Exploration of Finite 2D Square Grid by a Metamorphic Robotic System
This addresses the challenge of efficient robotic exploration in grid environments, with incremental improvements in module requirements based on directional agreement.
The paper tackled the problem of exploring a finite 2D square grid using a metamorphic robotic system with anonymous oblivious modules, showing that with a global compass, three modules are necessary and sufficient for exploration from any initial configuration, and without it, five modules are necessary and sufficient for restricted initial configurations.
We consider exploration of finite 2D square grid by a metamorphic robotic system consisting of anonymous oblivious modules. The number of possible shapes of a metamorphic robotic system grows as the number of modules increases. The shape of the system serves as its memory and shows its functionality. We consider the effect of global compass on the minimum number of modules necessary to explore a finite 2D square grid. We show that if the modules agree on the directions (north, south, east, and west), three modules are necessary and sufficient for exploration from an arbitrary initial configuration, otherwise five modules are necessary and sufficient for restricted initial configurations.