The short answer
Open-RMF (Open Robotics Middleware Framework) is a free, open-source software system that lets fleets of robots from different manufacturers share the same building and work with its doors, lifts and other infrastructure. It is a set of libraries and tools built on ROS 2. Each fleet reports where its robots plan to go to a shared traffic schedule; Open-RMF spots conflicts in advance and has the fleets negotiate a way around them. It also hands out jobs, such as a delivery or a cleaning run, to whichever fleet can do them best. Open-RMF grew out of a 2018 initiative funded by Singapore's Ministry of Health, was built mainly by Open Robotics, and is now managed by a Project Management Committee of the Open Source Robotics Alliance (OSRA).
At a glance
| Item | Open-RMF |
|---|---|
| What it is | An open-source framework that coordinates several robot fleets with each other and with building infrastructure |
| Built on | ROS 2; components run as separate ROS 2 nodes |
| Origin | 2018 initiative funded by Singapore's Ministry of Health; core software by Open Robotics |
| Governance today | Project Management Committee of the Open Source Robotics Alliance |
| Typical robots | Service, delivery, cleaning, hospital and security robots indoors |
| Demo environments | Hotel, office, airport and clinic |
The problem it solves
A hospital, hotel, mall or airport rarely buys all its robots from one maker. A delivery robot from one supplier, a floor scrubber from a second and a patrol robot from a third each arrive with fleet software that sees only its own machines. They meet in the same corridors, wait for the same lift and need the same automatic doors opened. Without a shared layer, robots block each other, lifts are fought over and every new vendor means another integration with the building. Open-RMF gives all of them one picture of the building and one set of rules for sharing it.
How Open-RMF works
| Part | What it does |
|---|---|
| Traffic schedule database | A live record of where every participating robot intends to be over the coming minutes, reported by each fleet |
| Conflict prediction and negotiation | Finds clashes between planned routes before they happen; the fleets involved propose alternatives and a judge picks the best set |
| Fleet adapters | Bridges between Open-RMF and each manufacturer's fleet manager or robot API |
| Door and lift adapters | Let robots open doors and summon lifts through the building's systems |
| Task dispatcher | Asks the fleets to bid for each job and awards it to the best offer |
| Traffic Editor | A design-time tool for drawing the floor plan, lanes, doors, lifts and chargers |
| rmf-web | A browser dashboard for operators to watch robots and control doors and lifts |
The schedule looks into the future rather than only at where robots are now. When two fleets' planned paths would meet, each fleet manager offers itineraries that accommodate the other, and a judge set up by the integrator chooses between them. An urgent task can force a negotiation that favours the higher-priority robot.
Fleet adapters: how much control Open-RMF gets
How well a fleet can be coordinated depends on what its maker's interface allows. The Open-RMF documentation sorts fleets into four categories:
| Category | What Open-RMF can do |
|---|---|
| Full control | Receives live status and can set the exact path each robot follows, interrupting and replacing it at any time. A reusable C++ API with Python bindings exists for this case. |
| Traffic light | Receives status and can pause and resume each robot, but not change its path |
| Read only | Receives status updates but has no control; only one read-only fleet can share a space |
| No interface | Cannot coordinate; such a fleet is not compatible with Open-RMF and is likely to cause deadlocks |
This is the first question for any robot going into a shared building: which category its maker's interface puts it in. A robot that only exposes a status feed will always have to be routed around, not with.
How tasks are handed out
When a job comes in, the dispatcher sends a bid request to every fleet adapter. Each fleet that can do the job works out how to fit it into its existing work and replies with a proposal and a cost. The dispatcher compares the proposals and awards the job to the winner; the selection rule, such as fastest finish or lowest cost, is configurable. Open-RMF includes clean, delivery and loop task types, and books charging automatically when a robot does not have enough battery for its queued work.
What Open-RMF does not do
- It does not drive robots. Navigation, localization and safety stay on the robot and in the maker's own stack.
- It does not remove integration work. Each fleet needs an adapter, and each door and lift needs its own connection to the building management system.
- It is only as good as the interface. A traffic-light or read-only fleet limits what the schedule can achieve.
