A novel concept of lane-keeping algorithms for mobile robots

Abstract

In this work, a new concept of lane-keeping motion planning algorithms for mobile robots is introduced. It is called Velocity Lane-keeping (VLK) method because it is an extension of the well-known Velocity Obstacles (VO) method. The goal of the novel algorithm is to select a velocity vector, such that the robot does not leave the lane if collision-free motion is available. Another goal is that the robot has to reach the desired position. The algorithm calculates the velocity and the path profile only for the robot, the obstacles’ velocities are supposed to be known (or measurable) at every sampling time. The robot has to execute the motion to the goal position even if there are not only static but also moving obstacles in the workspace. The VLK method can be extended with a cost function resulting an effective target reaching method for the mobile robot in the lane. The novel algorithm was tested in simulations.