Bridging Industrial Automation and Robotics: The Ultimate Guide to CODESYS and ROS2 Integration

Handle all kinematic conversions explicitly inside the high-level ROS2 node before passing raw spatial coordinates down to the axis controllers in CODESYS. Practical Applications

The integration of CoDeSys and ROS 2 offers several benefits, including:

The "CODESYS ROS 2" integration allows these two giants to communicate seamlessly. This article explores why, how, and where you should implement it.

1. OPC UA (Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture)

ROS 2 uses Unix epoch time, whereas PLCs use internal system ticks. If your application relies on precise timestamping (e.g., matching a sensor reading to an exact motor position), implement a time synchronization protocol like PTP (IEEE 1588).

This article explores how integrating CODESYS with ROS 2 bridges the gap between deterministic machine control and intelligent robotics. It highlights architectural approaches, communication protocols, and industrial use cases. The Technology Gap: Why CODESYS and ROS 2 Need Each Other

PLC writes actual joint positions to shared memory →right arrow ROS Node reads and publishes to /joint_states . ROS to CODESYS: ROS calculates path →right arrow Publishes to /cmd_vel or specialized topic →right arrow Bridge writes to shared memory →right arrow CODESYS reads and drives motors. 4. Key Considerations for Implementation

: PLCs excel at real-time, deterministic control. They manage microsecond-level I/O loops, execute safety functions, and communicate via robust industrial protocols like EtherCAT, PROFINET, and EtherNet/IP. However, they lack the computational flexibility needed for complex tasks like autonomous navigation, dynamic path planning, or machine learning.

Both CODESYS runtime and ROS 2 must use the same DDS implementation (e.g., eProsima Fast DDS or CycloneDDS). Configure their XML profiles to share the same domain ID (e.g., Domain ID = 5 ), network interface (e.g., eth0 ), and discovery settings.

Leverage ROS2 for AI/vision while using CODESYS to manage high-speed, safety-critical motor control.