REAL-TIME DATA EXCHANGE (RTDE) GUIDE

This is a guide on how to use the data synchronization protocol of the UR controller
Last modified on Apr 16, 2021

Created Date: October 10th, 2019.

This is a guide on how to use the data synchronization protocol of the UR controller e.g. when developing URCaps/UR+ for Universal
Robots.

NOTE: All files are avalable for download at the bottom of this page.

Examples are valid for:

CB3 Software version: from 3.4 forward
e-Series Software versions: All versions
Note that newer software versions may behave differently.

The RTDE is available on CB3/CB3.1 from software 3.4, but specific features may only be available in newer software versions.

The RTDE synchronize external executables with the UR controller, for instance URCaps, without breaking any real-time properties. This
document first describes the protocol and then provides a Python client reference implementation.

REAL-TIME DATA EXCHANGE (RTDE)

Introduction
Key features
Field names and associated types
Robot controller inputs
Robot controller outputs

Data types
Protocol
Header
RTDE_REQUEST_PROTOCOL_VERSION
RTDE_GET_URCONTROL_VERSION
RTDE_TEXT_MESSAGE (protocol v. 1)
RTDE_TEXT_MESSAGE (protocol v. 2)
RTDE_DATA_PACKAGE
RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_OUTPUTS (protocol v. 1)
RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_OUTPUTS (protocol v. 2)
RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_INPUTS
RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_START
RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_PAUSE

RTDE client Python module

INTRODUCTION
The Real-Time Data Exchange (RTDE) interface provides a way to synchronize external applications with the UR controller over a standard
TCP/IP connection, without breaking any real-time properties of the UR controller. This functionality is among others useful for interacting
with fieldbus drivers (e.g. Ethernet/IP), manipulating robot I/O and plotting robot status (e.g. robot trajectories). The RTDE interface is by
default available when the UR controller is running.
The synchronization is configurable and can for example involve the following data:

Output: robot-, joint-, tool- and safety status, analog and digital I/O's and general purpose output registers
Input: digital and analog outputs and general purpose input registers

The RTDE functionality is split in two stages: a setup procedure and a synchronization loop.

On connection to the RTDE interface, the client is responsible for setting up the variables to be synchronized. Any combination of input
and output registers that the client needs to write and read, respectively, can be specified. To achieve this the client sends a setup list of
named input and output fields that should be contained in the actual data synchronization packages. The definition of a synchronization
data package format is referred to as a recipe. There is a maximum limit of 2048 bytes to represent the list of inputs/outputs field names
a client would like to subscribe to. In return the RTDE interface replies with a list of the variable types or specifies that a specific variable
has not been found. Each input recipe that has been successfully configured will get a unique recipe id. The list of supported field names
and their associated data types can be found below. When the setup is complete the data synchronization can be started and paused.

When the synchronization loop is started, the RTDE interface sends the client the requested data in the same order it was requested by
the client. Furthermore the client is expected to send updated inputs to the RTDE interface on a change of value. The data
synchronization uses serialized binary data.

All packages share the same general structure with a header and a payload if applicable. The packages used for the setup procedure
generate a return message. The synchronization loop packages do not. Both client and server may at any time send a text message,
whereby the warning level specifies the severity of the problem. The RTDE is available on port number 30004.

To get started we recommend using or modify the provided client sample written in Python.

KEY FEATURES
Real-time synchronization: The RTDE generally generates output messages on 125 Hz. However, the real-time loop in the controller
has a higher priority than the RTDE interface. Therefore, if the controller lacks computational resources it will skip a number of
output packages. The skipped packages will not be sent later, the controller will always send the most recent data. Input packages
will always be processed in the control cycle they are received, so the load for the controller will vary depending on the number of
received packages.
Input messages: The updating of variables in the controller can be divided into multiple messages. One can have one message to
update everything or a message per variable or any division in between. There is no need for a constant update rate; inputs keep
their last received value. Note: Only one RTDE client is allowed to control a specific variable at any time.
Runtime environment: An RTDE client may run on the UR Control Box PC or on any external PC. The advantage of running the RTDE
client on the Control Box is no network latency. However, the RTDE client and UR controller will compete for computational
resources. Please make sure that the RTDE client runs with standard operating system priority. Computationally intensive
processes, e.g. image processing, should be run on an external PC.
Protocol changes: The RTDE protocol might be updated at any time by UR. To guarantee maximum compatibility for your RTDE
client, RTDE clients can request the RTDE interface to speak a specific protocol version. Protocol additions / changes are explicitly
denoted, otherwise version 1 is assumed.

