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The PR2 is one of the most beloved robots in the robotics industry. This is The state-of-the-art mobile manipulator when it was launched in 2009 by Willow Garage. PR2 has been sold in small numbers to research laboratories. Willow Garage continued to support PR2 until the company closed in 2014.
If anyone is interested in learning about PR2, or reviving the platform, Clearpath Robotics is here to help. Clearpath took over PR2’s service and support responsibilities following the closure of Willow Garage. Clearpath has posted on its new documentation website all design files for PR2. You have to give some of your information to access the files, but there are a lot of them. You can now access resources such as wiring diagrams, schematics, cable and assembly drawings and everything else related to the most advanced research and development platform of its time.
“Clearpath Robotics is a long-time supporter of PR2, with the goal of providing valuable resources to its users,” the company said on its website. “On that account, we are excited that all design files for PR2 are available for download on our new documentation website. The hardware and 1000+ software libraries currently available for PR2 prove the new opportunities for robotics researchers to focus on. We’re excited to see how these additional resources can help developers with their applications.”
PR2 can navigate in unknown, shared human environments, and can understand and manipulate objects. The ground-breaking platform has driven research in the fields of automation, manipulation and human-robot interaction. PR2 is written entirely in the Robot Operating System (ROS), making its capabilities available through ROS interfaces. It has two 7-DOF robot arms, various sensors, two computers on its base and much more.
In the meantime, take a trip down memory lane and look back at some of the milestones achieved by the PR2 team.