ROS 2 Engineering Skills

> Single responsibility: This skill is an API reference & code template guide > for ROS 2 development. It tells you how to use ROS 2 APIs correctly and > what mistakes to avoid. It does NOT do CI/CD orchestration, incident response, > data analysis, or deployment automation — those are separate skill categories.

A progressive-disclosure skill for ROS 2 development — from first workspace to production fleet deployment. Detailed patterns and code templates live in references/; read the relevant file before writing code.

How to use this skill

This always-loaded file carries routing, core principles, pitfalls, and anti-patterns — enough for quick questions and architectural decisions. For implementation work, use the Decision Router below to load the reference file(s) matching the task; the AI pitfalls table lists mistakes worth re-checking before generating code. scripts/ are tools to run (scaffolding, QoS checking, launch validation), not reading material. When domains intersect (e.g. Nav2 + ros2_control) and recommendations conflict, favor safety > determinism > simplicity.

Execution log (opt-in): When the Stop hook runs (Claude Code only) and the SKILL_RUNS_LOG environment variable is set, a session summary is appended to .skill-runs.log. If that file exists in the workspace, read the last few lines to avoid repeating past mistakes. Without the opt-in — and on platforms without hooks — the file is never created, so a read-only session leaves the working tree untouched.

Platform support: SKILL.md and references/ are platform-neutral knowledge documents. scripts/ can be run manually on any platform whose environment has Python and the repository dependencies. The hook wiring (automatic execution) and .skill-runs.log are Claude Code-specific; on other platforms run the validators manually from the skill root: SKILL_WORKSPACE=<dir> python3 scripts/skill_stop_hook.py and python3 scripts/skill_validate_hook.py --file <src> / --command '<cmd>' (the command string is inspected only, never executed; without those flags the validate hook expects a Claude Code PreToolUse payload and checks nothing on its own).

Decision router

| User is doing... | Read | |---------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------| | Creating a workspace, package, or build config | references/workspace-build.md | | Writing nodes, executors, callback groups | references/nodes-executors.md | | Topics, services, actions, custom interfaces, QoS | references/communication.md | | Lifecycle nodes, component loading, composition | references/lifecycle-components.md | | Launch files, conditional logic, event handlers | references/launch-system.md | | tf2, URDF, xacro, robot_state_publisher | references/tf2-urdf.md | | ros2_control, hardware interfaces, controllers | references/hardware-interface.md | | Real-time constraints, PREEMPT_RT, memory, jitter | references/realtime.md | | Nav2, SLAM, costmaps, behavior trees | references/navigation.md | | MoveIt 2, planning scene, grasp pipelines | references/manipulation.md | | Camera, LiDAR, PCL, cv_bridge, depth processing | references/perception.md | | Sensor drivers, clock sync, LiDAR-camera extrinsics | references/sensor-integration.md | | Unit tests, integration tests, launch_testing, CI | references/testing.md | | ros2 doctor, tracing, profiling, rosbag2, CLI cheat sheet | references/debugging.md | | "Which install/config/publisher is actually running?" audits | references/runtime-provenance.md | | Faults crossing ROS and non-ROS layers (link, bridge, driver) | references/system-diagnostics.md | | Docker, cross-compile, fleet deployment, OTA | references/deployment.md | | System bringup, udev rules, boot sequence, watchdogs | references/system-bringup.md | | Gazebo, Isaac Sim, sim-to-real, use_sim_time | references/simulation.md | | SROS2, DDS security, certificates, supply chain | references/security.md | | E-stop, safety chains, command arbitration | references/safety-estop.md | | micro-ROS, MCU/RTOS, XRCE-DDS, rclc | references/micro-ros.md | | Multi-robot fleet, Open-RMF, DDS discovery scale | references/multi-robot.md | | Message types, units, covariance, frame conventions | references/message-types.md | | ROS 1 migration, ros1_bridge, hybrid operation | references/migration-ros1.md |

Cross-cutting concerns: Security, error handling, and QoS are not isolated to single reference files — use your judgment and apply them whenever the data path crosses a trust boundary, a node owns hardware, or communication reliability matters.

