Reachy Mini Safe Torque

Before Enabling Torque

Set goal to current position first (prevents jump to old goal):

def _goto_current_pose(reachy_mini, duration=0.05):
    """Set goal to current position to prevent jumps."""
    head_pose = reachy_mini.get_current_head_pose()
    _, antennas = reachy_mini.get_current_joint_positions()

    reachy_mini.goto_target(
        head=head_pose,
        antennas=list(antennas) if antennas is not None else None,
        duration=duration,
    )

Known Bug: Partial Motor Enable/Disable

There is a known edge case when enabling/disabling only a subset of motors. The workaround is to call a full disable before enabling:

def _safe_enable_motors(self, reachy_mini: ReachyMini) -> None:
    """Enable motors safely, handling edge cases."""
    self._goto_current_pose(reachy_mini, duration=0.05)
    reachy_mini.disable_motors()  # Needed to handle edge case with mixed motor states
    reachy_mini.enable_motors()

Reference: See ~/reachy_mini_resources/fire_nation_attacked/fire_nation_attacked/main.py for a working implementation of this pattern.

If ~/reachy_mini_resources/ doesn't exist, run skills/reachy-mini-setup-environment.md to clone reference apps.

Complete Safe Enable Pattern

def safe_enable_motors(reachy_mini: ReachyMini) -> None:
    """Enable motors without jerky motion."""
    # 1. Read current position
    head_pose = reachy_mini.get_current_head_pose()
    _, antennas = reachy_mini.get_current_joint_positions()

    # 2. Set goal to current (very short duration)
    reachy_mini.goto_target(
        head=head_pose,
        antennas=list(antennas) if antennas is not None else None,
        duration=0.05,
    )

    # 3. Full disable (handles mixed motor state edge case)
    reachy_mini.disable_motors()

    # 4. Enable all motors
    reachy_mini.enable_motors()

Reference Implementation

Best example: ~/reachy_mini_resources/marionette/marionette/main.py

This app toggles torque for motion recording and demonstrates the full safe pattern.