Formation control of networked multi-agent systems [Brief Paper]

In this study, a systematic framework is developed for the consensus control problem, particularly for formation control of networked dynamic agents. In view of the complexity of the framework with switching coupling topology and non-linearity, a new decentralised formation strategy based on artificial potential functions (APF) is proposed. Owing to the existence of local minima in the APF, the formation controller is designed to introduce some special functions to settle that limitation. A new concept of relative-position-based formation stability is defined, and a Lyapunov approach is used along with an extended linear matrix inequalities (LMI) algorithm to analyse the condition for formation stability. Finally, an example with simulations is provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the designed formation controller.