Configuring the costmaps – global_costmap and local_costmap

Okay, now we are going to start configuring the navigation stack and all the necessary files to start it. To start with the configuration, first we will learn what costmaps are and what they are used for. Our robot will move through the map using two types of navigation: global and local:

  • The global navigation is used to create paths for a goal in the map or at a far-off distance
  • The local navigation is used to create paths in the nearby distances and avoid obstacles, for example, a square window of 4 x 4 meters around the robot

These modules use costmaps to keep all the information of our map. The global costmap is used for global navigation and the local costmap for local navigation.

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