In this paper a path planning method for off-line programming of a joint robot is described. The method can automatically choose the easiest and safest route for an industrial robot from one position to another. The method is based on the use of a Self Organised Feature Map (SOFM) neural network. By using the SOFM neural network the method can adapt to
different working environments of the robot. According to test results one can conclude that the SOFM neural network is a useful tool for the path planning problem of a robot.