DEVELOP ON THE FRANKA ROBOT PLATFORM

Getting Started

Essential resources to help you set up, understand, and operate your Franka robot system.

- Product Documentation  [link] | Get product manuals and additional supporting material like datasheets and quick guides for installation.

- System Overview [link] | A visual overview showing how the system components are connected and how they interact.

FCI, libfranka, Toolbox for MATLAB, ROS, ROS 2

A collection of official libraries, toolboxes, and documentation for integrating, controlling, and simulating Franka robots across various platforms.

- FCI Documentation  [link] Here you can find an overview, tutorials and install instructions for the Franka Control Interface.

- libfranka [source code] [api docs] This library provides a C++ interface to the robot, with access to the kinematic and dynamic model of the robot.

- ROS [source code] [ros wiki] Integration into the MoveIt planning framework, and additional support for multi-arm configurations, external grippers and vision.

- ROS 2 [source code] [documentation] ROS2 integration of libfranka: torque control via ros2_control with MoveIt2 support and gripper integration.

- Franka Toolbox for MATLAB*  [version 2.0.0] [documentation] [request a quote] Full access to all realtime interfaces and dynamic model parameters in the Simulink Toolbox.
*Version 1.0.0 and higher require the purchase of a license key for activation. The use of Franka Toolbox for MATLAB requires the installation of additional Software from The MathWorks, Inc. For details see the documentation. An overview of the compatibility between different versions of Franka Toolbox for MATLAB , libfranka and MATLAB^® / Simulink^® can be found in the documentation.

- Archived Franka Toolbox for MATLAB [version 1.0.0] [version 0.3.1] [version 0.3.0] [version 0.2.1] [version 0.2.0] [version 0.1.1] Archived versions of Franka Toolbox for MATLAB.

Desk

Desk is a browser-based user interface designed for creating simple applications, perfect for quick setups of robot behaviors, experiment configurations, and human-robot interaction demos.

- Tutorial 1 [link] Introductory tutorial about Desk and its functionalities to create Tasks with Apps.

- Tutorial 2 [link] A tutorial about the Pilot, the controller to interact with the Franka Hand and the Desk UI.

Desk API

Desk API is a RESTful interface that gives you programmatic access to (almost) everything that can be done from Desk. Ideal for integrating Franka robots into larger automation systems, it allows you to monitor, operate, and maintain your robot beyond the graphical Desk UI. ​

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Use the Desk API to: ​

- Open brakes, activate the FCI, or clear safety violations. ​
- Manage system configurations (network, users, etc.). ​
- Run diagnostics and download user log files. ​
- Integrate the robot into industrial orchestration tools. ​

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The API is available for everyone and free starting with System Image v5.8. All you need is network access. ​

Desk API Reference  [available from Desk's dropdown menu, or via the link <Your Robot IP>/deskapi] Full endpoint documentation, including parameters, methods, and error responses. 

RIDE (Robot Integrated Development Environment) and RACE

RIDE is a tool for writing custom Desk Apps and connecting external sensors and any other functionality to the system.

- ride-cli (RIDE Command Line Interface) Download* [Franka Emika Robot] [Franka Research/Production 3] With this text-based interface you can develop Apps with your robot from the command line.
* You don't have your App Development Feature yet? Contact the Franka Robotics Team

- ride-cli Documentation [Franka Emika Robot] [Franka Research/Production 3] Documentation for developing Apps with ride-cli.

- race-com [download] [documentation] Use this C-Library to develop Services to make third-party hardware and external resources available to your Apps.

- IDE Plugins [Visual Studio Marketplace] [Sublime Plugin] [Vim Plugin] Here you can download plugins for Visual Studio Code or other IDEs to include App development functionalities into your IDE.

Robot CAD Models

Fully movable 3D models of the Arm, Hand and the Control – to simulate the robot in your work environment, test its reach and visualize the system in combination with additional equipment.

- Franka Research 3 [download] 3D model of the Franka Research 3 robot system.

Extensions

Extend your robot functionalities with additional software and hardware modules.

- OPC UA Documentation [Franka Emika Robot] [Franka Production 3] Franka's Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture enables a certain set of functions on your robot. Check the documentation to learn more about its potential and usage possibilities.

- Modbus [Documentation] Check the documentation to learn more about the  potential of Modbus and usage possibilities for your robot.