2,112 research outputs found
On the Power of Manifold Samples in Exploring Configuration Spaces and the Dimensionality of Narrow Passages
We extend our study of Motion Planning via Manifold Samples (MMS), a general
algorithmic framework that combines geometric methods for the exact and
complete analysis of low-dimensional configuration spaces with sampling-based
approaches that are appropriate for higher dimensions. The framework explores
the configuration space by taking samples that are entire low-dimensional
manifolds of the configuration space capturing its connectivity much better
than isolated point samples. The contributions of this paper are as follows:
(i) We present a recursive application of MMS in a six-dimensional
configuration space, enabling the coordination of two polygonal robots
translating and rotating amidst polygonal obstacles. In the adduced experiments
for the more demanding test cases MMS clearly outperforms PRM, with over
20-fold speedup in a coordination-tight setting. (ii) A probabilistic
completeness proof for the most prevalent case, namely MMS with samples that
are affine subspaces. (iii) A closer examination of the test cases reveals that
MMS has, in comparison to standard sampling-based algorithms, a significant
advantage in scenarios containing high-dimensional narrow passages. This
provokes a novel characterization of narrow passages which attempts to capture
their dimensionality, an attribute that had been (to a large extent) unattended
in previous definitions.Comment: 20 page
Motion Planning of Legged Robots
We study the problem of computing the free space F of a simple legged robot
called the spider robot. The body of this robot is a single point and the legs
are attached to the body. The robot is subject to two constraints: each leg has
a maximal extension R (accessibility constraint) and the body of the robot must
lie above the convex hull of its feet (stability constraint). Moreover, the
robot can only put its feet on some regions, called the foothold regions. The
free space F is the set of positions of the body of the robot such that there
exists a set of accessible footholds for which the robot is stable. We present
an efficient algorithm that computes F in O(n2 log n) time using O(n2 alpha(n))
space for n discrete point footholds where alpha(n) is an extremely slowly
growing function (alpha(n) <= 3 for any practical value of n). We also present
an algorithm for computing F when the foothold regions are pairwise disjoint
polygons with n edges in total. This algorithm computes F in O(n2 alpha8(n) log
n) time using O(n2 alpha8(n)) space (alpha8(n) is also an extremely slowly
growing function). These results are close to optimal since Omega(n2) is a
lower bound for the size of F.Comment: 29 pages, 22 figures, prelininar results presented at WAFR94 and IEEE
Robotics & Automation 9
BSP-fields: An Exact Representation of Polygonal Objects by Differentiable Scalar Fields Based on Binary Space Partitioning
The problem considered in this work is to find a dimension independent algorithm for the generation of signed scalar fields exactly representing polygonal objects and satisfying the following requirements: the defining real function takes zero value exactly at the polygonal object boundary; no extra zero-value isosurfaces should be generated; C1 continuity of the function in the entire domain. The proposed algorithms are based on the binary space partitioning (BSP) of the object by the planes passing through the polygonal faces and are independent of the object genus, the number of disjoint components, and holes in the initial polygonal mesh. Several extensions to the basic algorithm are proposed to satisfy the selected optimization criteria. The generated BSP-fields allow for applying techniques of the function-based modeling to already existing legacy objects from CAD and computer animation areas, which is illustrated by several examples
Constructing minimum deflection fixture arrangements using frame invariant norms
This paper describes a fixture planning method that minimizes object deflection under external loads. The method takes into account the natural compliance of the contacting bodies and applies to two-dimensional and three-dimensional quasirigid bodies. The fixturing method is based on a quality measure that characterizes the deflection of a fixtured object in response to unit magnitude wrenches. The object deflection measure is defined in terms of frame-invariant rigid body velocity and wrench norms and is therefore frame invariant. The object deflection measure is applied to the planning of optimal fixture arrangements of polygonal objects. We describe minimum-deflection fixturing algorithms for these objects, and make qualitative observations on the optimal arrangements generated by the algorithms. Concrete examples illustrate the minimum deflection fixturing method. Note to Practitioners-During fixturing, a workpiece needs to not only be stable against external perturbations, but must also stay within a specified tolerance in response to machining or assembly forces. This paper describes a fixture planning approach that minimizes object deflection under applied work loads. The paper describes how to take local material deformation effects into account, using a generic quasirigid contact model. Practical algorithms that compute the optimal fixturing arrangements of polygonal workpieces are described and examples are then presented
External polygon containment problems
AbstractGiven a convex polygonal object P with k vertices and an environment consisting of polygonal obstacles with a total of n corners, we seek a placement for the largest copy of P that does not intersect any of the obstacles, allowing translation, rotation and scaling. We employ the parametric search technique of Megiddo (1983), and the fixed size polygon placement algorithms developed by Leven and Sharir (1987), to obtain an algorithm that runs in time O(k2nλ6(kn)log3(kn)loglog(kn)). We also present several other efficient algorithms for restricted variants of the extremal polygon containment problem, using the same ideas. These variants include: placement of the largest homothetic copies of one or two convex polygons in another convex polygon and placement of the largest similar copy of a triangle in a convex polygon
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