Core engineering principles

These apply to every ROS 2 artifact you produce, regardless of domain.

1. Distro awareness

<!-- LAST_UPDATED: 2026-07-15 — Review this table every 6 months or when a new distro is released. --> <!-- NEXT_REVIEW: 2027-01-15 --> > Staleness warning: The table below was last verified on 2026-07-15. > If the current date is more than 6 months past that, re-verify EOL dates and > feature support against https://docs.ros.org/en/rolling/Releases.html before > relying on this table. When you update it, change both LAST_UPDATED and > NEXT_REVIEW comments above.

Detect the distro before generating code — do not ask first, and do not assume the newest release. Work down this ladder and stop at the first answer:

1. Active shell: echo $ROS_DISTRO — the distro currently sourced.

ls /opt/ros/ is inventory evidence (what is installed), never an automatic selection.

1. Workspace pin: Dockerfile FROM ros:<distro>, CI matrix, .repos

branch names — what the workspace intends to build and deploy against. (package.xml usually shows dependencies without naming a distro.)

1. Installed versions: ros2 pkg xml <pkg>, dpkg-query -W 'ros-*'

(Principle 11) — this also settles behavior the distro label does not.

1. Ask the user when the workspace holds no evidence.
2. Greenfield only: default to the latest LTS.

Conflict rule. When active-shell evidence disagrees with the workspace pin, report both and select neither silently. Prefer the workspace's explicit build/deployment pin for guidance about the repository, and treat the shell mismatch as an environment defect to resolve. Never resolve an existing workspace to the newest LTS: that pulls API the installed stack does not have. Key differences:

| Feature | Humble (LTS) | Jazzy (LTS) | Kilted (non-LTS) | Lyrical (LTS) | Rolling | |---------------------------|--------------------|--------------------|--------------------|--------------------|--------------------| | EOL | May 2027 | May 2029 | Dec 2026 | May 2031 | Rolling | | Ubuntu | 22.04 | 24.04 | 24.04 | 26.04 | Latest | | Default DDS | Fast DDS | Fast DDS | Fast DDS | Fast DDS | Fast DDS | | Zenoh support | — | — | Tier 1 | Tier 1 | Tier 1 | | Type description support | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Service introspection | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | | EventsExecutor | No | Experimental | Experimental (+ rclpy port) | EventsCBGExecutor (non-experimental, rclcpp) | Verify installed rclcpp | | Default bag format | sqlite3 | MCAP | MCAP | MCAP | MCAP | | ros2_control interface | 2.x | 4.x | 5.x | 6.x (verify installed) | Latest | | CMake recommendation | ament_target_deps | either | target_link_libs | target_link_libs | target_link_libs |

Foxy (EOL June 2023, Ubuntu 20.04, ros2_control not bundled) is a migration reference only — see the migration notes below. The pre-Lyrical EventsExecutor lives in the rclcpp::experimental namespace on every release that ships it; Lyrical adds the separate, non-experimental rclcpp::executors::EventsCBGExecutor.

For a greenfield project with no constraint, the latest LTS is Lyrical Luth (Ubuntu 26.04); use Jazzy when the target platform is Ubuntu 24.04. Pin the exact distro in Dockerfile, CI, and documentation so builds are reproducible.

2. C++ vs Python decision

Choose the language based on the node's role, not personal preference. rclcpp (C++): control loops ≥100 Hz, deterministic memory allocation (real-time path), hardware drivers and controller plugins, intra-process zero-copy. rclpy (Python): orchestration, monitoring, parameter management, rapid prototyping, Python-native ML frameworks — anything off the latency-critical path.

Mixed stacks are normal. A typical robot has C++ drivers/controllers and Python orchestration/monitoring. Note: component_container (composition) only loads C++ components via pluginlib. Python nodes run as separate processes and communicate over intra-host DDS — not zero-overhead by default: the standard inter-process transport pays serialization, copies, and transport bandwidth, and splitting work into another process does not by itself remove encoding costs. Copy avoidance has three distinct mechanisms with different preconditions: (1) the rclcpp intra-process path (use_intra_process_comms(true), same process) avoids copies only depending on publish ownership (unique_ptr), callback type, subscriber count, and QoS; (2) loaned messages / vendor shared memory (SHM/PSMX) are RMW- and vendor-dependent and can avoid some or all copies when their preconditions hold; (3) separate processes on the standard DDS transport get no copy avoidance — crossing processes without copies requires the vendor mechanisms in (2). Details: references/nodes-executors.md.

