Intel Realsense D435i

The Intel RealSense D435i is an RGB-D depth camera with an integrated inertial measurement unit (IMU). These cameras provide robots with a 3 dimensional view of the world allowing you to create algorithms that reason about 3D structures. The addition of an IMU helps the system orient itself when moving.

There are two components required to use the RealSense from ROS: the library (librealsense) and the ROS wrapper (realsense-ros). Below are the installation instructions

1. Install the RealSense SDK¹

   # Install intel's keys
   sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com \
        --recv-key F6E65AC044F831AC80A06380C8B3A55A6F3EFCDE
   
   # Add the apt repository
   sudo add-apt-repository \
        "deb https://librealsense.intel.com/Debian/apt-repo $(lsb_release -cs) main"
   
   # Update the package list
   sudo apt update
   
   # Install the packages
   sudo apt install librealsense2-dkms librealsense2-utils \
    librealsense2-dev librealsense2-dbg librealsense2-gl-dev \
    ros-noetic-realsense2-camera ros-noetic-realsense2-description
   
   # Install the python wrapper
   pip3 install pyrealsense2 
   

2. Plug in the RealSense
3. Run realsense-viewer. If prompted to update the firmware, do it.
   • Be patient, it can take a while.
4. Confirm that the RealSense works in the viewer by turning on the stereo module and RGB camera.