I would like to simulate force/torque sensors at each joint of a robot to measure the bearing loads at each joint. This needs to be done when the robot is at different configurations.

Currently, we repeatedly play around with the joint ‘RPY’ values in the URDF to get the robot in the required configuration, ensure that all the joints are of ‘fixed’ type, (to simulate force/torque sensors) and then use get_reaction_forces_output_port() function.

However, in this method we manually change the joint parameters in the URDF. It would be a lot easier if we could weld the joints after setting the robot to required configuration using the plant.SetPositions() function. Am I missing something, is there another method to achieve this?

Thank you for your time.