ROS2 Baxter Simulation Debugging

I am deep into a ROS 2 + MoveIt workflow and my current road-block is getting the Baxter robot arm to run cleanly in simulation. Move groups load, but trajectory execution drops frames and joint limits occasionally mis-report, so I need a seasoned eye to trace the problem through the URDF, controllers, and MoveIt plugin chain.

Once Baxter is steady I want to pivot to an unmanned car scenario in the same ROS 2 environment—think full-stack bring-up of sensors, navigation stack, and path-planning algorithms—so fluency with algorithm profiling and optimisation across platforms will be valuable.

Key deliverables
• A fully functional Baxter arm simulation that plans and executes repeatable, accurate motions without controller or kinematic errors
• Step-by-step notes or patched files so I can reproduce the fix from a clean workspace
• Starter launch package for the ROS 2 unmanned car experiment, including sample maps, sensor stubs, and a working navigation pipeline
• Brief summary of algorithm changes or parameter tweaks you made and why they matter

Acceptance criteria
1. Baxter trajectories run at 1× real time for at least ten consecutive pick-and-place cycles with no joint limit or self-collision violations.
2. Unmanned car sim boots with obstacle avoidance enabled and can follow a 30 m waypoint path without collision in simulation.

If you are comfortable dissecting MoveIt behaviour, tweaking planners, and hopping between arm and vehicle simulations, I’d love to collaborate.