3. Package structure conventions

Follow the standard layout — package.xml (format 3, explicit <depend> tags), config/params.yaml, launch/*.launch.py, src/ + include/<pkg>/ for C++ or <pkg>/ for Python, and test/. Keep custom msg/srv/action definitions in a dedicated *_interfaces package so downstream packages can depend on interfaces without the implementation. Full annotated layout: references/workspace-build.md.

4. Parameter discipline

• Declare every parameter with a type, description, range, and default

in the node constructor — never use undeclared parameters.

• Use ParameterDescriptor with FloatingPointRange or IntegerRange

for numeric bounds. The parameter server rejects out-of-range values at set time.

• Group related parameters under a namespace prefix:

controller.kp, controller.ki, controller.kd.

• Load defaults from a config/params.yaml; allow launch-time overrides.
• For dynamic reconfiguration, register a set_parameters_callback and

validate new values atomically before accepting.

5. Error handling philosophy

• Nodes must not silently swallow errors. Log at the appropriate severity,

then take a safe action (stop motion, request help, transition to error state).

• Prefer lifecycle node error transitions over ad-hoc boolean flags.
• When calling a service, always handle the "service not available" and

"future timed out" cases explicitly.

• For hardware drivers, distinguish transient errors (retry with backoff)

from fatal errors (transition to FINALIZED and alert the operator).

6. Quality of Service defaults

Start from these profiles and adjust per use case:

| Use case | Reliability | Durability | History | Depth | Deadline | Lifespan | |-----------------------|---------------|------------------|---------|-------|-------------|-------------| | Sensor stream | BEST_EFFORT | VOLATILE | KEEP_LAST | 5 | — | — | | Command velocity | RELIABLE | VOLATILE | KEEP_LAST | 1 | 100 ms | 200 ms | | Map (latched) | RELIABLE | TRANSIENT_LOCAL | KEEP_LAST | 1 | — | — | | Diagnostics | RELIABLE | VOLATILE | KEEP_LAST | 10 | — | — | | Parameter events | RELIABLE | VOLATILE | KEEP_LAST | 1000| — | — | | Action feedback | RELIABLE | VOLATILE | KEEP_LAST | 1 | — | — | | Safety heartbeat | RELIABLE | VOLATILE | KEEP_LAST | 1 | 500 ms | 1 s |

These rows are starting points, not verdicts. The sensor row matches rmw_qos_profile_sensor_data (BEST_EFFORT, depth 5), which fits a high-rate stream whose consumer only wants the newest sample — but depth follows the consumer's tolerance for staleness and its processing time, and a sensor whose loss the system cannot detect (a safety-relevant scan, a one-shot calibration) belongs on RELIABLE. Decide per data path, then record why.

QoS mismatches are the #1 cause of "I published but nobody receives." Always check compatibility with ros2 topic info -v when debugging. Matching QoS is necessary for communication, but compatibility alone does not prove that the delivered data is timely, semantically valid, or safe to act on (Principle 13).

DEADLINE and LIFESPAN are critical for safety-critical systems. DEADLINE fires an event when no message arrives within the specified period (detect stale data). LIFESPAN discards messages older than the specified duration before delivery (prevent acting on stale data). See references/communication.md section 9 for full API and examples.

7. Naming conventions

| Entity | Convention | Example | |-------------|-----------------------------|--------------------------------| | Package | snake_case | arm_controller | | Node | snake_case | joint_state_broadcaster | | Topic | /snake_case with ns | /arm/joint_states | | Service | /snake_case | /arm/set_mode | | Action | /snake_case | /arm/follow_joint_trajectory | | Parameter | snake_case with dot ns | controller.publish_rate | | Frame | snake_case | base_link, camera_optical | | Interface | PascalCase.msg/srv/action | JointState.msg |

8. Thread safety and callbacks

• A MutuallyExclusiveCallbackGroup serializes its callbacks — safe for

shared state without locks, but limits throughput.

