Prerequisites

Update the package index and install required system dependencies:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install libgl1-mesa-dev ninja-build libyaml-cpp-dev libqtermwidget5-0-dev libutf8proc-dev
sudo apt install python3-pip
pip3 install pyyaml requests py7zr tqdm_loggable

Plugin Source Acquisition

Clone the plugin repository from GitHub:

git clone https://github.com/ros-industrial/ros_qtc_plugin.git
cd ros_qtc_plugin

Qt Creator Installation and Build Process

Execute the setup script to download and configure Qt Creator:

python3 setup.py

By default, the Qt SDK is downloaded to /tmp. To preserve the installation, move the SDK to a permanent location:

mkdir -p ~/development/sdk
mv /tmp/qtc-sdk ~/development/sdk/

Configure the build with the updated SDK path:

cmake -B build -GNinja -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
  -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="$HOME/development/sdk/qtc-sdk/Tools/QtCreator:$HOME/development/sdk/qtc-sdk/6.6.0/gcc_64"

Compile the plugin package:

cmake --build build --target package

A successful build produces a ZIP archive containing the plugin in the build directory.

Qt Creator Desktop Integration

Create a desktop entry for Qt Creator:

cat > qtcreator.desktop << 'EOF'
[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=Qt Creator
Comment=Integrated Development Environment
Icon=/home/developer/development/sdk/qtc-sdk/Tools/QtCreator/share/icons/hicolor/512x512/apps/QtProject-qtcreator.png
Exec=/home/developer/development/sdk/qtc-sdk/Tools/QtCreator/bin/qtcreator
Path=/home/developer/development/sdk/qtc-sdk/Tools/QtCreator/bin
Terminal=false
Categories=Development
EOF

Make the file executable and install it system-wide:

chmod +x qtcreator.desktop
sudo cp qtcreator.desktop /usr/share/applications/

Plugin Installation in Qt Creator

Launch Qt Creator and naivgate to Help → About Plugins. Click "Install Plugin" and select the generated ZIP file from the build directory. Restart Qt Creator to complete the installation. After restarting, the New Project wizard will include ROS project templates.