Finding a Natural-Looking Path by Using Generalized Visibility Graphs

Abstract

We propose to use the generalized visibility graph (Vgraph) to repre- sent search space for finding a natural-looking path in computer games. The generalized Vgraph is the extension of the visibility graph to the generalized polygonal world which is produced as a result of dilating polygonal obstacles. That is, the generalized visibility graph is constructed on the expanded bounda- ries of obstacles so that the path keeps an amount of clearance from obstacles. We also introduce an algorithm that can efficiently incorporate a start and a goal location to the map represented in a generalized Vgraph for quick path- finding. The A algorithm with Euclidean distance is used for quick path-finding. The proposed approach is compared to other major search space representations analytically and empirically. The results show that the map can be generated effi- ciently by using the generalized Vgraph and the paths found look natural.