• A ReentrantCallbackGroup allows parallel execution — you must protect

shared state with std::mutex (C++) or threading.Lock (Python).

• Calling a service from a callback: If the callback registers the

request asynchronously — rclcpp: async_send_request(request, response_callback); rclpy: future = client.call_async(request) then future.add_done_callback(...) — and returns without waiting for the result, the same MutuallyExclusiveCallbackGroup does not deadlock. Deadlock comes from waiting synchronously inside the callback — rclcpp: calling get()/wait()/wait_for() on a not-yet-complete future from the initiating callback, or spin_until_future_complete (inside the response callback the future is already complete, so get() there is safe — the examples use exactly that); rclpy: synchronous Client.call(), spin_until_future_complete, or a loop that blocks until future.done(). (rclpy's future.result() by itself does not block — it immediately returns whatever result is currently stored, which may be unset.) A synchronous wait needs the client in a different callback group or a ReentrantCallbackGroup, plus a matching executor configuration (e.g. MultiThreadedExecutor). Do not assume plain-executor async def callback patterns are safe until tested with your executor; Lyrical's rclpy.experimental.AsyncNode is a separate execution model that officially supports await client.call(...) inside callbacks.

• Never do blocking work (file I/O, long computation, sleep) inside a

timer or subscription callback on the default executor. Offload to a dedicated thread or use a MultiThreadedExecutor with a reentrant group.

• In rclcpp, prefer std::shared_ptr<const MessageT> in subscription

callbacks to avoid unnecessary copies; whether intra-process delivery is actually copy-free additionally depends on publish ownership, subscriber count, and QoS (Principle 2).

9. Lifecycle-first design

Default to lifecycle (managed) nodes for anything that owns resources: hardware drivers, sensor pipelines, planners, controllers. The managed state machine (unconfigured → inactive → active, with cleanup, shutdown, and error transitions) gives the system manager explicit control over when resources are allocated, when processing starts, and how shutdown proceeds — and makes error recovery predictable. Configure-only transitions also enable hardware-safe config validation (references/testing.md section 4). Full state diagram and callbacks: references/lifecycle-components.md.

A plain node is the right call when nothing external is at stake or the managed state machine cannot be honored: leaf compute nodes that own no device, file handle, or actuator; nodes whose start/stop is already sequenced by an outer supervisor; third-party nodes you do not control; and rclc/micro-ROS targets with limited lifecycle support. Lifecycle is not free — every managed node needs something to manage it, and adds transition-failure states the system must handle.

10. Build and CI hygiene

• Use colcon build --cmake-args -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=RelWithDebInfo for

development; Release for deployment.

• Enable -Wall -Wextra -Wpedantic and treat warnings as errors in CI.
• Run colcon test with --event-handlers console_cohesion+ so test

output groups by package.

• Pin rosdep keys in rosdep.yaml for reproducible dependency resolution.
• Prefer compiler caches and dependency/container layers that have explicit,

reproducible invalidation inputs — .ccache/, apt/rosdep, base images. They are not automatically safe either: an apt layer goes stale with the distro, repository state, dependency declarations, and package-index time, so key it on those.

• Do not cache build//install/ by default. Opt in only with an exact key

covering toolchain, ROS distro, dependency resolution, build options, and the complete relevant source tree — and never partially restore them (restore-keys falls back to an older prefix match, which is exactly the failure). A partially restored install space keeps artifacts of files no longer in the source, so CI links and tests stale code and reports it green — the same stale-overlay failure that bites on robots (references/runtime-provenance.md).

11. Source-first behavior verification

Distro labels are not enough when exact behavior matters — patch releases change parameter names, plugin behavior, and defaults. Before asserting how an installed stack behaves, identify the installed version (ros2 pkg xml, dpkg-query -W) and read what ships with it: reference configs, headers, and the source tag matching that version. Worked Nav2 procedure: references/navigation.md section 6.

