# What you need

## The gripper

The SSG-48 is sold assembled, calibrated and configured in the [Source Robotics shop](https://source-robotics.com/products/compliant-gripper).
It ships with the current Spectral firmware and the bootloader installed, its driver in gripper mode and its motor
calibrated; the gripper calibration (finding the end stops) runs after every power-up and is part of normal use.

**Or build it.** The SSG-48 is open source, and that is important to us: the CAD and printable files, the bill of
materials, the assembly manual and video, the firmware and the software are all published.
[The build guide](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/build/) is the order to do it in.

## What is in the box

The gripper, assembled, calibrated and configured, in black or grey. **Not in the box:** the fingers, which you
print from the repository; the cable, sold separately; the 8 mm shaft coupler for a PAROL6, which you ask for
when ordering; a CAN adapter for a PC.

## A cable and a 24 V supply

The gripper is powered and controlled through one M8 4-pin cable: 24 V, GND, CANH, CANL.

| Where the gripper goes | Cable |
|---|---|
| PAROL6 | the [PAROL6 gripper cable](https://source-robotics.com/products/gripper-cable) from the shop |
| PAR6 | the PAR6 gripper cable (the shop; coming soon), wired differently from the PAROL6 one |
| a bench, or your own robot | a cable you make from an M8 4-pin connector and four wires, see [The cable](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/04-installation/cable/) |

![PAROL6 and PAR6 gripper cables are not interchangeable](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/assets/cable_warning.svg){ width="1000" }

!!! danger "The two robot cables differ"
    PAROL6 and PAR6 put the four signals on different pins. A cable for the wrong robot, or a self-made cable with
    a wrong pin, puts 24 V where the CAN bus belongs and destroys the gripper's driver. Check the pinout before
    you plug in a cable for the first time.

On the bench, a 24 V supply with a current limit (2 A is plenty for one gripper) is the safest source.

## A CAN interface

The gripper talks CAN. On a robot, the robot's control board provides the bus. On a PC, the
[CANvas USB-to-CAN adapter](https://source-robotics.com/products/canvas-usb-to-can-adapter) does; it shows up as a
serial port and works with Motor GUI, the Python library and the ROS 2 drivers. Any adapter that `python-can` supports works
with the library.

## Software

- **Motor GUI**, [motorgui.com](https://motorgui.com/), in the browser over the CANvas adapter: the recommended
  tool to test and set up a gripper, with a gripper panel for the SSG-48 and the MSG; see
  [Motor GUI](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/05-setup/motor-gui/). The earlier [SSG-gripper-GUI](https://github.com/Source-Robotics/SSG-gripper-GUI),
  a Python program, is legacy.
- **Python**: `pip install Spectral-BLDC`, the library the ROS 2 drivers are built on; see
  [With Python](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/06-operation/python/).
- **ROS 2**: the [ssg48_adaptive_electric_gripper_ros2](https://github.com/Lass6230/ssg48_adaptive_electric_gripper_ros2)
  package, or the MSG gripper's driver, which speaks the same protocol; see [With ROS 2](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/06-operation/ros2/).
- **PAROL6 and PAR6**: the robots' own software drives the gripper; see [On PAROL6 and PAR6](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/06-operation/robots/).
- **For a self-built gripper**: a 3.3 V USB-to-serial adapter ([serial adapter](https://source-robotics.com/products/usb-to-serial-adapter))
  for the driver's UART port, to configure the driver with Motor GUI or a terminal; see
  [Driver configuration](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/build/first-run/). For a self-build we recommend the
  [Spectral Micro BLDC starter kit](https://source-robotics.com/products/spectral-micro-bldc-starter-kit): it has this adapter and the rest of what the driver's setup needs
  ([Kits and the shop](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/build/#kits-and-the-shop)).

## Optional

- **Fingers** for your objects: the fin-ray and pinch fingers in the repository, or your own on the jaw plate
  template; see [Jaws](https://docs.source-robotics.com/SSG48-gripper-docs/2/04-installation/jaws/).