Online Path Planning of Mobile Robots Based on African Vultures Optimization Algorithm in Unknown Environments

Abstract

Autonomous mobile robots developed using metaheuristic algorithms are increasingly becoming a hot topic in control and computer sciences. Specifically, finding the shortest root to the goal and avoiding hurdles are current subjects of autonomous mobile robots. The main drawbacks of classic methods are the incapacity to move the robot in a dynamic and unknown environment, deadlock in a local minimum and complicated environments, and incapacity to foretell the speed vector of obstacles and non-optimality of the route. This article exhibits a recent path planning approach that utilizes the African Vultures Optimization (AVOA) for navigation of the mobile robot in static and dynamic unknown environments with a dynamic target. The proposed online optimization approach is used in three different environments including an environment with unknown static obstacles, an environment with unknown dynamic obstacles, and an environment with a dynamic target. The proposed approach can solve a local minima problem in the environment with static obstacles. The online optimization method is performed using two phases which are the sensors’ reading phase and the path calculation phase and the results are given based on computer simulation in different unknown environments. A comparative study was conducted between the suggested algorithm and two other algorithms and the results showed that the AVOA algorithm was better in avoiding obstacles successfully including the local minima situation. Finally, the average enhancement rates in the path length compared with the Adaptive Particle Swarm Optimization (APSO) and the Hybrid Fuzzy-Wind Driven Optimization (WDO) are 2.21% and 1.02207%, respectively.