:
cd <project-root>/ycb-objects-sim
python3 ycb-tools/download_ycb_dataset.py

If you get an SSL certificate error (urllib.error.URLError: <urlopen error [SSL: CERTIFICATE_VERIFY_FAILED] certificate verify failed (_ssl.c:852)>), run the following two commands to refresh your certificates:

sudo update-ca-certificates --fresh
export SSL_CERT_DIR=/etc/ssl/certs
  1. Create SDF files for YCB objects
pip3 install trimesh[easy]
cd ycb-tools
python3 create_ycb_sdf.py
  1. Copy the file simAddOnScript_remoteSDFImp.lua from ycb-objects-sim/RemoteSDFImp to the installation folder of CoppeliaSim. You can either copy and paste the file by hand, or run the below command:
cd ../  #  wdir should be set to ycb-objects-sim root folder
cp RemoteSDFImp/simAddOnScript_remoteSDFImp.lua ~/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/

Verify installation

If everything worked, you can now run the script example_coppelia.py located in ycb-objects-sim. If you restarted your terminal or are using a different session, you will have to run activate.bash again, so that the ycb-objects-sim folder is added to your PYTHONPATH. Then, run: python3 example_coppelia.py

This should open CoppeliaSim and spawn a few of the downloaded objects in the scene.

Setup PyCharm IDE

As IDE, we will be using PyCharm. You can install it via SNAP/ or from the Ubuntu Software app. As a student, you can get a one-year professional key. Alternatively, install the community or EDU edition.

To make PyCharm work with PyRep and CoppeliaSim, you have to do two things:

  1. Set the virtual environment, that we created earlier, as interpreter for your PyCharm project under Settings -> Project ... ->Python Interpreter -> Show All... -> + Existing environment -> ... -> <PATH-TO-VENV> (eg /home/finn/uni/venv/bin/python3)

  2. For the Python file that interacts with the CoppeliaSim, set the following environment variables. Of course, adjust the paths to your system (if you followed this guide, you just have to replace "finn" with the ouput of the whoami command)

# for PyRep & Coppelia
COPPELIASIM_ROOT=/home/finn/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/
LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/home/finn/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/:$LD_LIBRARY_PATH
QT_QPA_PLATFORM_PLUGIN_PATH=/home/finn/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/

# for YCB:
PYTHONPATH=$PYTHONPATH:/home/finn/2021_bsc_project_test/ycb-objects-sim

Troubleshooting

  • If PyRep does not find your CoppeliaSim installation,
    try these comannds for your .bashrc and see whether PyRep finds Coppeliasim (for some of us,
    the $-signs needed to be escaped, for others not…):
echo "export COPPELIASIM_ROOT=~/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/" >> ~/.bashrc
echo "export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:$COPPELIASIM_ROOT" >> ~/.bashrc
echo "export QT_QPA_PLATFORM_PLUGIN_PATH=$COPPELIASIM_ROOT" >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

  • Alternatively, if you get something like: ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'pyrep' (especially when using a virtualenv), make sure PyRep installed correctly and that is is on the PYTHONPATH (check here).

  • qt.qpa.plugin: Could not find the Qt platform plugin "xcb" in "": Check your your environment variables! Maybe typo in QT_QPA_PLATFORM_PLUGIN_PATH=/home/finn/CoppeliaSim_Edu_V4_1_0_Ubuntu18_04/?

  • ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'wheel': Install Python wheel and setuptools in virtual environment: python3 -m pip install wheel setuptools

  • ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'pyrep.backend._sim_cffi': You are likely trying to import PyRep while your workind directory is set to PyRep's root directory. In this case, the imports fail, because Python tries to import from the folders instead of the installed packages. Change your working example (for example cd examples) and try again.

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