Syllabus and Outline
Tucker Hermans
Fall 2015
CS 6370 / ME EN 6225 Motion Planning
University of Utah
• Course Overview
Motion planning stands as a central pillar in robotics. Planning enables robots and autonomous agents to move themselves and other parts of the world to a desired goal by choosing a sequence of appropriate actions. This course will cover the theoretical and algorithmic
underpinnings of motion planning in robotics. Applications will be examined across robotics
ranging from obstacle avoidance in autonomous cars to rearrangement of furniture by humanoid robots.
Like robotics in general, motion planning draws on a number of different fields in developing
its tools. Approaches to motion planning have grown out of artificial intelligence, optimal
control, and operations research. As such, elementary knowledge of linear algebra, probability, and graph algorithms are expected of the students. Additionally programming skills are
paramount to success in the course as all assignments and projects require implementation
and extensions of algorithms covered in class. Finally, all assignments will require thoughtful and thorough writing and analysis by the students.
• Course Outline
This outline is tentative and subject to change
1. Introduction
2. Graph-Based Search
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
Breadth First and Depth First Search
Iterative Deepening
A∗ Search and Dijkstra’s Algorithm
D∗ Lite
3. Configuration Space and Visibility
4. Sampling-Based Planning
(a) Probabilistic Roadmaps (PRMs)
(b) Rapidly-Exploring Random Trees (RRT)
5. Local Methods and Trajectory Optimization
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
Bug Algorithms
Potential Fields
CHOMP
SQP and TrajOpt
6. Uncertainty and Exploration
7. Applications
8. Perception and System Integration
• Course Website We will be using Canvas for hosting all course materials.
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• Office Hours
I will hold office hours Mondays 3:00PM–5:00PM and Thursdays 11:00AM–12:00PM or by
appointment. All communication should be done via the Canvas website. My office is in
MEB room TBA.
• Student Assessment
The course will have three project based assignments. The last of the projects will be an
open-ended group project. Students will form groups and propose projects applying and
extending the concepts learned in the course to a novel piece of research. Details will be
given later in the course.
In addition to a final exam, there will be a short midterm exam, as well as frequent ungraded quizzes in class. Grades will be broken down as:
– Projects 1 & 2 - 15% each
– Final Project - 30%
– Midterm Exam - 20%
– Final Exam - 20%
Final grades will be curved dependent on the overall distribution of student performance.
All assignments are to be submitted via Canvas. Work submitted late without prior approval will receive a 50% penalty on the grade. Work that is not submitted according to
the formatting rules prescribed by the assignment will also be considered late.
• Academic Misconduct
The SoC policy states: ”As defined in the University Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities, academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to, cheating, misrepresenting one’s
work, inappropriately collaborating, plagiarism, and fabrication or falsification of information. It also includes facilitating academic misconduct by intentionally helping or attempting to help another student to commit an act of academic misconduct. A primary example
of academic misconduct would be submitting as one’s own, work that is copied from an outside source.”
School of Computing Cheating Policy:
http://www.cs.utah.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/cheating_policy.pdf
School of Computing Misconduct Acknowledgment Form:
http://www.cs.utah.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/SoC_ack_form.pdf
• University’s Accommodation Policies
The University of Utah seeks to provide equal access to its programs, services and activities
for people with disabilities. If you will need accommodations in the class, reasonable prior
notice needs to be given to the Center for Disability Services, 162 Olpin Union Building,
801-581-5020. CDS will work with you and the instructor to make arrangements for accommodations.
All written information in this course can be made available in alternative format with prior
notification to the Center for Disability Services.
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