Shape-shifting robot path planning method based on reconfiguration performance

A shape-shifting robot “AMOEBA-I” has diverse configurations, and the accessibility of the robot can be reinforced in the narrow space by changing the configurations. In this paper, a path planning method is presented corresponding to the unique reconfiguration ability of this robot. This method can automatically adjust the relation between the rapid movement and the secure mobile position of the robot based on the distribution of obstacles that are around the robot, and this method can also automatically select an appropriate configuration to adapt the robot to the environmental variation according to the information of the current conditions. The problem of deadlock is avoided by using the Boundary Following. Further, a Reconfiguration Memory is provided to optimize the trace of the Boundary Following, and it can help the robot to search a new path. Simulation results validated the advantage of the proposed method which can get the best out of the unique accessibility of the shape-shifting robot and reduced effectively the length of the robot traveling path.