05-21-2026, 12:48 PM
Hey everyone,
I've been thinking about how differently people approach the physical prototyping side before deploying a robot cell, and I'm curious what the community is actually using.
RoboDK handles the simulation side brilliantly, but once you're ready to test I/O signals, sensor triggers, or controller logic on real hardware, the choice of components can make a big difference in how quickly you iterate.
A few questions to get discussion going:
1. What microcontroller/SBC do you use for testing signal logic before wiring to the actual robot controller?
Arduino? Raspberry Pi? Something industrial like a CLICK PLC? Each has tradeoffs in cost, GPIO availability, and how easily it maps to the real controller environment.
2. How do you handle sensor validation?
Do you test proximity sensors, encoders, or vision triggers on a benchtop first, or go straight to the simulation + real robot combo?
3. Any tips for bridging the gap between RoboDK's simulated I/O and physical test rigs?
I've seen some clever setups using Python API calls to trigger GPIO on a Pi in sync with the simulation would love to hear what others have done.
Not looking for a specific product recommendation , more interested in the workflow people follow and the lessons learned the hard way.
Happy to share what I've tried too. What's working for you?
I've been thinking about how differently people approach the physical prototyping side before deploying a robot cell, and I'm curious what the community is actually using.
RoboDK handles the simulation side brilliantly, but once you're ready to test I/O signals, sensor triggers, or controller logic on real hardware, the choice of components can make a big difference in how quickly you iterate.
A few questions to get discussion going:
1. What microcontroller/SBC do you use for testing signal logic before wiring to the actual robot controller?
Arduino? Raspberry Pi? Something industrial like a CLICK PLC? Each has tradeoffs in cost, GPIO availability, and how easily it maps to the real controller environment.
2. How do you handle sensor validation?
Do you test proximity sensors, encoders, or vision triggers on a benchtop first, or go straight to the simulation + real robot combo?
3. Any tips for bridging the gap between RoboDK's simulated I/O and physical test rigs?
I've seen some clever setups using Python API calls to trigger GPIO on a Pi in sync with the simulation would love to hear what others have done.
Not looking for a specific product recommendation , more interested in the workflow people follow and the lessons learned the hard way.
Happy to share what I've tried too. What's working for you?
