Stage is a robot simulator that provides a virtual world populated by mobile robots and sensors in a two-dimensional bitmapped environment, along with various objects for the robots to sense and manipulate. It provides several sensor and actuator models, including sonar or infrared sensors, scanning laser rangefinder, color-blob tracking, fiducial tracking, bumpers, grippers and mobile robot bases with odometric or global localization. The main usage for Stage for massively multi-robot experiments, suitable for swarm robotics and other research where the behavior of large robot populations is of interest. Player is a network server for robot control. By running on the robot, it can provide a simple and clear interface for the robot’s sensors and actuators over the IP network.

https://playerstage.sourceforge.net/

By offering a controlled environment to practice, simulations allow educators and students to experiment, receive feedback, and improve their skills without the immediate consequences of working with real-robots.