Trajectory Planning with Collision Avoidance for Redundant Robots Using Jacobian and Artificial Potential Field-based Real-time Inverse Kinematics

This study proposes an algorithm for combining the Jacobian-based numerical approach with a modified potential field to solve real-time inverse kinematics and path planning problems for redundant robots in unknown environments. With an increase in the degree of freedom (DOF) of the manipulator, however, the problems in realtime inverse kinematics become more difficult to solve. Although the analytical and geometrical inverse kinematics approach can obtain the exact solution, it is considerably difficult to solve as the DOF increases, and it necessitates recalculations whenever the robot arm DOF or Denavit-Hartenberg (D-H) parameters change. In contrast, the numerical method, particularly the Jacobian-based numerical method, can easily solve inverse kinematics irrespective of the aforementioned changes including those in the robot shape. The latter method, however, is not employed in path planning for collision avoidance, and it presents real-time calculation problems. This study accordingly proposes the Jacobian-based numerical approach with a modified potential field method that can realize real-time calculations of inverse kinematics and path planning with collision avoidance irrespective of whether the case is redundant or non-redundant. To achieve this goal, the use of a judgment matrix is proposed for obstacle condition identification based on the obstacle boundary definition; an approach for avoiding the local minimum is also proposed. After the obstacle avoidance path is generated, a trajectory plan that follows the path and avoids the obstacle is designed. Finally, the proposed method is evaluated by implementing a motion planning simulation of a 7-DOF manipulator, and an experiment is performed on a 7-DOF real robot.