ROS2 Connect: A new ROS2 over WAN Solution

Abstract:The Robot Operating System 2 (ROS2) has become a widely adopted framework for the development of distributed robotic systems. However, its communication architecture, based on DDS and RTPS, relies on multicast discovery mechanisms that are typically unavailable in wide-area network (WAN) environments, making remote operation challenging. This work presents ROS2 Connect, a WebSocket-based communication framework that enables transparent and secure ROS2 interaction across routed networks without requiring modifications to network infrastructure or DDS configurations. The proposed client-server architecture supports bidirectional exchange of topics, services, actions, and system data while integrating authentication and access control mechanisms. Experimental evaluation over a real WAN connection demonstrates significantly lower latency, higher stability, and improved scalability compared to existing solutions, including DDS Router, rosbridge and Zenoh. Initial results show that ROS2 Connect provides a reliable foundation for teleoperation and distributed robotics applications over wide-area networks.

Robotics (cs.RO)

arXiv:2608.25102 [cs.RO]

(or arXiv:2608.25102v1 [cs.RO] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2608.25102 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite (pending registration)

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