pydrake.visualization.model_visualizer

The model_visualizer program displays a model file (e.g., *.sdf) in Drake’s built-in visualizers (MeshCat and/or Meldis). When viewing in MeshCat, joint sliders to posture the model are available by clicking on “Open Controls” in the top right corner.

If the loaded model file is changed, it can be reloaded by pressing the “Reload Model Files” button, which will attempt to maintain slider values once reloading is finished. To exit, press the “Stop Running” button or press the Escape key.

This command-line module is provided for convenience, but the feature is also available via the library class pydrake.visualization.ModelVisualizer.

From a Drake source build, run this module as:

bazel run //tools:model_visualizer -- --help

From a Drake binary release (including pip releases), run this module as:

python3 -m pydrake.visualization.model_visualizer --help

For binary releases (except for pip) there is also a shortcut available as:

/opt/drake/bin/model_visualizer

Refer to the instructions printed by --help for additional details.

An example of viewing an iiwa model file:

python3 -m pydrake.visualization.model_visualizer --open-window \
      package://drake_models/iiwa_description/sdf/iiwa7_with_box_collision.sdf

This program respects the ROS_PACKAGE_PATH; if your model uses external resources then you will need to set that environment variable.