Abstract:

In this paper, a Graphical User Interface (GUI) is designed with the aim of helping with path planning algorithms teaching. It provides the user with the necessary visual information for understanding path planning mechanisms, allowing to change algorithm parameters to observe how the calculated path is modified. It also allows the connection with simulated and real robots, so calculated paths can be tested. This hands-on experience hopes to increase user’s interest in the field and to reinforce theoretical lessons learned.

The presence of mobile robots on our day to day life is rapidly increasing. There are numerous applications for mobile robots such as home assistance, search and rescue missions or load transportation. Most of them require a certain level of autonomy to be carried out, meaning that the robot should be able to accomplish tasks without receiving human commands in a low level. Such tasks imply robot’s movement from one place to another. Hence, there is a need of calculating a safe path from the initial position to the target. Path planning is in charge of doing so. Its great importance turns path planning into one of the most covered research topics nowadays. Thus the presence of path planning in robotics-related studies is primordial. Students should gain a basic path planning knowledge for a further treatment of mobile robot navigation problems. Classical path planning courses might be highly focused on algorithm formulations, without offering the students a more practical and visual approach. The proposed GUI is aimed to cover the absence of practical learning approaches.

The GUI has been designed with MATLAB’s App Designer, which enables an easy and clear representation of path planning algorithms. With the help of MATLAB’s ROS Toolbox, an interface between MATLAB code and Robot Operating System (ROS) framework is implemented, allowing to send the calculated path to simulated or real robots using ROS. More specifically, results presented in this paper are gathered from simulated scenarios in Gazebo and real ones using a Turtlebot 2 robot, showing that the GUI is an effective way of representing path planning algorithms and implementing them in robots.

Keywords:

Robotics Teaching, Path Planning, Graphical User Interface.