Uses Pygame to create an interactive visualization for the A* search algorithm
Path Finder allows users to interactively create a maze, set the start and end points, and visualize the process of finding the shortest path using algorithms like A* and breadth-first search. Users can drag and draw walls, watch as the algorithm explores the maze, and see the shortest path highlighted, Incase no path is found - the application shows "No Solution".
- Run the
main.pyfile using Python. - Click to set the start and end points on the grid.
- Drag the mouse to create walls or obstacles.
- Press Enter to start the pathfinding algorithm.
- Watch as the algorithm explores the maze and finds the shortest path.
- Press Enter again to reset the grid and start a new pathfinding process.
The A* (A-star) algorithm is a popular pathfinding algorithm that combines the benefits of Dijkstra's algorithm (uniform cost search) and greedy best-first search. It uses heuristics to estimate the cost from the current node to the goal and makes informed decisions about which nodes to explore.
- A* considers the cost to reach a node from the start (g-score) and the estimated cost to reach the goal from that node (f-score).
- The f-score of a node is the sum of its g-score and h-score.
- A* explores the nodes with the lowest f-score first, prioritizing the most promising paths.
- By using a heuristic function (such as Manhattan distance), A* is able to find the shortest path efficiently.
This project is licensed under the MIT License.