12. Motion-safety defaults

Never generate configs that can move an unvalidated robot. Motion recoveries (Spin/BackUp) stay opt-in until robot geometry, locomotion response, and clearance are validated — actuation-free recovery comes first. Velocity limits come from the safe operational ceiling, never the SDK/API maximum. For hardware checks, prefer configure-only lifecycle validation with hardware isolation (references/testing.md section 4). Details: references/navigation.md sections 7 and 10.

A stop command is verified end-to-end, not on a topic. Zero velocity visible on /cmd_vel proves a message was published — not that the robot stopped. Verify all four links: command ownership, driver translation, local submission plus any available remote-acceptance evidence, and measured hardware response (references/safety-estop.md section 3).

13. Verification levels

Say which level a result came from, every time. Each level answers a different question, and a claim never inherits the confidence of a level it did not reach.

| Level | What ran | What it proves | |---|---|---| | L0 | Static review | The code/config reads correctly; nothing was executed | | L1 | Unit tests | Isolated logic, no ROS graph, no real time | | L2 | Build + launch smoke | It compiles, nodes start, plugins/params load | | L3 | Runtime, robot disconnected | Graph, QoS, TF and rates on sim or mock hardware | | L4 | Hardware powered, no actuation | Real provenance, params, TF and driver state — motors disabled/isolated | | L5 | Bench motion / fault injection | Commanded motion and failsafes on a restrained platform, operator present | | L6 | Supervised field operation | The behavior in its real duty cycle |

Never write an L0–L2 result in L4+ language. "Tests pass" and "safe to drive" may not share a sentence. When a level was skipped, say which one and why. Level definitions and required evidence: references/testing.md section 11.

Common anti-patterns

| Anti-pattern | Why it hurts | Fix | |---|---|---| | Global variables for node state | Breaks composition, untestable | Store state as class members | | spin(node) in main() for a multi-node process | spin(node) creates an executor for that node only; other locally created nodes not added to another spinning executor receive no executor-driven callbacks (omission, not starvation) | Add every node to one executor; MultiThreadedExecutor only when callbacks must overlap, or use component composition | | Hardcoded topic names | Breaks reuse across robots | Use relative names + namespace remapping | | KEEP_ALL history with no bound | Memory grows unbounded on slow subscribers | Use KEEP_LAST with explicit depth | | Using time.sleep() / std::this_thread::sleep_for | Blocks the executor thread | Use create_wall_timer or a dedicated thread | | Monolithic launch file for everything | Unmanageable past 10 nodes | Compose launch files with IncludeLaunchDescription | | Skipping package.xml dependencies | Builds locally, breaks CI and Docker | Declare every dependency explicitly | | Publishing a one-shot VOLATILE message in the constructor and expecting later-matching subscribers to receive it | Subscribers that match afterwards never see it — publishing itself is fine, relying on delivery is not | Publish after discovery/activation when delivery matters, or use compatible TRANSIENT_LOCAL durability for state intentionally retained for late joiners (retained samples still require a live publisher and a compatible subscriber QoS) | | Ignoring QoS compatibility | Silent communication failure | Match publisher/subscriber QoS or check with ros2 topic info -v | | Creating timers/subs in callbacks | Resource leak, unpredictable behavior | Create all entities in constructor or on_configure | | Synchronous service call in callback | Deadlocks the executor thread | Use async_send_request with a callback or dedicated thread | | Waiting on a service future inside a callback | Synchronous waiting deadlocks a MutuallyExclusiveCallbackGroup; registering a response callback and returning is safe even in the same group | Return without waiting; if a synchronous wait is unavoidable, put the client in a different group (or reentrant) with a MultiThreadedExecutor | | No safe command on shutdown | Motors hold last velocity after node exits | Send zero-velocity in on_deactivate and the destructor as best-effort hygiene; crash safety needs a downstream command timeout/watchdog (references/safety-estop.md) | | Dynamic subscriptions with StaticSingleThreadedExecutor | New subs are never picked up after spin() | Use SingleThreadedExecutor or MultiThreadedExecutor for dynamic entities | | CPU frequency governor left on powersave/ondemand | 10-100 ms latency spikes in RT path | Set performance governor, disable turbo boost (see references/realtime.md) |

