Network-based consensus of nonlinear multi-agent systems with Markovian switching topologies

This paper addresses network-based consensus problem of nonlinear multi-agent systems under Markovian switching topologies. Considering the effect of network-induced delay and Markovian switching topologies, a new network-based switching consensus control protocol is proposed, with which each agent can be remotely operated through a communication network. Under this protocol, the consensus problem is equivalently converted to the stability of a class of Markovian jump systems with a time-varying delay. Then, by employing Lyapunov-Krosovskii functional method and the weak infinitesimal operation, a new delay-dependent stability condition is derived to ensure that the consensus can be globally exponentially achieved in mean-square sense. Based on this condition, the switching consensus controller gains are obtained by solving a set of linear matrix inequalities. Finally, a numerical example is given to illustrate the effectiveness of the design method.