OpenArm CAN Library

A C++ library for CAN communication with OpenArm robotic hardware, supporting Damiao motors over CAN/CAN-FD interfaces. This library is a part of OpenArm. See detailed setup guide and docs here.

Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Linux with SocketCAN support
• CAN interface hardware

1. Install

Ubuntu

• 22.04 Jammy Jellyfish
• 24.04 Noble Numbat

sudo apt install -y software-properties-common
sudo add-apt-repository -y ppa:openarm/main
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y \
  libopenarm-can-dev \
  openarm-can-utils

AlmaLinux, CentOS, Fedora, RHEL, and Rocky Linux

1. Enable EPEL. (Not required for Fedora)
   • AlmaLinux 8 / Rocky Linux 8

     sudo dnf install -y epel-release
     sudo dnf config-manager --set-enabled powertools
     

   • AlmaLinux 9 & 10 / Rocky Linux 9 & 10

     sudo dnf install -y epel-release
     sudo crb enable
     

   • CentOS Stream 9

     sudo dnf config-manager --set-enabled crb
     sudo dnf install -y https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/epel{,-next}-release-latest-9.noarch.rpm
     

   • CentOS Stream 10

     sudo dnf config-manager --set-enabled crb
     sudo dnf install -y https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/epel-release-latest-10.noarch.rpm
     

   • RHEL 8 & 9 & 10

     releasever="$(. /etc/os-release && echo $VERSION_ID | grep -oE '^[0-9]+')"
     sudo subscription-manager repos --enable codeready-builder-for-rhel-$releasever-$(arch)-rpms
     sudo dnf install -y https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/epel/epel-release-latest-$releasever.noarch.rpm
     

2. Install the package.

   sudo dnf update
   sudo dnf install -y \
     openarm-can-devel \
     openarm-can-utils
   

2. Setup CAN Interface

Configure your CAN interface using the provided script:

# CAN 2.0 (default)
/usr/libexec/openarm-can/configure_socketcan.sh can0

# CAN-FD with 5Mbps data rate
/usr/libexec/openarm-can/configure_socketcan.sh can0 -fd

3. C++ Library

#include <openarm/can/socket/openarm.hpp>
#include <openarm/damiao_motor/dm_motor_constants.hpp>

openarm::can::socket::OpenArm arm("can0", true);  // CAN-FD enabled
std::vector<openarm::damiao_motor::MotorType> motor_types = {
    openarm::damiao_motor::MotorType::DM4310, openarm::damiao_motor::MotorType::DM4310};
std::vector<uint32_t> send_can_ids = {0x01, 0x02};
std::vector<uint32_t> recv_can_ids = {0x11, 0x12};

openarm.init_arm_motors(motor_types, send_can_ids, recv_can_ids);
openarm.enable_all();

See dev/README.md for how to build.

4. Python (🚧 EXPERIMENTAL - TEMPORARY 🚧)

⚠️ WARNING: UNSTABLE API ⚠️ Python bindings are currently a direct low level temporary port, and will change DRASTICALLY. The interface is may break between versions.Use at your own risk! Discussions on the interface are welcomed.

Build & Install:

Please ensure that you install the C++ library first, as 1. Install or dev/README.md.

cd python

# Create and activate virtual environment (recommended)
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate

./build.sh

Usage:

# WARNING: This API is unstable and will change!
import openarm_can as oa

arm = oa.OpenArm("can0", True)  # CAN-FD enabled
arm.init_arm_motors([oa.MotorType.DM4310], [0x01], [0x11])
arm.enable_all()

Examples

• C++: examples/demo.cpp - Complete arm control demo
• Python: python/examples/example.py - Basic Python usage

For developers

See dev/README.md.

Related links

• 📚 Read the documentation
• 💬 Join the community on Discord
• 📬 Contact us through openarm@enactic.ai

License

Licensed under the Apache License 2.0. See LICENSE.txt for details.

Copyright 2025 Enactic, Inc.

Code of Conduct

All participation in the OpenArm project is governed by our Code of Conduct.