Delta Epsilon Alpha Star: A PAC-Admissible Search Algorithm

In this paper, we introduce δǫα∗ – a minimal coverage, real-time robotic search algorithm that yields a moderately aggressive search path with minimal backtracking. Search performance is bounded by a placing a combinatorial bound, ǫ and δ, on the maximum deviation from the theoretical shortest path and the probability at which further deviations can occur. Additionally, we formally define the notion of PAC-admissibility – a relaxed admissibility criteria for algorithms, and show that PAC-admissible algorithms are better suited to robotic search situations than ǫ-admissible or strict algorithms.