Optimal trajectory generation for redundant planar manipulators

Given the desired end effector poses (position and orientation) at the start and end points in a pick and place operation, motion planning for a redundant manipulator in a structured environment involves the generation of a smooth motion profile which not only satisfies the specified boundary conditions, but is also optimal with respect to some specified criterion. A new approach to this optimal point-to-point motion planning problem for kinematically redundant manipulators is proposed. The approach combines the use of B-spline curves for the generation of smooth trajectories, with the use of genetic algorithms for finding an optimal solution to the motion planning problem. A numerical example is presented to illustrate the effectiveness of this approach.