AI pitfalls — traps this skill has learned from

These are mistakes AI agents repeatedly make when generating ROS 2 code. Add a new line here every time a failure is discovered in practice.

| # | Pitfall | What goes wrong | Correct approach | |---|---------|----------------|-----------------| | 1 | Using spin_until_future_complete inside a callback | Deadlocks the executor — the callback blocks waiting for a response that can never be delivered | Register a response callback and return without waiting; a separate callback group (or reentrant + MultiThreadedExecutor) is needed only when a synchronous wait is unavoidable | | 2 | Generating Foxy-era API for Jazzy/Kilted | node_executable is deprecated, export_state_interfaces() signature changed in ros2_control 4.x | Detect the distro from the environment and workspace first (Principle 1) — never default an existing workspace to the newest LTS — then check the feature matrix above | | 3 | Omitting QoS in publisher/subscriber creation | Defaults silently mismatch — publisher sends but subscriber receives nothing | Always specify QoS explicitly; use the QoS defaults table in Principle 6 | | 4 | Creating a msg/ directory inside a non-interfaces package | Builds locally but fails in CI — interface packages need rosidl_generate_interfaces | Put messages in a dedicated *_interfaces package | | 5 | Hardcoding /opt/ros/humble/ paths in launch files | Breaks on any other distro or install prefix | Use FindPackageShare, PathJoinSubstitution, or environment substitutions | | 6 | Forgetting <depend> tags in package.xml | colcon build works in overlay but rosdep install and Docker builds fail | Declare every find_package() / import as <depend> in package.xml | | 7 | Using time.sleep() for rate control in rclpy | Blocks the executor thread; timers and subscriptions stop firing | Use create_timer() or Rate with a MultiThreadedExecutor | | 8 | Treating process-side cleanup as crash safety | Destructors never run on SIGKILL/power loss and are not guaranteed on segfaults — the robot keeps its last command | Zero-command in on_deactivate + destructor is best-effort hygiene only; require a downstream command timeout, heartbeat/watchdog, and hardware e-stop (references/safety-estop.md) | | 9 | Mixing ament_target_dependencies() and target_link_libraries() | Kilted deprecated ament_target_dependencies — mixing causes link errors | Use target_link_libraries() with modern CMake targets for Kilted+; ament_target_dependencies() for Humble/Jazzy | | 10 | Generating rospy / roscpp code instead of rclpy / rclcpp | ROS 1 patterns in a ROS 2 context — nothing compiles | This skill is ROS 2 only — always use rclpy/rclcpp APIs | | 11 | Ignoring use_sim_time parameter in simulation | Real clock diverges from Gazebo clock — tf lookups fail, controllers drift | Set use_sim_time:=true in launch and pass --clock to ros2 bag play | | 12 | Publishing before subscribers connect (no TRANSIENT_LOCAL) | First N messages lost — map, URDF, or initial config never received | Use TRANSIENT_LOCAL durability for latched-style data, or publish in on_activate with a startup delay | | 13 | Writing Nav2 names from memory (recoveries_server/nav2_recoveries/ on Humble, pre-Galactic default_bt_xml_filename) | Parameters silently ignored or plugin loading fails at configure | Humble+ uses behavior_server/nav2_behaviors/ and default_nav_to_pose_bt_xml; verify against the installed version (Principle 11) | | 14 | Enabling Spin/BackUp recoveries by default on an unvalidated robot | Robot suddenly rotates or reverses in the field — the recovery, not path following, is at fault | Motion recoveries are opt-in after validation; actuation-free recovery first (Principle 12) | | 15 | Reading zero Twist on the command topic as "the robot stopped" | The driver may discard a zero command as "no command", or a competing publisher's next command may take effect immediately afterwards — the message was published, the robot never stopped | Verify the whole chain: single arbiter → driver's actual stop call → submission/acceptance evidence → measured hardware response (references/safety-estop.md §3) | | 16 | Reading the YAML in src/ and assuming that is what runs | The process loaded an installed copy from some prefix; an older install/, a second overlay, or a launch-time override wins silently | Diff source against $(ros2 pkg prefix <pkg>)/share/..., then confirm with ros2 param dump on the live node (references/runtime-provenance.md) | | 17 | Guessing array-field semantics from the field name or index | Joint order, covariance layout, and ranges indexing are publisher-defined — a guessed index silently reads the wrong joint or axis | Read the message definition and the publisher's actual ordering (e.g. JointState.name); never index by assumption (references/message-types.md) | | 18 | Checking that a TF chain connects and stopping there | A connected chain can still be stale, or driven by two broadcasters fighting over one edge — the lookup succeeds and the pose is wrong | Also enumerate the /tf publisher endpoints (ros2 topic info /tf -v), treat TF_REPEATED_DATA as a duplicate-broadcaster clue, and check timestamp freshness (references/runtime-provenance.md) | | 19 | Reporting a passing test suite as hardware verification | Static and unit results get written in the language of field validation, so nobody knows what was actually tried on the robot | State the verification level with every claim (Principle 13); "tests pass" and "safe to drive" are different levels | | 20 | Treating Nav2's low output velocity as a config bug | The command may be correct and simply below the robot's actuation-onset threshold — retuning Nav2 cannot fix a command the hardware ignores | Measure the smallest command that produces real motion first, then set limits from it (references/navigation.md §10) | | 21 | Putting a deadband inside an open-loop smoother's feedback path | The zeroed output is fed back as the new state, so each tick's ramp increment is erased and the robot never accelerates | Feed back the pre-deadband value and apply the deadband only to the published output (upstream nav2_velocity_smoother assigns last_cmd_ before zeroing) | | 22 | Treating node/topic presence as evidence the system is healthy | The CLI node listing can echo a stale daemon cache, and ROS 2 permits duplicate node names — two live processes answer as one | Cross-check with --no-daemon (or restart the daemon) and pgrep -af against the real processes (references/runtime-provenance.md) |

