Frequently Asked Questions
The purpose of this section is to highlight some of our more popular questions about the Baxter Research Robot and to point you in the direction of the solutions to the associated conundrums.
System
- I am having trouble enabling my robot.
This could be a symptom of one of any number of issues, unfortunately. Usually though, it is symptomatic of an issue with your environment setup.
Here is a brief rundown on sorting through this problem, and here and here are links to forum threads discussing this issue.
- I am having trouble connecting to my robot.
We have a number of network configuration options on Baxter to make it mesh well with almost any network environment.
Here is a brief rundown on setting up Baxter on your network.
- My examples are complaining that I have the wrong software/gripper version.
In order to ensure that incompatible versions of software between development machines and Baxter, we have instituted a check preventing you from using some of our example programs without compatible versions.
Here is the information you should need to get your systems up to date.
- How do I write a UI for Baxter?
There are number of ways to write a User interface for the Baxter Research Robot.
We suggest you either take a look at our Demo Mode - Code Walkthrough or at this lovely documentation that one of our other customers came up with for developing a UI
- How do I use the Baxter Research Robot in Windows?
Here is a link to the forum thread discussing this issue.
- How do I get the DH values for baxter?
Here is a link to the forum thread discussing this issue.
- What do the joint effort values actually mean?
Here is the forum thread discussing this issue.
- How do I enter the Field Service Menu (FSM)?
Here is the Wiki page with detailed instructions on how to access the FSM
Maintenance
- The arms on my Baxter are moving sluggishly, or pulling when in Zero-G mode... What can I do about this?
This probably means that your Baxter's arms could stand to be calibrated. Here is a guide on doing this.
- A spring on an arm of Baxter is making a squeak or groan noise. How do I go about fixing this?
This means that you should apply some grease to the gravitational compensation spring. Here is a guide on doing this.
- The foam on the fan cover appears to be very dusty? How do I clean it?
It's good practice to clean the filters on the fan covers to ensure clean air enters Baxter's torso. Here is a guide on doing this.
Hardware
- How do I connect a kinect sensor to my robot?
Many of our users have worked through this issue in a number of ways. Here is a link to the forum thread discussing this issue.
- How do I use my custom (non-Rethink) gripper on baxter?
We have a useful page on Gripper Customization that should give you everything you need to start using your grippers with your Baxter.
- How do I open my third camera?
You should only open two cameras on Baxter at a time. Here is the forum thread discussing this issue.
- How do I send an angle to a joint?
Here is the forum thread discussing this issue.
- Where can I find general hardware specifications for my Baxter?
Go to the hardware specifications page on the wiki Here, or Here is the forum thread discussing this issue.
- How do I shutdown Baxter?
Follow the instructions here to shut down baxter.
- How do I put the arms in Zero Gravity (Zero-G) mode?
Here is the Wiki page showing you how to put the arms in Zero-G mode
Network
What are the required dimensions for the Baxter workspace?
