Multi-Vehicle Flocking: Scalability of Cooperative Control Algorithms using Pairwise Potentials

In this paper, we study cooperative control algorithms using pairwise interactions, for the purpose of controlling flocks of unmanned vehicles. An important issue is the role the potential plays in the stability and possible collapse of the group as agent number increases. We model a set of interacting Dubins vehicles with fixed turning angle and speed. We perform simulations for a large number of agents and we show experimental realizations of the model on a testbed with a small number of vehicles. In both cases, critical thresholds exist between coherent, stable, and scalable flocking and dispersed or collapsing motion of the group.