BETA

Getting Started

Get your robot connected to The Platform in a few minutes. We support ROS2 and VIAM robots with one-line installers.

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No robot yet? Try it in the browser

You don't need any hardware to see what The Platform does. Create an account, open the fleet page, and start a simulated robot — a virtual care-home wing with a LiDAR robot in it. Drive it around, build a live SLAM map, drop named waypoints, and run a multi-stop route that auto-docks to charge between runs. It's the real Platform — only the robot is simulated.

The simulator: a care-home floorplan mapped by the robot, with a numbered patrol route between the rooms and a charging dock

The sim's care-home wing with a five-stop patrol route and a charging dock — mapped and driven entirely in the browser, no robot required.

1

Create an Account

Sign up, verify your email, and log in.

2

Get Your API Key

Go to your Profile page and copy your API key. You'll need it in the next step.

3

Install the Driver

Pick the installer for your robot platform and run it on your robot:

ROS2 Robots

For robots running ROS2 Humble, Iron, or newer:

bash <(curl -sSL https://platform.burf.co/install/ros2) click to copy

VIAM Robots

For robots managed via the VIAM platform:

bash <(curl -sSL https://platform.burf.co/install/viam) click to copy

Both installers walk you through everything interactively:

Robot ID Asks you to pick a unique ID for your robot
Connection ROS2 topics or VIAM component names (with sensible defaults)
API Key Asks for the API key from your profile
Dependencies Installs the SDK and optionally opencv + aiortc for WebRTC video
Auto-start Optionally creates a systemd service to start on boot
4

See Your Robot in the Dashboard

Open your dashboard - your robot will appear as soon as the driver connects. Click on it to get live video, joystick control, and sensor monitoring.

If your robot has a LiDAR, it can also drive itself: build a SLAM map, drop named waypoints, and run multi-stop routes - the driver handles obstacle avoidance (LiDAR and bumper) and can return to its dock to charge, all from the same map view.

That's it - your robot is now remotely accessible, and drivable autonomously, from anywhere in the world.

Reference: ROS2 Topics

The driver bridges these standard ROS2 topics to the platform:

Direction Default Topic Message Type Description
Subscribes /camera/image_raw sensor_msgs/Image Camera feed (streamed via WebRTC)
Subscribes /odom nav_msgs/Odometry Wheel odometry
Subscribes /imu/data sensor_msgs/Imu IMU orientation and acceleration
Subscribes /scan sensor_msgs/LaserScan LiDAR data (downsampled)
Publishes /cmd_vel geometry_msgs/Twist Movement commands from the web UI
Publishes /map nav_msgs/OccupancyGrid SLAM map the driver builds from /scan (auto)
All topic names are configurable. The installer asks you for each one. You can also change them later in config/burf_driver.yaml.
SLAM and navigation are built in - there are no extra topics to configure. Give the driver a /scan (LiDAR) and it runs slam_toolbox itself, publishing /map and driving the robot to waypoints/routes. You don't provide a map topic; the driver produces one.
Show config file example...
# config/burf_driver.yaml

server_url: "wss://platform.burf.co/ws/robot"
robot_id: "my-rover-01"
api_key: "paste-your-api-key-here"

# ROS2 topics (adjust to match your robot)
camera_topic: "/camera/image_raw"
odom_topic: "/odom"
imu_topic: "/imu/data"
cmd_vel_topic: "/cmd_vel"
scan_topic: "/scan"

# Performance tuning
telemetry_rate: 5.0  # Hz
video_fps: 10

What's Next?

REST API - Build custom integrations using your API key with Authorization: Bearer <your-key>

Sanbot ELF / Afobot / iPal - Got a Sanbot ELF, QNAP Afobot, or iPal? Follow the BRemote setup guide

Other Robots - We also support Double 2, InMoov, and VIAM rovers

FAQ - Common questions about video latency, security, and custom robots