BRIGE: Developing a model of collective behavior in bat swarms using acoustic communication and applications in robotic systems

Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State University, Blacksburg VA

Investigators

Abstract

Technical Description: This Broadening Participation Research Initiation Grant in Engineering (BRIGE) provides funding to study coordination in multi-agent systems with active sensing inspired by echolocation. This work will enable the design of engineering systems in which mobile sensing units synthesize pairwise and broadcast communication towards an untapped group-level decision-making scheme. Bats, which use echolocation to swarm, will be taken as a model system based on their unique sensing capabilities. This modeling framework will include constructive and destructive outcomes of active sensing, which is an untapped problem in the literature. Research questions will center on the notion of a multi-agent system model that uses active sensing to increase coordination, gains energetic advantages from group behavior, and avoids destructive interference between peers. The effect of such communication strategies on information sharing will be explored from the perspective of agent-based modeling and network-based algorithms for coordination over dynamic interaction topologies. The model will be validated using experimental observations on wild bat swarms and results will be translated to experiments on sensorized mobile robots designed to mimic and encode active acoustic communication underlying bat swarms. Broader Significance and Importance: Systems comprising many units- such as autonomous cars driving in a caravan, computers communicating over a network, or underwater gliders monitoring ocean currents in a team- are pervasive in engineering. As a result, engineers across disciplines are challenged to discover how to coordinate units in these systems to achieve the team?s larger goal. Such large-scale coordination tasks are well executed in nature by animal groups exhibiting collective behavior, such as fish schools and bird flocks. This BRIGE project aims to model coordination in a system of units equipped with a novel type of communication, inspired by echolocation in bats, where interaction with the environment is achieved using active sensing, rather than passive sensing such as vision. We will use the outcomes of this model to inform algorithms for teams of specialized robots and we will compare our results to wild bat swarms. The results of this BRIGE project will potentially lead to new ways to engineer systems with many units by capturing salient aspects of these unique animal groups. Broadening Participation of Underrepresented Groups in Engineering: Research efforts will be translated to broadening participation activities introducing K-12 students to the ubiquitous concept of coordination in engineered systems. The PI will create a girls? robotics team, mentored by female undergraduate students, to participate in annual LEGO robotics competitions. Participants will be assessed to determine if the activity correlates with changes in academic STEM performance. A local nature center will also be a forum to design and deliver engineering activities for the public on bat-inspired robotics, which will capitalize on the project?s research at the interface of engineering and biology to engage young participants in biologically-inspired design. The project will broaden the participation of underrepresented groups in engineering through both the robotics activity, which is aimed at girls, and through the program at the nature center, which seeks to engage children with interests in nature and conservation. This research has been funded through the Broadening Participation Research Initiation Grants in Engineering solicitation, which is part of the Broadening Participation in Engineering Program of the Engineering Education and Centers Division.