THIS PAPER PRESENTS THE METHODOLOGY FOR FAST, COLLISION-FREE MOTION PLANNING OF A SIX-AXIS INDUSTRIAL ROBOT PERFORMING A WELDING TASK. THE WELDING TASK IS DIVIDED INTO SEVERAL SUB-TASKS AND THE COLLISION-FREE MOTION PLANNED USING THE JOINT SPACE MAP OF THE FIRST THREE JOINTS OF THE MANIPULATOR. THE JOINT SPACE MAP IS DISCRETIZED BY CONSTRUCTING A THREE-DIMENSIONAL GRID AND SEARCHED FOR COLLISION-FREE PATHS ALONG DIFFERENT SEGMENTS OF THE WELDING TASK. THREE TYPES OF HEURISTIC SEARCH PROCEDURES SEARCH FOR A FEASIBLE PATH. AN OPTIMAL PATH WHICH MINIMIZES THE TOTAL DISPLACEMENTS OF THE FIRST THREE JOINTS WAS FOUND.