Data reduction for manipulator path planning

Abstract

Today, in robot applications continuous paths often result from CAD or other planning tools. We present here an approach to the question that has been discussed for a long time, i.e. how to approximate a given path by a second one in such a way that the latter lies in a tube of given radius ε around the first. The approximation should be a (normally cubic) spline with a small number of breakpoints. The strategy is based on algorithms used in “computer aided geometric design” and is applied to examples from industrial and surgical robotics.