Control of Networked Multi-Agent Decision Systems

Tennessee State University, Nashville TN

Investigators

Abstract

Real-world examples of cooperative control systems include:robots and unmanned aircraft in search and rescue operations, autonomous vehicles for military surveillance and attack missions, and an array of satellites to form a distributed large aperture of a space telescope. Depending on the mission, the motion to be coordinated may be an exact formation or so-called flocking which can be seen in the motion of a flock of birds or a school of fish. The proposed research will investigate dynamic behavior of interconnected systems under various realistic situations such as partial orcomplete communication failures between agents. The project will solve three categories of problems: (1)high performance transient behavior, (2)network-induced delay and packet-loss, and (3)the case when the number of autonomous agents is excessively large. The intellectual merit of this project lies in its contribution to the understanding of the problem of controlling an array of connected systems and their interactive behavior. The broader impact of the project lies in the inter-disciplinary nature of networked cooperative control research. Technologies developed in this area will inevitably impact a wide range of engineering disciplines including controls, communications, and computers enhancing the research capability of the awardee institution.