FIELD NAMES AND ASSOCIATED TYPES

ROBOT CONTROLLER INPUTS
Introduced in
Name Type Comment
version

0 = don't change speed slider with this

input
speed_slider_mask UINT32
 
1 = use speed_slider_fraction to set
speed slider value

speed_slider_fraction DOUBLE new speed slider value

 

standard_digital_output_mask UINT8 Standard digital output bit mask

 

configurable_digital_output_mask UINT8 Configurable digital output bit mask  

standard_digital_output UINT8 Standard digital outputs
 

configurable_digital_output UINT8 Configurable digital outputs

 

Standard analog output mask

standard_analog_output_mask UINT8
Bits 0-1: standard_analog_output_0 |  
standard_analog_output_1

Output domain {0=current[mA],

1=voltage[V]}
standard_analog_output_type UINT8
 
Bits 0-1: standard_analog_output_0 |
standard_analog_output_1

standard_analog_output_0 DOUBLE Standard analog output 0 (ratio) [0..1]

 

standard_analog_output_1 DOUBLE Standard analog output 1 (ratio) [0..1]

 

General purpose bits

input_bit_registers0_to_31 UINT32 This range of the boolean input registers

 
is reserved for FieldBus/PLC interface
usage.

General purpose bits

input_bit_registers32_to_63 UINT32 This range of the boolean input registers

 
is reserved for FieldBus/PLC interface
usage.

64 general purpose bits

input_bit_register_X BOOL X: [64..127] - The upper range of the 3.9.0 / 5.3.0

boolean input registers can be used by
external RTDE clients (i.e URCAPS).

48 general purpose integer registers

X: [0..23] - The lower range of the integer
input registers is reserved for [0..23] 3.4.0
FieldBus/PLC interface usage.
input_int_register_X INT32
[24..47] 3.9.0 /
X: [24..47] - The upper range of the 5.3.0
integer input registers can be used by
external RTDE clients (i.e URCAPS).

48 general purpose double registers

X: [0..23] - The lower range of the double

[0..23] 3.4.0
input registers is reserved for
input_double_register_X DOUBLE FieldBus/PLC interface usage.
[24..47] 3.9.0 /
5.3.0
X: [24..47] - The upper range of the
double input registers can be used by
external RTDE clients (i.e URCAPS).

Input external wrench when using

external_force_torque VECTOR6D 3.3
ft_rtde_input_enable builtin.

ROBOT CONTROLLER OUTPUTS

Name Type Comment Introduced
 in version

timestamp DOUBLE Time elapsed since the controller was started [s]
 

target_q VECTOR6D Target joint positions

 

target_qd VECTOR6D Target joint velocities

 

target_qdd VECTOR6D Target joint accelerations

 

target_current VECTOR6D Target joint currents

 

target_moment VECTOR6D Target joint moments (torques)

 

actual_q VECTOR6D Actual joint positions

 

actual_qd VECTOR6D Actual joint velocities

 

actual_current VECTOR6D Actual joint currents

 

joint_control_output VECTOR6D Joint control currents

 

Actual Cartesian coordinates of the tool: (x,y,z,rx,ry,rz),

actual_TCP_pose VECTOR6D where rx, ry and rz is a rotation vector representation of the
 
tool orientation

actual_TCP_speed VECTOR6D Actual speed of the tool given in Cartesian coordinates

 

Generalized forces in the TCP. It compensates the

actual_TCP_force VECTOR6D measurement for forces and torques generated by
 
the payload

Target Cartesian coordinates of the tool: (x,y,z,rx,ry,rz),

target_TCP_pose VECTOR6D where rx, ry and rz is a rotation vector representation of the
 
tool orientation

target_TCP_speed VECTOR6D Target speed of the tool given in Cartesian coordinates

