[YT: robot mania] How to Use MoveIt with Isaac Sim: A Step-by-Step Guide

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This video walks you step-by-step through building, configuring, and running a simulated UR5 robotic arm in NVIDIA Isaac Sim, using ROS 2 and MoveIt 2 for motion planning and control. The main stages are:

  • Setup
    • Install ROS 2 Humble, Isaac Sim, and required ROS 2 packages.
    • Download & unpack the moveit2_ur5 example.
  • MoveIt 2 Config
    • Use the Setup Assistant to generate a collision matrix and add a fixed “virtual joint.”
    • Create two planning groups—arm (6 joints, RRT-Connect + KDL IK) and gripper (2 knuckles).
    • Define saved poses, the gripper as end-effector, and passive mimic joints.
    • Auto-generate ROS 2 controllers, correct any YAML type errors, then rebuild.
  • RViz Test
    • Launch the demo, drag the goal marker to plan & execute arm motions, and use the gripper action interface.
  • Isaac Sim Integration
    • Install the ROS 2 Control bridge, tweak the URDF/ZACRO to use Isaac’s joint command/state topics, convert to URDF, and import it.
    • Add a ground plane, position the robot, then build an Action Graph linking ROS 2 publish/subscribe blocks to Isaac articulation controllers (set base link as root).
    • Fix any joint-limit or mimic-joint issues.
  • Final Demo
    • Run Isaac Sim alongside the ROS 2 launch; moving the RViz marker now drives the UR5 and gripper in real time within Isaac Sim.