Density-Driven Formation Control of a Multi-Agent System with an Application to Search-and-Rescue Missions

Abstract

In this paper, a novel Density-Driven Formation Control (D<sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup>FC) framework is presented for the formation control of swarm robots, driven by a given reference density map. This work is specifically designed for search and rescue (SAR) missions. Leveraging principles from optimal transport theory and decentralized control, our approach enables a swarm of agents to distribute themselves according to a given density distribution, focusing on high-priority areas without the need for centralized coordination. By integrating the virtual leader paradigm and formation, the swarm adapts efficiently to cover areas of interest. To improve the area coverage efficiency for achieving high detection rate of victims on a disaster site, a new information update model is proposed. Simulation results demonstrate that swarms utilizing the proposed D<sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup>FC method significantly outperform uncoordinated swarms in victim detection across various scenarios. The proposed approach enhances the effectiveness of SAR operations and can be extended to other applications requiring coordinated multi-agent systems.