computer science

OMPL

OMPL is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand OMPL rather than just read about it. In short: OMPL (Open Motion Planning Library) is a software package for computing motion plans using sampling-based algorithms. The content of the library is limited to motion planning algorithms, which means there is no environment specification, no collision detection or visualization.

Key takeaways

OMPL belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect OMPL to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of OMPL from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

OMPL (Open Motion Planning Library) is a software package for computing motion plans using sampling-based algorithms. The content of the library is limited to motion planning algorithms, which means there is no environment specification, no collision detection or visualization. This is intentional as the library is designed to be easily integrated into systems that already provide the additional needed components. For example, OMPL is integrated with ROS and MoveIt!. In 2012 OMPL won the Grand Prize at the Open Source Software World Challenge.

Implementation OMPL is written in C++ but also offers Python bindings. The library includes implementations for a large number of planning algorithms, all of these being implemented on top of the same base functionality. The base functionality OMPL provides for planners is thread safe. Adding new motion planning algorithms to OMPL is easy, thus facilitating comparisons between existing algorithms and evaluations of new ideas.

Target audience

Teaching One of the design goals for OMPL is clarity of concepts used. This equates to having C++ classes that correspond to concepts found in the literature. Such a design facilitates using OMPL for education. Furthermore, the authors provide free course materials and assignments for use in conjunction with OMPL.

Industrial use The first use for OMPL was actually at Willow Garage, where the library was started, to do motion planning for the PR2 arms. As such, the library was hardened to run reliably and efficiently. Afterwards OMPL started to be used (via ROS and MoveIt!) for hundreds of different types of robots

Research OMPL includes tools for benchmarking, providing a common platform for easily developing and testing new algorithms.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with OMPL

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what OMPL claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to OMPL before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about OMPL ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of OMPL

In research: OMPL appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses OMPL in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: OMPL is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Computer libraries, Cross-platform free software, Free software for Linux, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for OMPL outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study OMPL in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what OMPL means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain OMPL out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is OMPL in simple terms?

Why does OMPL matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study OMPL?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on OMPL.