On‐line path planning strategy integrated with collision and dead‐lock avoidance schemes for wheeled mobile robot in indoor environments

Purpose – This paper aims to present a hybrid path planning algorithm which is designed for use of autonomous vehicles in indoor environments. The approach mainly contributes the ability of generating a safe and smooth collision avoidance path for attaining a desired position in an unknown and obstructed environment. Design/methodology/approach – The hybrid planner is based on potential field method and Voronoi diagram approach, and it is represented with the ability of concurrent map building and autonomous navigation. Findings – The possibility of controlling the look‐ahead distance allows the mobile robot to smartly control the velocity for creating a smooth trajectory autonomously. The dead‐lock problem is solved by defining necessary sub‐goals between targets on the constructed map. Originality/value – The system controller (look‐ahead control) with the potential field method allows the robot to generate a smooth and safe path for an expected position. Only essential exploration of unknown environment is performed since the approach constrains the mobile robot to explore a safe and sub‐optimal route towards a destination.