Get SDK

SDK Overview

The Dexterous Hand SDK (Software Development Kit) is a comprehensive software toolkit designed for BrainCo RevoHand device development, providing complete programming interfaces and control functions. The SDK supports Revo 1, Revo 2, and Revo3 full-range devices, targeting developers in robotics, prosthetics, and industrial automation with both Python and C++ programming languages.

System Requirements

Python: 3.8 ~ 3.12
Linux: Ubuntu 20.04/22.04 LTS (x86_64/aarch64), glibc ≥ 2.31
macOS: 10.15+
Windows: 10/11

Supported Communication Protocols

Device	RS-485	Protobuf	CAN	CANFD	EtherCAT
Revo 1	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Revo 2	✅	❌	✅	✅	✅
Revo3	✅	❌	❌	❌	❌

Download & Installation

SDK Repository

GitHub - brainco-hand-sdk

Python SDK Installation

bash

# Install from PyPI
pip3 install bc-stark-sdk

# China mirror (Alibaba Cloud OSS)
bash install_whl.sh 1.4.2

Example Code

Release Notes

v1.4.2 (2026/04/17)

🚀 Revo3 Device Support

Full support for Revo3 series devices (Ultra / Pro / Basic)
21-DOF motor control with position, velocity, current, MIT impedance, and damping modes
MIT impedance debug tools: tracking, plotting, trajectory generation
New Revo3-specific examples: revo3_motor.py (basic control), revo3_teaching.py (teaching mode), revo3_benchmark.py (high-frequency latency profiling)

🚀 New Tactile Device Types

Added ArrayPressure Touch (Revo2TouchArrayPressure) — 3D force & torque data collection (Fx, Fy, Fz, Mx, My) via ArrayPressureTouchDataBuffer
C++ demos: hand_demo and hand_monitor with array_pressure mode
Python GUI: 2D vector compass visualization for force/torque data
Touch type detection APIs:
- is_capacitive_touch() — Capacitive touch (Revo1/Revo2 Touch)
- is_pressure_touch() — Piezoresistive pressure touch
- is_force3d_touch() — 3-axis force touch
- is_array_pressure_touch() — Array piezoresistive touch

🎨 Python GUI

Revo3 motor control, config, and teaching mode panels
Touch panels: heatmap visualization with capacitive/piezoresistive/Force3D/ArrayPressure/VisionTouch support
Timing test with Revo2/Revo3 workers and dynamic frequency switching
i18n support (EN/ZH)

🔧 SDK & API Changes

New hardware types: Revo2TouchForce3D, Revo2TouchArrayPressure, Revo3Ultra / Revo3Pro / Revo3Basic (hw_type 10-27)
New APIs: uses_revo3_motor_api(), uses_revo3_touch_api(), uses_array_pressure_touch_api()

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed CAN error frame handling and auto-detect protocol dispatch
Added CAN_ERR_FLAG check in SocketCAN recv_can/recv_canfd

📚 Documentation & Project Structure

Archived deprecated linux/ and windows/ folders to archive/
Added comprehensive Revo3 Python API documentation and joint mapping
Added install_whl.sh script for Python wheel installation

v1.1.9 (2026/03/03)

🔧 Improvements

Added 150ms warm-up delay after port open to improve Modbus auto-detection reliability on first attempt

📚 New Examples

c/demo/debug_detect.cpp — C++ debug tool for Modbus register inspection and raw Protobuf auto-detection

v1.1.6 (2026/02/28)

🚀 New Features

Auto-detection now supports BrainCo USBCANFD adapter

v1.1.5 (2026/02/09)

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed CANFD boundary check issue
SocketCAN scan now iterates all interfaces

🚀 New Features

SocketCAN Python bindings (init_socketcan_canfd, close_socketcan, socketcan_scan_devices)
Device context query APIs: stark_get_protocol_type, stark_get_port_name, stark_get_baudrate, etc.
CAN device initialization: init_device_handler_can() / init_device_handler_can_with_hw_type()
StarkProtocolType::Auto = 0 enum value for auto-detecting all protocols

🔧 Example Improvements

Runtime CAN backend selection, new communication frequency test utilities

v1.1.3 (2026/02/06)

🚀 New Features

Built-in SocketCAN Support (Linux) - No external code required
Protobuf Protocol Support - Revo 1 serial protocol, baud rate 115200, Slave ID 10-254

v1.1.0 (2025/02/05)

🚀 New Features

Built-in ZQWL CAN adapter support (Linux / macOS / Windows, no extra DLL needed)
Unified device auto-detection API: auto_detect() → init_from_detected() → close_device_handler()
Stark 1.8 tactile support (RS-485 / CAN protocols)
Cross-platform C++ examples (c/demo/)
Python GUI debugging tools (motor control, tactile data, waveform monitoring)

⚠️ Breaking Changes

Hardware type enum refactored, added Revo1Advanced / Revo1AdvancedTouch
API renamed: is_revo1() → uses_revo1_motor_api(), is_revo2() → uses_revo2_motor_api()
Initialization split: init_config() → init_logging() + init_device_handler()
C structs prefixed with C (e.g., MotorStatusData → CMotorStatusData)
linux/ and windows/ example directories deprecated, migrate to c/

