An automatic path planing system for autonomous robotic vehicles

We present a reliable approach towards automatic path planing of autonomous vehicles permitting the integration of trajectory optimisation and obstacle avoidance techniques. The hierarchical structure with increasing level of accuracy allows not only to avoid local minima, but is also reliable in the sense that the best computable path will always be available. Therefore, this methodology is implementable as an autonomous tool, intended for use in both off-line mission planning and online replanning. Its application is proposed for land vehicles (ALV's), but may be extended for underwater vehicles (AUV's).<>