EquiDistance diagram-a new roadmap method for path planning

This paper introduces a novel heuristic roadmap method for path planning, one that is inspired by the Voronoi diagram concept, but easily applicable to general configuration spaces. The roadmap is formed by connecting the local maxima of a clearance function which is defined using distance functions. Reaching the roadmap from any free configuration is achieved by applying the continuous active-set optimization algorithm to the maximization of the clearance function. Preliminary experiments with the new roadmap algorithm point to its potential utility in solving practical path planning problems