[ros-users] Some questions over gmapping, map_server and AMCL and using them together (if possible)

[Brian Gerkey]

hi Raphael,

On Mon, Aug 9, 2010 at 7:55 AM, rfavier <raphael.favier at gmail.com> wrote:
> a) Is it possible to initialize gmapping with an existing map?

No.  gmapping is a particle-filter based SLAM system.  The "map" that
is saved to disk as a bitmap is very different from the internal data
structures that gmapping maintains during operation.  While in
principle it would be possible to save enough of gmapping's state to
restart it later, in practice, it's tricky.

> b) Can I run AMCL in concurrence with gmapping?

No.  Both amcl and gmapping are estimating the map->odom transform.
amcl estimates that transform given a known map.  gmapping
simultaneously estimates that transform and the map (hence the name,
SLAM).  It doesn't make sense to run them both.

	brian.