Finding energy-efficient paths on uneven terrains

Mobile robots are increasingly getting popular in outdoor applications. Long period of continuous operations are common in such applications. Therefore, robot motions need to be optimized to minimize their energy consumption. Shortest paths do not always guarantee minimum energy consumptions of mobile robots. This paper proposes a novel algorithm to generate energy-efficient paths on uneven terrains using an established energycost model for mobile robots. Terrains are represented using grid based elevation maps. Similar to A∗ algorithm, the energy-cost of traversing through a particular gird depends on a heuristic energy-cost estimation from the current location to the goal. The proposed heuristic energy-cost function makes it possible to generate zigzag-like path patterns on steep hills under the power limitations of the robot. Therefore, the proposed method can find physically feasible energy-efficient paths on any given terrain, provided that such paths exist. Simulation results presented in this paper demonstrate the performance of the proposed algorithm on uneven terrains maps.