Information Transfer in a Flocking Robot Swarm

Abstract

In this dissertation, we propose and study methods for information transfer within a swarm of mobile robots that coordinately move, or flock, in a common direction. We define information transfer as the process whereby robots share directional informa-tion in order to coordinate their heading direction. We identify two paradigms of information transfer: explicit information transfer and implicit information transfer. In explicit information transfer, directional information is transferred via com-munication. Explicit information transfer requires mobile robots equipped with a a communication device. We propose novel communication strategies for explicit information transfer, and we perform flocking experiments in different situations: with one or two desired directions of motion that can be static or change over time.