 

Current state of the digital inputs. 0-7: Standard, 8-15:

actual_digital_input_bits UINT64
Configurable, 16-17: Tool  

joint_temperatures VECTOR6D Temperature of each joint in degrees Celsius

 

actual_execution_time DOUBLE Controller real-time thread execution time

 

robot_mode INT32 Robot mode

 

joint_mode VECTOR6INT32 Joint control modes

 

safety_mode INT32 Safety mode

 

safety_status INT32 Safety status 3.10.0 / 5.4.0

actual_tool_accelerometer VECTOR3D Tool x, y and z accelerometer values

 

speed_scaling DOUBLE Speed scaling of the trajectory limiter

 

target_speed_fraction DOUBLE Target speed fraction

 

actual_momentum DOUBLE Norm of Cartesian linear momentum

 

actual_main_voltage DOUBLE Safety Control Board: Main voltage

 

actual_robot_voltage DOUBLE Safety Control Board: Robot voltage (48V)

 
actual_robot_current DOUBLE Safety Control Board: Robot current  

actual_joint_voltage VECTOR6D Actual joint voltages

 

Current state of the digital outputs. 0-7: Standard, 8-15:

actual_digital_output_bits UINT64
Configurable, 16-17: Tool  

runtime_state UINT32 Program state

 

Position of robot elbow in Cartesian Base Coordinates

elbow_position VECTOR3D 3.5.0 / 5.0.0

Velocity of robot elbow in Cartesian Base Coordinates

elbow_velocity VECTOR3D 3.5.0 / 5.0.0

Bits 0-3:  Is power on | Is program running | Is teach button

robot_status_bits UINT32
pressed | Is power button pressed  

Bits 0-10: Is normal mode | Is reduced mode | Is protective

stopped | Is recovery mode | Is safeguard stopped | Is
safety_status_bits UINT32 system emergency stopped | Is robot emergency stopped
 
| Is emergency stopped | Is violation | Is fault | Is stopped
due to safety

Bits 0-3: analog input 0 | analog input 1 | analog output 0

analog_io_types UINT32
| analog output 1, {0=current[mA], 1=voltage[V]}  

standard_analog_input0 DOUBLE Standard analog input 0 [mA or V]

 

standard_analog_input1 DOUBLE Standard analog input 1 [mA or V]

 

standard_analog_output0 DOUBLE Standard analog output 0 [mA or V]

 

standard_analog_output1 DOUBLE Standard analog output 1 [mA or V]

 

io_current DOUBLE I/O current [mA]

 

euromap67_input_bits UINT32 Euromap67 input bits

 

euromap67_output_bits UINT32 Euromap67 output bits

 

euromap67_24V_voltage DOUBLE Euromap 24V voltage [V]

 

euromap67_24V_current DOUBLE Euromap 24V current [mA]

 

tool_mode UINT32 Tool mode

 

Output domain {0=current[mA], 1=voltage[V]}

tool_analog_input_types UINT32
 
Bits 0-1: tool_analog_input_0 | tool_analog_input_1

tool_analog_input0 DOUBLE Tool analog input 0 [mA or V]

 

tool_analog_input1 DOUBLE Tool analog input 1 [mA or V]

 

tool_output_voltage INT32 Tool output voltage [V]

 

tool_output_current DOUBLE Tool current [mA]

 

tool_temperature DOUBLE Tool temperature in degrees Celsius

 

tcp_force_scalar DOUBLE TCP force scalar [N]

 

output_bit_registers0_to_31 UINT32 General purpose bits

 
output_bit_registers32_to_63 UINT32 General purpose bits  

64 general purpose bits

output_bit_register_X (X=[64 .. 127]) BOOL X: [64..127] - The upper range of the boolean output 3.9.0 / 5.3.0
registers can be used by external RTDE clients (i.e
URCAPS).

