Observer-Based Feedback Control for Stabilization of Collective Motion

Multivehicle control for collective motion has applications in environmental sampling in the atmosphere and oceans. Previous works in this field have produced theoretically justified decentralized algorithms for stabilization of motion primitives such as parallel and circular motion of self-propelled vehicles using measurements of relative position and relative velocity. This paper describes an observer-based distributed control algorithm for the stabilization of parallel and circular motion using measurements of the relative position only. The algorithm enables each vehicle to utilize information about vehicle dynamics and turning rates to estimate the relative velocity of other vehicles. Theoretical justification is provided for the closed-loop performance, and numerical simulations illustrate the extension of the algorithm to a 3-D model of a miniature submarine. The algorithm has also been implemented on a laboratory-scale multivehicle underwater testbed. We describe the results of experimental validation using motion-capture-based feedback control in the University of Maryland´s Neutral Buoyancy Research Facility.