Collision Avoidance for Continuum Robot Using FABRIK Algorithm

Continuum robots are manipulators able to bend at any point along their structure. This feature allows continuum robots to work in areas with complex geometry. In this regard, they are used as instruments and endoscopes in industry and medicine. Inverse kinematics for continuum robots is using for control and path planning. Recently, Forward And Backward Reaching Inverse Kinematics (FABRIK) algorithm has been used for solving inverse kinematics issue for continuum robots. For this, arcs of continuum robot are simplified to virtual links. But virtual links can not be used to define the distance between continuum robot body and obstacle without restoring whole robot section. In this paper, we propose a method for obstacle avoidance for multi-section continuum robot using FABRIK algorithm. The simulation results for the planar case show that the proposed method is able to avoid unwanted collisions.