Stable Cooperative Multiagent Spatial Distributions

This paper introduces a mathematical model of the behavior of a group of agents and their interactions in a shared environment. We represent environmental spatial constraints that allow us to model range-limited sensing, motion, and communication capabilities of the agents. We derive general sensing, coordination, and motion conditions on the agents that guarantee that an "ideal free distribution" (IFD) of the group of agents will emerge across the environment. We show the impact of group size on the distribution of agents, and consider the emergent distribution for different classes of environments. Finally, we show how this theory is useful in solving a multivehicle cooperative surveillance problem.