- Maps must agree. The Traffic Editor map and each fleet's own map have to be aligned during commissioning.
- It is still maturing. A 2022 peer-reviewed study called it highly capable but yet to reach full maturity, and OSRA's next-generation roadmap, published in April 2026, sets out staged work without a fixed timeline.
Open-RMF, VDA 5050 and ROS 2 compared
| Route | What it is | Best fit |
|---|---|---|
| Open-RMF | Open-source framework coordinating fleets with each other and with doors and lifts | Service, cleaning, delivery and security robots sharing a building |
| VDA 5050 | Interface specification between one master control and vehicles, over MQTT with JSON | AGVs, AMRs, tuggers and autonomous forklifts in factories and warehouses |
| ROS 2 | The robotics middleware Open-RMF and many machines are built on | Machines whose makers expose their ROS 2 interface |
They can be combined. See VDA 5050 explained for the warehouse side, the MassRobotics interoperability standard for a lighter, information-only option, and robot fleet management across vendors for how one layer above them holds the shared map and rules.
Questions to ask a supplier
- Is there an Open-RMF fleet adapter? Ask whether it is maintained by the maker or by an integrator, and which version of Open-RMF and ROS 2 it targets.
- Which category? Full control, traffic light or read only.
- Doors and lifts. Ask which lift and door controllers the robot has already worked with on a live site.
- Tasks. Ask which task types the adapter accepts and whether it can bid for jobs.
- Who owns the integration? Decide in the contract who builds the map, connects the building systems and tests the mixed fleet.
How HORMĒ uses Open-RMF
HORMĒ is a Behavioral Intelligence platform for autonomous machines, based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Its behavior layer sits above the vendors' own systems and connects machines through VDA 5050, Open-RMF, ROS 2 or a connector written against the manufacturer's interface, so a machine already in the building can join the fleet without being replaced. The layer is licensed per machine per month: Core from $149, Autonomy from $349 and Assured from $690, indicative. See what Behavioral Intelligence is, pricing, and the machines Open-RMF most often applies to: commercial cleaning robots, delivery and service robots and security robots.
Frequently asked questions
What is Open-RMF?
Open-RMF (Open Robotics Middleware Framework) is a free, open-source software system built on ROS 2 that lets robot fleets from different manufacturers share a building. It coordinates their traffic through a shared schedule, hands out tasks by bidding, and connects robots to doors and lifts.
Who maintains Open-RMF?
Open-RMF is managed by a Project Management Committee of the Open Source Robotics Alliance (OSRA). It grew out of a 2018 initiative funded by Singapore's Ministry of Health, and Open Robotics built the core software.
How does Open-RMF stop robots blocking each other?
Each fleet reports its robots' planned routes to a shared traffic schedule. Open-RMF predicts where routes will conflict, the fleets involved propose alternative itineraries, and a judge chooses the set that works best, with urgent tasks given priority.
What is an Open-RMF fleet adapter?
A fleet adapter is the bridge between Open-RMF and a manufacturer's fleet manager or robot interface. Depending on that interface, Open-RMF gets full control of each robot's path, traffic-light control to pause and resume robots, or read-only status.
Can Open-RMF use lifts and doors?
Yes. Door and lift adapters connect Open-RMF to the building's systems so robots can open doors and summon lifts, and operators can watch and control them from the rmf-web dashboard. Each building system still needs its own integration.
What is the difference between Open-RMF and VDA 5050?
Open-RMF is an open-source framework that coordinates several robot fleets with each other and with building infrastructure, mainly for service robots indoors. VDA 5050 is an interface specification between one master control and AGVs, AMRs and forklifts, mainly in factories and warehouses. The two can be used together.
Does HORMĒ support Open-RMF?
Yes. HORMĒ connects machines to its behavior layer through Open-RMF, VDA 5050, ROS 2 or a connector written against the manufacturer's own interface, so robots from different vendors run as one fleet.
Check the current Open-RMF documentation before relying on any detail. Sources: Open-RMF, Programming Multiple Robots with ROS 2: RMF Core, Tasks in RMF, Next Generation Open-RMF Roadmap (April 2026), Frontiers in Robotics and AI, 2022.
Ask about a mixed fleet