Robust homogenization and consensus of nonlinear multi-agent systems

In this paper, we consider consensus of a group of heterogeneous agents with nonlinear dynamics in the presence of system uncertainties. It requires that all agent states reach an agreement which is governed by specified reference dynamics. However, the reference dynamics do not generate a specific reference trajectory for feedback regulation for any agent. For this purpose, the proposed controller integrates two fundamental actions, homogenization and consensus, concurrently. On one hand, it asymptotically regulates each individual (heterogeneous, nonlinear, and uncertain) agent dynamics to the common reference dynamics using a robust homogenization technique; on the other hand, it aligns agent trajectories, asymptotically governed by the common reference dynamics, to consensus through network cooperation. The effectiveness of the controller is verified in the rigorous proof and numerical simulation.