This course is a practical, beginner-friendly introduction to drone simulation using ROS 2 and Gazebo. Starting from a clean Ubuntu 24.04 system, you will set up a full stack with ROS 2 Jazzy, Gazebo, PX4 SITL, QGroundControl, and a camera bridge into ROS 2. The focus is on getting a working simulation as quickly and reliably as possible, without long theoretical detours. Each step is shown on screen and documented in the included “Tutorial Notes” so you can simply copy, paste, and follow along. No prior experience with ROS 2, Gazebo, or PX4 is required.
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Install and configure ROS 2 Jazzy and the Gazebo simulator on Ubuntu 24.04
- Install PX4-Autopilot, run the x500 quadcopter in software-in-the-loop (SITL), and understand the basic console workflow
- Adjust key PX4 parameters, arm the drone, take off, hover, and land
- Connect QGroundControl, use the virtual joystick, and send simple autonomous commands
- Bridge the simulated camera into ROS 2 using ros_gz_bridge and visualize the live video stream with rqt_image_view
The resulting project is a solid base you can reuse for your own research or hobby work: offboard control, AI-based navigation, mapping, or even later connecting similar PX4 configurations to real drones. The course is intentionally short and focused, so you can complete it in an evening and come away with a concrete, repeatable setup for drone robotics experiments.
