Bug: Joint States Not Rendered in RViz During Launch

[guptaaditya746]

🐞 Bug: Joint States Not Rendered in RViz During Launch

Description
When launching the URDF file, the expected robot model should appear in RViz. However, the joint states are not being rendered if the joint_state_publisher is not present. This behavior is observed during both simulation and real-world testing.

This issue is particularly evident when launching via:

./bringup_phase1.sh

While the following initial topics are correctly launched:

• /scan
• /imu
• /odom
• /distance
• /tf
• /tf_static

The joint state information is missing, causing incomplete rendering of the robot model in RViz.

---

🔍 Observations

• Issue occurs both in simulation and with the real robot.
• The rest of the topics are functional, and data appears as expected.
• Visual verification in RViz confirms the absence of joint state updates.

---

✅ Temporary Workaround / Ongoing Investigation

We are currently experimenting with a minimal setup that includes only the ros2_control configuration, a dedicated launch file, and the project URDF.

If this setup works, we plan to:

• Create a separate branch focusing on ros2_control integration using an Ackermann controller.
• This modular approach will allow future contributors to integrate or swap controllers easily.

---

📌 Proposed Solution (To Be Tested)

• Ensure joint_state_publisher or appropriate hardware interface is correctly configured and launched.
• Verify ros2_control controller configurations and their matching hardware interfaces.
• Confirm that controller manager and state broadcasters are active and loaded correctly.