USV Trajectory Planning for Time Varying Motion Goals in an Environment With Obstacles
Petr Švec, Atul Thakur, Brual C. Shah, Satyandra K. Gupta · 2012
Safe and efficient following of a time varying motion goal by an autonomous unmanned surface vehicle (USV) in a sea environment with obstacles is a challenge. The vehicle’s tracking capability is inherently influenced by its dynamics, the motion characteristics of the motion goal, as well as by the configuration of obstacles in the marine environment. We have developed an approach that utilizes a lattice-based trajectory planning to generate a dynamically feasible, resolution optimal, collision-free trajectory to allow the vehicle to reliably reach the motion goal. We utilized a trajectory following controller to achieve high tracking efficiency while still preserving motion safety. The entire approach is based on the developed USV system architecture that encapsulates the necessary trajectory planning components. We demonstrated the effectiveness of the developed planner in a simulated environment with static obstacles. In addition, we have developed a physical evaluation setup.