📚 Migration Guide

See CHANGELOG.md

v1.0.6 (2025/01/26)

🚀 New Features

New Hardware: Revo1Advanced (BCMEL/BCMER), Revo1AdvancedTouch (BCMTL2/BCMTR2)
Auto Serial Detection: Hardware type auto-detection by serial number prefix
Status Reading Optimization: Multi-threaded collection, passive reading, improved performance
SocketCAN Support: New SocketCAN backend for Linux
Auto-Detection Enhancement: Multi-port traversal, protocol auto-recognition, Quick/Full scan modes

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed physical quantity mode 1000x scaling issue
Fixed RS-485 firmware upgrade baud rate detection

📚 Examples

Added revo2_touch_collector.py motor/tactile status example
Added revo2_timing_test_gui.py timing test GUI tool

⚠️ Note

Revo1Advanced devices should use examples from revo2 directory

v1.0.1 (2025/12/23)

🚀 New Features

Support for EtherCAT multi-slave communication

v1.0.0 (2025/12/08)

🎉 Official Release

Detail optimizations and official upgrade to version 1.0

v0.9.9 (2025/11/19)

🚀 New Features

Support for Revo 1 Advanced version devices ⭐
Unified control parameter ranges: 0~1000 for position, -1000~+1000 for speed/current/PWM
Applicable to all Modbus, CANFD, and CAN2.0 communication protocols

⚠️ Important Notice

Revo 1 Advanced version requires SDK v0.9.9 or higher

v0.9.8 (2025/11/04)

🚀 New Features

CAN/CANFD Protocol: Complete Revo 2 CAN2.0/CANFD communication stack
ZLG CAN Support: Python interface (Windows/Linux) with driver library
CANFD Chunked R/W: Support for large data transfer (>29 registers)
EtherCAT Tactile: Tactile sensor data collection (PDO/SDO)
Pressure Tactile: EtherCAT/CANFD/RS-485 multi-protocol support
Protected Current: ProtectedCurrent R/W for CAN/EtherCAT
Action Sequence: run_action_sequence for CAN 2.0
Device Type Detection: Serial number based (get_hardware_by_sn)
Multi-Device Support: Revo1/Revo2 mixed usage

⚡ High-Frequency Communication Optimization

C/C++ Async Calls: set commands now async, non-blocking
High-Freq No Retry: get/set_finger_*, tactile reads - prevents command queue buildup
Low-Freq Retry Reduced: Device info reads reduced to 2 retries

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed TurboConfig byte order, Modbus C API async calls, OTA package size handling

v0.9.0 (2025/09/20)

🚀 New Features

Added CAN2.0 protocol support for second-generation dexterous hand
Added EtherCAT protocol support for second-generation dexterous hand tactile version

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed known issues and improved stability

v0.8.8 (2025/09/02)

🚀 New Features

Added CAN2.0 protocol support for second-generation dexterous hand

v0.8.6 (2025/08/20)

🚀 New Features

Added CAN2.0 protocol support for first-generation dexterous hand

🔧 API Improvements

Function naming optimization:
- modbus_ → stark_ (more universal prefix for CANFD and EtherCAT)
- create_device_handler() updated naming to avoid ambiguity
- canfd_init(uint8_t master_id) updated naming to avoid ambiguity
- init_cfg no longer requires firmware type, automatically obtained via get_device_info interface

📚 Example Code

ROS 2 examples added CAN/CANFD support
New CAN/CANFD C++ examples

v0.7.8 (2025/07/31)

🚀 New Features

EtherCAT firmware added DC synchronization functionality

v0.7.3 (2025/07/28)

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed protocol MasterID configuration in CANFD communication
Fixed PDO reading position issue in EtherCAT communication
Fixed error in MotorStatusData description field

v0.7.0 (2025/07/18)

🚀 New Features

Auto-detection of Modbus slave baud rate and device ID
Second-generation dexterous hand tactile version interface support

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed DFU firmware upgrade issues

v0.6.2 (2025/07/14)

🚀 New Features

EtherCAT Protocol Support: Second-generation dexterous hand supports EtherCAT high-speed communication
Extended RS485 Baud Rates: Added 1M, 2M, and 5M baud rate options for high-performance applications
Linux Serial Port Optimization: LOW_LATENCY mode enabled by default, 400% communication frequency improvement at 460800 baud

🔧 API Improvements

Refactored device context naming:
- ModbusContext → DeviceContext (more universal device context)
- ModbusHandler → DeviceHandler (unified device operation interface)

🛠 Development Tools

Integrated python-stub-gen toolchain for automatic type stub file (.pyi) generation, enhancing IDE intellisense and type checking

⚠️ Compatibility Notice

Please note API naming changes when migrating from older versions

v0.5.3 (2025/06/12)

🚀 New Features

Custom Modbus read/write interfaces
Action sequence control
LED, buzzer, vibration motor control

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed real-time position/speed/current return value errors

v0.4.5 (2025/05/14)

