Namespace Functionality

What are Namespaces in VisualStates?

VisualStates provides Global and Local Namespaces.

Global Namespace consists all the functions, variables and the ROS nodes with publishers and subscribers which are required globally through the complex automata.
Local Namespace consists functions and variables required by a particular state or transition or a group of states or transitions. Every level of automata consists of a Local Namespace where its local variables and functions can be defined.

While developing complex behaviors, the states and transitions can have their own auxiliary data accessible by them only.
Seperate Namespaces avoids the auxiliary data name conflicts. While developing automata, user may provide functions and variabes names which may conflict with other automata’s auxiliary data.
While importing, existing auxiliary data might conflict with the importing automata i.e. the method and variables might collide, seperating them into Local Namespaces avoid the issue upto a great extent.

Data -> Global Namespace:
- Write all the global methods and variables which are required to be used throughout the behavior in all levels of automata.
- The Global Namespace would also contains all the ROS Publishers and Subscribers.
- Members can be accessed using self.globalNamespace.[method or variable name] anywhere in the whole automata.
Data -> Local Namespace:
- On the exisiting level of automata, all the states and transitions can access these methods and variables.
- Write all the local methods and variables which are required to be used on the current level of automata in states and transitions.
- On the same level, the local members can be accessed using self.localNamespace.[method or variable]
- to navigate through different local namespaces, navigate through different levels of automata using the TreeView provided in the VisualStates.