48 general purpose integer registers

[0..23] 3.4.0
X: [0..23] - The lower range of the integer output registers
output_int_register_X (X=[0 .. 47]) INT32 is reserved for FieldBus/PLC interface usage.
[24..47] 3.9.0 /
5.3.0
X: [24..47] - The upper range of the integer output registers
can be used by external RTDE clients (i.e URCAPS).

48 general purpose double registers

[0..23] 3.4.0
X: [0..23] - The lower range of the double output registers
output_double_register_X (X=[0 .. 47]) DOUBLE is reserved for FieldBus/PLC interface usage.
[24..47] 3.9.0 /
5.3.0
X: [24..47] - The upper range of the double output registers
can be used by external RTDE clients (i.e URCAPS).

General purpose bits (input read back)

input_bit_registers0_to_31 UINT32 3.4.0
This range of the boolean output registers is reserved for
FieldBus/PLC interface usage.

General purpose bits (input read back)

input_bit_registers32_to_63 UINT32 3.4.0

This range of the boolean output registers is reserved for
FieldBus/PLC interface usage.

 64 general purpose bits

input_bit_register_X  (X=[64 .. 127]) BOOL X: [64..127] - The upper range of the boolean output 3.9.0 / 5.3.0
registers can be used by external RTDE clients (i.e
URCAPS).

48 general purpose integer registers 

[0..23] 3.4.0
X: [0..23] - The lower range of the integer input registers is
input_int_register_X  (X=[0 .. 48]) INT32 reserved for FieldBus/PLC interface usage.
[24..47] 3.9.0 /
5.3.0
X: [24..47] - The upper range of the integer input registers
can be used by external RTDE clients (i.e URCAPS).

 48 general purpose double registers 

[0..23] 3.4.0
X: [0..23] - The lower range of the double input registers is
input_double_register_X (X=[0 .. 48]) DOUBLE reserved for FieldBus/PLC interface usage.
[24..47] 3.9.0 /
5.3.0
X: [24..47] - The upper range of the double input registers
can be used by external RTDE clients (i.e URCAPS).

tool_output_mode UINT8 The current output mode

 

tool_digital_output0_mode UINT8 The current mode of digital output 0

 

tool_digital_output1_mode UINT8 The current mode of digital output 1

 

payload DOUBLE Payload mass Kg

 

payload_cog VECTOR3D Payload Center of Gravity (CoGx, CoGy, CoGz) m

 
script_control_line UINT32 Script line number that is actually in control of the robot 3.14.0 / 5.9.0
given the robot is locked by one of the threads in the
script.

If no thread is locking the robot this field is set to '0'. Script

line number should not be confused with program tree line
number displayed on polyscope.

Raw force and torque measurement, not compensated for

ft_raw_wrench VECTOR6D 5.9.0
forces and torques caused by the payload

DATA TYPES
Name Type Size in bits

BOOL 0 = False, everything else = True 8

UINT8 unsigned integer 8

UINT32 unsigned integer 32

UINT64 unsigned integer 64

INT32 signed integer, two's complement 32

DOUBLE IEEE 754 floating point 64

VECTOR3D 3xDOUBLE 3x64

VECTOR6D 6xDOUBLE 6x64

VECTOR6INT32 6xINT32 6x32

VECTOR6UINT32 6xUINT32 6x32

STRING ASCII char array lengthx8

Network byte order: Data are always sent in network byte order, so big-endian. If you read raw data directly from the socket you will see it
in big-endian, and you might need to convert to little. UR's rtde-client library will do the conversion to little.

PROTOCOL
EE = External Executable

CON = Robot Controller

Output: CON -> EE

Input: CON <- EE

HEADER
Field name Data Type

package size uint16_t

package type uint8_t

Summary: All packages use the header.

Supported package types are:

Package Type Value (DEC) ASCII equivalent

RTDE_REQUEST_PROTOCOL_VERSION 86 V

RTDE_GET_URCONTROL_VERSION 118 v

RTDE_TEXT_MESSAGE 77 M

RTDE_DATA_PACKAGE 85 U

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_OUTPUTS 79 O

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_INPUTS 73 I

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_START 83 S

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_PAUSE 80 P

Direction: Bilateral

Return: Not available

RTDE_REQUEST_PROTOCOL_VERSION
Field name Data Type

Header See above

protocol version uint16_t

Summary: Request the controller to work with "protocol version"

Direction: EE -> CON

RETURN
Field name Data Type

Header See above

accepted uint8_t

Summary: The controller accepts or not, i.e. either 1 (success) or 0 (failed). On success, the EE should speak the specified protocol
version and the CON will answer in that version.

