Effective Trajectory Tracking with Convex-Optimization Based Obstacle-Avoidance Method for Continuum Robot

Abstract

A cable-driven continuum robot with high redundancy is capable of performing the tip trajectory tracking task while simultaneously satisfying additional safety constraints, such as joint limits or external obstacles in the environment. To address these challenges, efficient motion planning methods are required. This paper proposes a quadratic programming based method in conjunction with convex polytopes based distance computation. Our methodology integrates safety constraints based on the robots' posture states, thus enabling barriers evasion in dynamic situations. Simulation outcomes demonstrate effective trajectory tracking in the presence of various objects and provide a comprehensive performance evaluation based on the generated robot state. Finally, real-word experiment was conducted on a prototype of a three-segment cable-driven continuum manipulator, which confirmed the efficacy of the proposed obstacle avoidance approach. The approach is versatile and can be adapted to similar multiple segments cable-driven continuum robotic systems by designing the robot parameters, enabling the success of tip trajectory tracking tasks under complex obstacle conditions.