An Efficient Algorithm for Computing High-Quality Paths amid Polygonal Obstacles

Abstract

We study a path-planning problem amid a set O of obstacles in R 2 , in which we wish to compute a short path between two points while also maintaining a high clearance from O; the clearance of a point is its distance from a nearest obstacle in O. Specifically, the problem asks for a path minimizing the reciprocal of the clearance integrated over the length of the path. We present the first polynomial-time approximation scheme for this problem. Let n be the total number of obstacle vertices and let ε ∈ (0, 1]. Our algorithm computes in time O ( n 2 /ε 2 log n /ε) a path of total cost at most (1 + ε) times the cost of the optimal path.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Aug 21, 2018
Source ID
10.1145/3230650

Entities

People

  • Kyle Fox
  • Oren Salzman
  • Pankaj Agarwal

Organizations

  • Carnegie Mellon University
  • Duke University
  • Israel Science Foundation
  • National Science Foundation
  • Office of Naval Research
  • University of Texas at Dallas

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Computer science

Readers

  • Graph Algorithms and Convex Optimization.
  • Robotics and Automation.
  • Strategic Security Studies