Assembly path planning for stable robotic construction

Abstract

We propose an algorithmic approach for assembly path planning that takes stability of the structure during construction into account. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is used to evaluate the intermediate stages of the assembly for stability. The algorithm presented here assembles a structure by greedily taking the most stable option at each step in the assembly process, and has complexity O(n!), albeit most structures are effectively assembled with complexity O(n <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> ). We demonstrate the workings of the proposed hybrid discrete/FEA search algorithm in simulation on a series of truss structures. In particular, we show that the algorithm is able to identify correct orderings that led to stable assembly, and discuss structures for which a greedy approach with scaffolding might be advantageous over a complete approach.