What you can do with pulpRobot
- Start from a template. 6-axis arm, 3-servo arm, SCARA arm, two-wheeled mobile robot, 18-servo hexapod, or an empty robot.
- Build the structure. Links, joints (revolute, continuous, prismatic), shapes, profiles and real servos, stepper motors, wheels, sensors, boards and batteries.
- Animate with keyframes. Joint, straight-line or arc moves, smooth speed profiles, and a gripper that picks up and releases objects.
- Check torques and collisions. Torque needed on each axis, alerts when a motor is overloaded, collision detection with the scene, charts of positions, velocities and torques.
- Let the maths do the work. Automatic motor sizing, paths that avoid collisions, complete pick-and-place, durations fitted to the motors.
- Show the gesture. In front of the camera, the tool follows your hand and records waypoints, and the images never leave your device.
- Simulate the physics. Gravity, contacts, friction and motors limited to their real torque: a motor that is too weak lets the arm sag.
- Export. URDF with meshes for ROS, Arduino sketch or MicroPython script, CSV setpoints, a video of the animation.
Who is it for?
pulpRobot is for makers building their first servo arm, robotics teachers and students, and teams who want to validate a concept before buying motors. The robot arm simulator tells you straight away whether a servo can hold the load or whether the trajectory hits the table.
With the other apps in the suite, the journey is complete: the pulpCircuit board and the pulpCase enclosure sit on the robot, and the generated program goes to pulpLab for uploading.
Your files
Robots are saved as .probot files, in your browser and on your disk if you wish. pulpRobot imports URDF files, on their own or as a ZIP archive with their STL, OBJ or COLLADA meshes, and adds STL, OBJ or glTF parts. It exports URDF, Arduino or MicroPython code, CSV, WebM video and PNG images. .xacro files must be converted to URDF first.
File types recognised by pulpRobot:
- .probot
- .urdf
- .stl
- .obj
- .glb
- .gltf
- .ppart
- .penclosure
Frequently asked questions
Does pulpRobot replace a simulator such as Gazebo or Webots?
No. It is meant for designing and tuning a simple robot: kinematics, torques, trajectories and basic physics. To simulate sensors or a full ROS environment, export the URDF to a dedicated simulator.
Will the generated code run straight away on my robot?
It drives servos, stepper motors and DC motors on the pins you specified. Check the wiring, the servo power supply and the directions of rotation, then run a first test at reduced speed.
Does the simulation guarantee that my robot will work?
No. It relies on datasheet values and a simplified model. A careful test and a check by a qualified professional are still necessary, especially for a powerful robot.
Are my camera images sent anywhere?
No. Gesture detection runs on your device with a small model that is downloaded once.