RTDE_GET_URCONTROL_VERSION
Field name Data Type

Header See above

Summary: Retrieves the CON major, minor, bugfix and build number.

Direction: EE -> CON

RETURN
Field name Data Type

Header See above

major uint32_t

minor uint32_t

bugfix uint32_t

build uint32_t

Summary: The major, minor, bugfix and build number.

RTDE_TEXT_MESSAGE (PROTOCOL V. 1)
Direction: CON -> EE

Field name Data Type

Header See above

message type uint8_t

message string

Direction: EE -> CON

Field name Data Type

Header See above

message length uint8_t

message string

source length uint8_t

source string

warning level uint8_t

Summary: Send an exception, error, warning or info message. 

Warning level: EXCEPTION_MESSAGE, ERROR_MESSAGE, WARNING_MESSAGE, INFO_MESSAGE

EE->CON: Exceptions indicate EE program failure without recovery possibilities. Error, warning and info will end up in the PolyScope log.

CON -> EE: Indicates mainly different kinds of protocol failures.

Direction: See above

Return: Not available.

RTDE_TEXT_MESSAGE (PROTOCOL V. 2)
Field name Data Type

Header See above

message length uint8_t

message string

source length uint8_t

source string
warning level uint8_t

Summary: Send an exception, error, warning or info message. 

Warning level: EXCEPTION_MESSAGE, ERROR_MESSAGE, WARNING_MESSAGE, INFO_MESSAGE

EE->CON: Exceptions indicate EE program failure without recovery possibilities. Error, warning and info will end up in the PolyScope log.

CON -> EE: Indicates mainly different kinds of protocol failures.

Direction: Bilateral

Return: Not available.

RTDE_DATA_PACKAGE
Field name Data Type

Header See above

recipe id uint8_t

<variable> <data type>

Summary: An update to the CON/EE inputs respectively.

The <variable>s are packaged/serialized binary and match the type specified by the SETUP_OUTPUTS or SETUP_INPUTS requests return.

Direction: Bilateral

Return: Not available

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_OUTPUTS (PROTOCOL V. 1)
Field name Data Type

Header See above

variable names string

Summary: Setup the outputs recipe. At the moment the CON only supports one output recipe. The package should contain all desired
output variables. The variables names is a list of comma separated variable name strings.

Direction: EE -> CON

RETURN
Field name Data Type

Header See above

variable types string

Summary: Returns the variable types in the same order as they were supplied in the request.

Variable types: VECTOR6D, VECTOR3D, VECTOR6INT32, VECTOR6UINT32, DOUBLE, UINT64, UINT32, INT32, BOOL, UINT8

If a variable is not available, then the variable type will be "NOT_FOUND".

In case of one or more "NOT_FOUND" return values, the recipe is considered invalid and the RTDE will not output this data.

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_OUTPUTS (PROTOCOL V. 2)
Field name Data Type
Header See above

output frequency double

variable names string

Summary: Setup the outputs recipe. At the moment the CON only supports one output recipe and the output frequency is configurable.
For CB-Series robots the frequency must be between 1 and 125 Hz and the output rate will be according to floor (125 / frequency), while
for e-Series robots the frequency can go up to 500 Hz. The package should contain all desired output variables. The variable names is a
list of comma separated variable name strings.

Direction: EE -> CON

RETURN
Field name Data Type

Header See above

output recipe id uint8_t

variable types string

Summary: Returns the variable types in the same order as they were supplied in the request.

Variable types: VECTOR6D, VECTOR3D, VECTOR6INT32, VECTOR6UINT32, DOUBLE, UINT64, UINT32, INT32, BOOL, UINT8

If a variable is not available, then the variable type will be "NOT_FOUND".

