Visualization#

The MPMCA involves many different components that are rather complex by themselves and interact with each other in many different ways. Understanding what is going on inside the algorithm is difficult. The visualization namespace contains a number of tools to convert the data stored in certain Messages on a MessageBus into the MCAP dataformat that can be visualized using Foxglove Studio. For instructions on how to use Foxglove Studio with the MPMCA, see this page.

The Step McapLogger is able to convert and log certain types of Messages (or specific data fields inside those Messages) on the TaskMessageBus to a file on disk for offline visualization.

The conversion from internal representation of the data into MCAP format cannot be 'automatic' and needs to be manually implemented for every type of data, even if you only want to 'plot' the data. That is, a specific implementation that derives from FoxgloveMessageConvertor needs to be developed for every type of Message. A limited number of (incomplete) convertors are provided with the MPMCA:

• The AutomotivePredictionPathConvertor will convert the Path used by the AutomotivePredictor into a set of cubes that resemble the outer limits of the Path.
• The AutomotivePredictionHorizonConvertor convert the signals used inside the AutomotivePredictor into data arrays for plotting.
• The ControllerDataConvertor will convert important signals provided to or by the Controller into data arrays for plotting and into data structures that allow 3-dimensional visualization of the current pose of the simulator.

The provided visualizations are rather schematic, but can be 'dressed-up' by the user (e.g. using 3D models of the actual simulator) to be more informative or aesthetic. Please refer to the Foxglove Studio documentation for more information.