🚀 New Features

Added get_single_touch_status for single-finger touch detection

🔧 Improvements

Simplified modbus_open function, removed redundant parameters

v0.4.4 (2025/05/06)

🚀 New Features

Added CANFD protocol support

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed multiple known issues, improved stability

v0.3.6 (2025/04/16)

🎉 Milestone

First support for Gen 2 dexterous hand
Established basic communication framework

v0.1.9 (2025/03/17)

📌 Initial Release

Modbus communication protocol
Python / C code integration
SDK architecture

Get SDK ​

SDK Overview ​

System Requirements ​

Supported Communication Protocols ​

Download & Installation ​

SDK Repository ​

Python SDK Installation ​

Example Code ​

Release Notes ​

v1.4.2 (2026/04/17) ​

🚀 Revo3 Device Support ​

🚀 New Tactile Device Types ​

🎨 Python GUI ​

🔧 SDK & API Changes ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

📚 Documentation & Project Structure ​

v1.1.9 (2026/03/03) ​

🔧 Improvements ​

📚 New Examples ​

v1.1.6 (2026/02/28) ​

🚀 New Features ​

v1.1.5 (2026/02/09) ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

🚀 New Features ​

🔧 Example Improvements ​

v1.1.3 (2026/02/06) ​

🚀 New Features ​

v1.1.0 (2025/02/05) ​

🚀 New Features ​

⚠️ Breaking Changes ​

📚 Migration Guide ​

v1.0.6 (2025/01/26) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

📚 Examples ​

⚠️ Note ​

v1.0.1 (2025/12/23) ​

🚀 New Features ​

v1.0.0 (2025/12/08) ​

🎉 Official Release ​

v0.9.9 (2025/11/19) ​

🚀 New Features ​

⚠️ Important Notice ​

v0.9.8 (2025/11/04) ​

🚀 New Features ​

⚡ High-Frequency Communication Optimization ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

v0.9.0 (2025/09/20) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

v0.8.8 (2025/09/02) ​

🚀 New Features ​

v0.8.6 (2025/08/20) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🔧 API Improvements ​

📚 Example Code ​

v0.7.8 (2025/07/31) ​

🚀 New Features ​

v0.7.3 (2025/07/28) ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

v0.7.0 (2025/07/18) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

v0.6.2 (2025/07/14) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🔧 API Improvements ​

🛠 Development Tools ​

⚠️ Compatibility Notice ​

v0.5.3 (2025/06/12) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

v0.4.5 (2025/05/14) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🔧 Improvements ​

v0.4.4 (2025/05/06) ​

🚀 New Features ​

🐛 Bug Fixes ​

v0.3.6 (2025/04/16) ​

🎉 Milestone ​

v0.1.9 (2025/03/17) ​

Get SDK

SDK Overview

System Requirements

Supported Communication Protocols

Download & Installation

SDK Repository

Python SDK Installation

Example Code

Release Notes

v1.4.2 (2026/04/17)

🚀 Revo3 Device Support

🚀 New Tactile Device Types

🎨 Python GUI

🔧 SDK & API Changes

🐛 Bug Fixes

📚 Documentation & Project Structure

v1.1.9 (2026/03/03)

🔧 Improvements

📚 New Examples

v1.1.6 (2026/02/28)

🚀 New Features

v1.1.5 (2026/02/09)

🐛 Bug Fixes

🚀 New Features

🔧 Example Improvements

v1.1.3 (2026/02/06)

🚀 New Features

v1.1.0 (2025/02/05)

🚀 New Features

⚠️ Breaking Changes

📚 Migration Guide

v1.0.6 (2025/01/26)

🚀 New Features

🐛 Bug Fixes

📚 Examples

⚠️ Note

v1.0.1 (2025/12/23)

🚀 New Features

v1.0.0 (2025/12/08)

🎉 Official Release

v0.9.9 (2025/11/19)

🚀 New Features

⚠️ Important Notice

v0.9.8 (2025/11/04)

🚀 New Features

⚡ High-Frequency Communication Optimization

🐛 Bug Fixes

v0.9.0 (2025/09/20)

🚀 New Features

🐛 Bug Fixes

v0.8.8 (2025/09/02)

🚀 New Features

v0.8.6 (2025/08/20)

🚀 New Features

🔧 API Improvements

📚 Example Code

v0.7.8 (2025/07/31)

🚀 New Features

v0.7.3 (2025/07/28)

🐛 Bug Fixes

v0.7.0 (2025/07/18)

🚀 New Features

🐛 Bug Fixes

v0.6.2 (2025/07/14)

🚀 New Features

🔧 API Improvements

🛠 Development Tools

⚠️ Compatibility Notice

v0.5.3 (2025/06/12)

🚀 New Features

🐛 Bug Fixes

v0.4.5 (2025/05/14)

🚀 New Features

🔧 Improvements

v0.4.4 (2025/05/06)

🚀 New Features

🐛 Bug Fixes

v0.3.6 (2025/04/16)

🎉 Milestone

v0.1.9 (2025/03/17)