In case of one or more "NOT_FOUND" return values, the recipe is considered invalid and the RTDE will not output this data (output recipe
id = 0).

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_SETUP_INPUTS
Field name Data Type

Header See above

variable names string

Summary: Setup a CON input recipe.The CON supports 255 different input recipes (0 is reserved). The variables names is a list of comma
separated variable name strings.

Direction: EE -> CON

RETURN
Field name Data Type

Header See above

input recipe id uint8_t

variable types string

Summary: Returns the variable types in the same order as they were supplied in the request.

Variable types: VECTOR6D, VECTOR3D, VECTOR6INT32, VECTOR6UINT32, DOUBLE, UINT64, UINT32, INT32, BOOL, UINT8

If a variable has been claimed by another EE, then the variable type will be "IN_USE".

If a variable is not available, then the variable type will be "NOT_FOUND".

In case of one or more "IN_USE" or "NOT_FOUND" return values, the recipe is considered invalid (input recipe id = 0).

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_START
Field name Data Type

Header See above

Summary: Request the controller to start sending output updates. This will fail if e.g. an output package has not been configured yet.

Direction: EE -> CON

RETURN
Field name Data Type

Header See above

accepted uint8_t

Summary: The CON accepts or not. Either 1 (success) or 0 (failed).

RTDE_CONTROL_PACKAGE_PAUSE
Field name Data Type

Header See above

Summary: Request the CON to pause sending output updates.

Direction: EE -> CON

RETURN
Field name Data Type

Header See above

accepted uint8_t

Summary: The CON will always accept a pause command and return a 1 (success).

RTDE CLIENT PYTHON MODULE

RTDE clients can be implemented in different languages that support socket communication. The purpose of this RTDE client library,
written in Python, is to provide an easy starting point and show some example applications. The functionality has been developed for
Python 2.7.11.

EXAMPLES
record.py

Use this script as an executable to record output data from the robot and save it to a csv file.

Optional arguments

--host: name of host or IP address to connect to (default: localhost)

--port: port number (default: 30004)
--samples: specific number of samples to record (otherwise the program will record data until receiving SIGINT/Ctrl+C)
--frequency: the sampling frequency in Herz
--config: XML configuration file to use - it will use the recipe with key 'out' (default: record_configuration.xml)
--output: data output file to write to - an existing file will be overwritten (default: robot_data.csv)
--verbose: enable info logging output to console
-h: display help
example_plotting.py

Provides a simple way to read and plot the data from a csv file recorded with the record.py.

example_control_loop.py

Example of a simple control loop. A configuration with two input recipes and one output recipe is read from XML file and sent to the RTDE
server. The control loop consist of a blocking read followed by some very simple data processing before sending new information to the
robot.

RTDE MODULE
This section describes the different classes and their public interfaces of the rtde module.

class csv_reader.CSVReader(csvfile, delimiter)

Reads the CSV file and maps each column into an entry in the namespace dictionary of the object. The column header are the
dictionary key and the value is an array of data points in the column.

Input parameters:

csvfile (file): Any file-like object that has a read() method.

delimiter (string): A one-character string used to separate fields. It defaults to ' '.

class csv_writer.CSVWriter(csvfile, names, types, delimiter)

Returns a writer object that can take RTDE DataObjects and convert them into delimited string and write them to a file like object.

Input parameters:

csvfile (file): Any file-like object that has a write() method.

names (array<string>): list of variable names
types (array<string>): list of variable types
delimiter (string): A one-character string used to separate fields. It defaults to ' '.

writeheader()

Write column headers to current line in file based on variable names. Multidimensional variables will get an index appended to the
name in each column.

writerow(data_object)

Write a new row to the file based on the provided DataObject.

