NVIDIA Isaac Lab

What is Isaac Lab?

Installing Isaac Lab

Install Git

$ sudo apt install git

Cloning Isaac Lab

# using SSH
$ git clone git@github.com:isaac-sim/IsaacLab.git ~/IsaacLab
# or using https
$ git clone https://github.com/isaac-sim/IsaacLab.git ~/IsaacLab

Install dependencies using apt (on Ubuntu):

$ sudo apt install cmake build-essential

Run the install command that iterates over all the extensions in source directory and installs them using pip (with --editable flag):

$ cd ~/IsaacLab
$ conda activate issac # make sure the issac virtual environment is activated
$ ./isaaclab.sh --install # or "./isaaclab.sh -i"

$ ./isaaclab.sh --install rl_games  # or "./isaaclab.sh -i rl_games"

Verifying the Isaac Lab installation

# Option 1: Using the isaaclab.sh executable
# note: this works for both the bundled python and the virtual environment
$ ./isaaclab.sh -p scripts/tutorials/00_sim/create_empty.py

# Option 2: Using python in your virtual environment
$ python scripts/tutorials/00_sim/create_empty.py

The above command should launch the simulator and display a window with a black viewport as shown below. You can exit the script by pressing Ctrl+C on your terminal. On Windows machines, please terminate the process from Command Prompt using Ctrl+Break or Ctrl+fn+B.

Train a Bot

You can now use Isaac Lab to train a robot through Reinforcement Learning! The quickest way to use Isaac Lab is through the predefined workflows using one of our Batteries-included robot tasks. Execute the following command to quickly train an ant to walk! We recommend adding --headless for faster training.

$ ./isaaclab.sh -p scripts/reinforcement_learning/rsl_rl/train.py --task=Isaac-Ant-v0 --headless

… Or a robot dog!

$ ./isaaclab.sh -p scripts/reinforcement_learning/rsl_rl/train.py --task=Isaac-Velocity-Rough-Anymal-C-v0 --headless

Remove --headless if you want to see it in action.

Isaac Lab provides the tools you’ll need to create your own Tasks and Workflows for whatever your project needs may be. Take a look at our How-to Guides guides like Adding your own learning Library or Wrapping Environments for details.

Asset Caching

Assets used in Isaac Lab are hosted on AWS S3 buckets on the cloud. Asset loading time can depend on your network connection and geographical location. In some cases, it is possible that asset loading times can be long when assets are pulled from the AWS servers.

If you run into cases where assets take a few minutes to load for each run, we recommend enabling asset caching following the below steps.

First, launch the Isaac Sim app:

$ ./isaaclab.sh -s

On the top right of the Isaac Sim app, there will be an icon labelled CACHE:. There may be a message indicating HUB NOT DETECTED or NEW VERSION DETECTED.

Click on the message, which will enable Hub for asset caching. Once enabled, Hub will run automatically each time an Isaac Lab or Isaac Sim instance is run.

Note that for the first run, assets will still need to be pulled from the cloud, which could lead to longer loading times. However, subsequent runs that use the same assets will be able to use the cached files from Hub. Hub will provide better control for caching of assets used in Isaac Lab.

URDF

Install API Script

macOS

$ cd <path to fusion2urdf-ros2>
$ cp -r ./URDF_Exporter_Ros2 "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Autodesk/Autodesk Fusion 360/API/Scripts/"

Windows

C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\Autodesk\Autodesk Fusion 360\API

After placing the plugin, re-open Fusion 360 again. Navigate to the Utilities on top. Check the ADD-INS, you shoul see the URDF_Exporter_Ros2 under My Scripts.