Using Sensor Morphology for Multirobot Formations

In formation-maintenance (formation control) tasks, robots maintain their relative position with respect to their peers, according to a desired geometric shape. Previous work has examined formation-maintenance algorithms, based on formation control graphs, that ensure the theoretical stability of the formation. However, an exponential number of stable controllers exists. Thus a key question is how to select (construct) a formation controller that optimizes desired properties, such as sensor usage. We present a novel representation of the sensing capabilities of robots in formations, using a monitoring multigraph. We first show that graphtheoretic techniques can then be used to efficiently compute optimal sensing policies that maintain a given formation, while minimizing sensing costs. In particular, separation-bearing (distance-angle) control targets are automatically constructed for each individual robot in the formation, taking into account its specific sensor morphology. Then, we pr...

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2008
• Where: TROB
• Authors: Gal A. Kaminka, Ruti Schechter-Glick, Vladimir Sadov
• Keywords: Formation Control, Formation Controller, Robots, TROB 2008