Dynamic Obstacle Avoidance in Polar Coordinates for Mobile Robot Based on Laser Radar

In order to improve the safety and the reliability of the mobile robot in unknown dynamic environment, a new method for the path planning and the obstacle avoidance is provided, which is based on the distance information that laser radar offers to the mobile robot. The method set up the real-time variation polar coordinates, whose centre was the place that the laser radar was installed in. In the polar coordinates, the robot-to-obstacle relative distance and the relative speed were measured and worked out, the magnitude and the direction of the speed of the mobile robot were adjusted to avoid obstacles. It did not need any outside auxiliary positioning system. The simulation was carried through in several different environments, and the simulation results show that this method which is based on the distance information that the laser radar provides, can make the mobile robot avoid obstacle reliably in unknown dynamic environment.