This cargo plugin is a wrapper around cargo build which installs build artifacts in a layout expected by ament and ROS 2 tools.

It can be used standalone or through colcon-ros-cargo. Its command line interface is cargo ament-build --install-base <install base> -- <cargo build args>.

What does this plugin do?

• It builds or checks the package, depending on whether it contains any binaries
• It copies the source code and binaries to appropriate locations in the install base
• It places marker files in the ament index

It is possible to specify additional files or directories to be installed in the metadata section of Cargo.toml like this:

[package.metadata.ros]
install_to_share = ["launch", "config"]

These paths are relative to the directory containing the Cargo.toml file and will be copied to the appropriate location in share.

The same mechanism applies with install_to_include and install_to_lib.

Target types other than libraries and binaries (i.e. benches, tests) are not yet installed.

Dependencies of messages can be specified as follows.

[package.metadata.ros]
msg = ["std_msgs"]
msg_dir = "/tmp/safe_drive_msg"
safe_drive_path = "path_to/safe_drive"

[package.metadata.ros]
msg = ["std_msgs"]
msg_dir = "/tmp/safe_drive_msg"
safe_drive_version = "0.2"