On Fast Computation of Minimum Distance Between Convex Polyhedrons: Application to Collision Detection in a Robotic Simulation System

Abstract

Abstract In this paper, we suggest an algorithm which detects collisions based on the computation of the minimum distance between two convex polyhedrons. This algorithm can be used for simulations of robotic structure movement. It offers two advantages: first, it detects the collisions between two convex polyhedral shapes and secondly, if there is no collision, it calculates the distance between the solids. This information is of greatest importance for more advanced path planning systems which must not only detect collisions but also avoid them.