First Thoughts on ROS2
If you’ve worked with ROS1, then switching to ROS2 is like trading a flip phone for a smartphone. It’s faster, cleaner, and finally built with modern systems in mind.
But setting it up? It felt like assembling IKEA furniture without the manual. Pieces everywhere, and you’re left holding one part like, “Where on Earth does this go?”
Still, once ROS2 clicked — especially its pub-sub model — it felt like magic. Suddenly, my robot simulator (which I proudly named Echo) wasn’t just responding, it was understanding.
Mixing JavaScript into the Chaos
Let’s be real: JavaScript + robots is not the typical combo. But JS became my bridge — between the browser (where I wanted voice interaction and visualization) and ROS2 (where the logic lived).
And yeah, I love how duct-tape-y JS is. It lets you test, hack, and tweak — perfect for experimentation.
I used the browser’s native speech recognition API to handle voice input. It worked better than expected… unless I mumbled. Then? Total disaster.
Let’s Talk About Voice Commands (And Human Frustration)
Here’s what no tutorial really tells you: voice commands are messy.
- I’d say, “Go forward” → it heard, “Go four words.”
- Whisper “stop” → it accelerates like it’s in a car chase.
I switched APIs, blamed my mic, blamed the universe.
Eventually, I got smart and added a fuzzy logic layer. Not strict commands, but intent detection:
- “Hey, can you move?”
- “Left, please.”
- “Whoa, stop now!”
Way more natural. Way more fun. And honestly? Way less robotic.
Making It Feel Real (Even If It’s Virtual)
The simulator itself wasn’t photorealistic, but it didn’t need to be.
I gave Echo a personality:
- It beeped when confused.
- It blinked when it got a command.
- It tilted its “head” while idle, like it was waiting.
These tiny details made a huge difference. Voice control without feedback feels like yelling into a void. This made Echo feel alive.
Also, once during a call, it started spinning randomly. Pretty sure it interpreted “alright” as “turn right.” I couldn’t stop laughing.
Unexpected Wins
The best part? People loved it.
My little cousin screamed “Robot, dance!” — so I made it dance. Well, wobble. But he cheered.
That moment reminded me:
Tech doesn’t always need to be useful. Sometimes, it just needs to be delightful.
Also, demoing it at a local tech meetup got me some real buzz.
“Can you send me the repo?”
Sure thing, stranger. Let’s make more robots dance.
Struggles That Made Me Swear a Little
Let’s not pretend this was all smooth.
- Setting up ROS2 <–> JS bridges? Ugh.
- Voice lag on slower machines = frustrating delays.
- False triggers? A bird chirp once made Echo moonwalk.
- Debugging typos in ROS messages was an actual time sink.
- And yes, testing this alone is fine. But shouting “MOVE BACKWARDS!” when your roommate walks in? Awkward.
Read more about tech blogs . To know more about and to work with industry experts visit internboot.com .
Final Thoughts
Building this voice-controlled robot sim wasn’t just a fun challenge — it was a crash course in:
- Human-computer interaction
- Real-time systems
- Web-robotics crossover
- …and how ridiculous we sound when talking to machines
Would I do it again?
Absolutely. And next time, I’ll teach Echo to moonwalk properly.