Input parameters:

data_object (DataObject): Data object with member variables matching the names of the configured RTDE variables

class rtde_config.ConfigFile(filename)

An RTDE configuration can be loaded from an XML file containing a list of recipes. Each recipe should have a key and a list of field
with a variable name and type. An example XML recipe:

<?xml version="1.0"?>

<rtde_config>

  <recipe key="out">

    <field name="timestamp" type="DOUBLE"/>

    <field name="target_q" type="VECTOR6D"/>

    <field name="target_qd" type="VECTOR6D"/>

     <field name="speed_scaling" type="DOUBLE"/>

    <field name="output_int_register_0" type="INT32"/>

  </recipe>

  <recipe key="in1">

    <field name="input_int_register_0" type="INT32"/>

    <field name="input_int_register_1" type="INT32"/>

  </recipe>

  <recipe key="in2">

    <field name="input_double_register_0" type="DOUBLE"/>

  </recipe>

</rtde_config>
get_recipe(key)

Gets the recipe associated to the specified key given as a list of names and a list of types.

Input parameters:

key (string): The key associated to the recipe

Return values:

variables (array<string>): list of variable names

types (array<string>): list of variable types

class serialize.DataObject():

A data transfer object where the RTDE variable names configured for synchronization has been added to the namespace dictionary of
the class for convenient accessing. This means that for example the timestamp can be accessed on an output DataObject like this:
objName.timestamp. The DataObject is used for both input and output.

recipe_id

The recipe_id is an integer member variable on the DataObject instance used to identify input packages configured in the RTDE
server. It is not used for output packages.

class Rtde.RTDE(hostname, port)

The constructor takes a hostname and port number as arguments.

Input parameters:

hostname (string): hostname or IP of RTDE server

port (int): [Optional] port number (default value: 30004)

connect()

Initialize RTDE connection to host.

Return value:

success (boolean)

disconnect()
 Close the RTDE connection.

is_connected()

Returns True if the connection is open.

Return value:

open (boolean)

get_controller_version()

Returns the software version of the robot controller running the RTDE server.

Return values:

major (int)
minor (int)
bugfix (int)
build (int)

negotiate_protocol_version(protocol)

Negotiate the protocol version with the server. Returns True if the controller supports the specified protocol version. We recommend
that you use this to ensure full compatibility between your application and future versions of the robot controller.

Input parameters:

protocol (int): protocol version number

Return value:

success (boolean)

send_input_setup(variables, types)

Configure an input package that the external application will send to the robot controller. An input package is a collection of input
variables that the external application will provide to the robot controller in a single update. Variables is a list of variable names and
should be a subset of the names supported as input by the RTDE interface.The list of types is optional, but if any types are provided it
should have the same length as the variables list. The provided types will be matched with the types that the RTDE interface expects
and the function returns None if they are not equal. Multiple input packages can be configured. The returned InputObject has a
reference to the recipe id which is used to identify the specific input format when sending an update.

Input parameters:

variables (array<string>): Variable names from the list of possible RTDE inputs
types (array<string>): [Optional] Types matching the variables

Return value:

input_data (DataObject): Empty object with member variables matching the names of the configured RTDE variables

send_output_setup(variables, types)

Configure an output package that the robot controller will send to the external application at the control frequency. Variables is a list
of variable names and should be a subset of the names supported as output by the RTDE interface. The list of types is optional, but if
any types are provided it should have the same length as the variables list. The provided types will be matched with the types that the
RTDE interface expects and the function returns False if they are not equal. Only one output package format can be specified and
hence no recipe id is used for output.

Input parameters:

variables (array<string>): Variable names from the list of possible RTDE outputs
types (array<string>): [Optional] Types matching the variables

Return value:
 success (boolean)

send_start()

Sends a start command to the RTDE server to initiate the actual synchronization. Setup of all inputs and outputs should be done
before starting the synchronization.

Return value:

success (boolean)

send_pause()

Sends a pause command to the RTDE server to pause the synchronization. When paused it is possible to change the input and output
configurations and start the synchronization again.

Return value:

success (boolean)

send(input_data)

Send the contents of a DataObject as input to the RTDE server. Returns True if successful.

Input parameters:

input_data (DataObject): object with member variables matching the names of the configured RTDE variables

Return value:

success (boolean)

receive()

Blocking call to receive next output DataObject from RTDE server.

Return value:

output_data (DataObject): object with member variables matching the names of the configured RTDE variables