Optimal path planning for underactuated AUVs base on dynamic programming

Abstract

In contrast with man-operating underwater vehicles, autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) should find a proper trajectory, should control to follow a trajectory, should avoid static or moving obstacles, and should home safely to their mother ship or launching device by themselves. Due to these kinds of newly introduced problems, there are many challenging works to be solved compared to man-operating underwater vehicle cases. In these works, we focus on homing problems. Most homing devices are designed to have a shape of cone, so homing process could succeed when AUV has specific body attitude in front of the homing devices. This paper addresses the optimal homing path planning for an AUV in two-dimension space based on Dynamic Programming. And to redress shortcomings of Dynamic Programming which is criticized as an impractical path planning method, we introduce two concept, regulated nodes by maximum surge speed and solution index.