> Maintenance rule: When you encounter a new AI failure pattern while using this > skill, append it to this table with the next sequential number. The pitfall list > is the single most valuable section for preventing repeated mistakes.

Distro-specific migration notes

<!-- LAST_UPDATED: 2026-03-30 — Keep in sync with the distro table in Principle 1. --> When upgrading between distributions, check these breaking changes first:

• Foxy → Humble: complete API overhaul (lifecycle, actions stabilized in Humble);

ros2_control was not bundled in Foxy; Nav2 renamed recoveries_server → behavior_server and nav2_recoveries/ → nav2_behaviors/ (Galactic → Humble migration — pre-Humble recovery naming does not exist on Humble). Plan a rework, not a port.

• Humble → Jazzy: ros2_control 2.x → 4.x — interface exports auto-generated,

get_value() → get_optional<T>(), spawner uses --param-file, all <ros2_control> joints must exist in the URDF (details: references/hardware-interface.md); default bag format sqlite3 → MCAP (storage_id='mcap'); ROS_AUTOMATIC_DISCOVERY_RANGE replaces ROS_LOCALHOST_ONLY; launch_ros parameter handling changed — retest launch files.

• Jazzy → Kilted (non-LTS): Zenoh Tier 1 (RMW_IMPLEMENTATION=rmw_zenoh_cpp);

experimental EventsExecutor gains an rclpy port (still rclcpp::experimental); ament_target_dependencies() deprecated — use target_link_libraries() with modern CMake targets; Gazebo pairing is Ionic (Harmonic was Jazzy); multi-bag replay in ros2 bag play.

• Kilted → Lyrical (LTS): primary platform moves to Ubuntu 26.04; default RMW

stays rmw_fastrtps_cpp; new non-experimental rclcpp::executors::EventsCBGExecutor (distinct from the experimental EventsExecutor); ros2_control moves to the 6.x series — verify per-package changes against the installed versions (Principle 11).

• ROS 1 → ROS 2: see references/migration-ros1.md for a step-by-step strategy.

Quick reference — ros2 CLI

See references/debugging.md §10 "Quick CLI reference" for the full command cheat sheet (workspace, introspection, ros2_control, debugging, lifecycle). Kept out of this always-loaded file to preserve context budget.