A hybrid approach to solve the dynamic patrol routing problem for group of underwater robots

Abstract

We suggest an approach to solve the dynamic patrolling problem as the variation of periodic vehicle routing problem with time windows. In order to do this, firstly a set of waypoints (targets) should be located in space in such way that their spherical neighborhoods, which corresponds to the size of the robots vision/detections fields, would form a complete coverage of the protected perimeter. Regular inspections of each waypoint by robots of the group not less than once during specified period would guarantee the effective perimeter patrolling. Thus, the routing problem is to a feasible group route ensuring well-timed inspections for all waypoints of the mission. To solve the described problem we propose a hybrid approach, based on the combined use of genetic algorithms and methods and heuristics of local search. The proposed approach allows robots to effectively generate required solutions under given constraints and quickly readjust it in unforeseen situations due to the dynamic nature of the problem. A software modeling system implementing all the necessary computational procedures has been developed; the results of computations are given.