Drawedit: An animation system for Path planning simulations.

Path-planning algorithms are currently an active research area. Such algorithms find paths, from an initial object position and orientation to a final position and orientation, along which an object can move without colliding with a specified set of obstacles. This memo describes a computer graphics simulation system for specifying such path planning problems interactively. The planning algorithm's results can be displayed as a dynamic animation to provide immediate feedback to the algorithm designer. During the display, collision detection is performed automatically and collisions are indicated by highlighting colliding objects and by audible feedback. The current program, which models objects as polygons, circles and arcs in the plane, has been applied to investigations of tethered robots and autonomous vehicles.