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Robotic Surgery Docker Container#

This guide provides instructions for running robotic surgery simulations using Docker containers with Isaac Sim.

Prerequisites#

  • Docker Engine
  • NVIDIA Docker Runtime
  • X11 forwarding support (for GUI mode)

Build the Docker Image#

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/isaac-for-healthcare/i4h-workflows.git
cd i4h-workflows

docker build -f workflows/robotic_surgery/docker/Dockerfile -t robotic_surgery:latest .

Running the Container#

# Allow Docker to access X11 display
xhost +local:docker

# Run container with GUI support
docker run --name isaac-sim -it --gpus all --rm \
    --network=host \
    --runtime=nvidia \
    --entrypoint=bash \
    -e DISPLAY=$DISPLAY \
    -e "OMNI_KIT_ACCEPT_EULA=Y" \
    -e "ACCEPT_EULA=Y" \
    -e "PRIVACY_CONSENT=Y" \
    -v /tmp/.X11-unix:/tmp/.X11-unix \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/cache/kit:/isaac-sim/kit/cache:rw \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/cache/ov:/root/.cache/ov:rw \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/cache/pip:/root/.cache/pip:rw \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/cache/glcache:/root/.cache/nvidia/GLCache:rw \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/cache/computecache:/root/.nv/ComputeCache:rw \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/logs:/root/.nvidia-omniverse/logs:rw \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/data:/root/.local/share/ov/data:rw \
    -v ~/docker/isaac-sim/documents:/root/Documents:rw \
    -v ~/.cache/i4h-assets:/root/.cache/i4h-assets:rw \
    robotic_surgery:latest

Running the Simulation#

1. Interactive GUI Mode with X11 Forwarding#

The command to run the simulation is the same as Running Workflows section.

For example,

# Inside the container
conda activate robotic_surgery

# Run simulation with GUI
python workflows/robotic_surgery/scripts/simulation/scripts/environments/state_machine/reach_psm_sm.py

2. Headless Streaming Mode#

For headless streaming server setup, you can use the WebRTC streaming mode, with livestream flag.

# Inside the container
conda activate robotic_surgery

# Run simulation with WebRTC streaming
python workflows/robotic_surgery/scripts/simulation/scripts/environments/state_machine/reach_psm_sm.py --livestream 2

WebRTC Client Setup#

  1. Download the Isaac Sim WebRTC Client:
  2. Visit the Isaac Sim Download Page

  3. Download the Isaac Sim WebRTC Streaming Client

  4. Configure Connection:

  5. Open the WebRTC client
  6. Enter the server IP address (container host IP)
  7. Wait for the simulation to initialize (look for "Resetting the state machine" message)

  8. Click "Connect"

  9. Network Requirements:

  10. Ensure ports are accessible: TCP/UDP 47995-48012, TCP/UDP 49000-49007, TCP 49100
  11. For remote access, configure firewall rules accordingly

Troubleshooting#

Common Issues#

Display Issues:

# Reset X11 permissions
xhost -local:docker
xhost +local:docker

# Check DISPLAY variable
echo $DISPLAY

This value should be set for interactive mode.