Finite-time and fixed-time leader-following consensus for multi-agent systems with discontinuous inherent dynamics

This paper is concerned with finite-time and fixed-time consensus of multi-agent systems in a leader-following framework. Different from conventional leader-following tracking approaches where inherent dynamics satisfying the Lipschitz continuous condition is required, a more generalised case is investigated: discontinuous inherent dynamics. By nonsmooth techniques, a nonlinear protocol is first proposed to achieve the finite-time leader-following consensus. Then, based on fixed-time stability strategies, the fixed-time leader-following consensus problem is solved. An upper bound of settling time is obtained by using a new protocol, and such a bound is independent of initial states, thereby providing additional options for designers in practical scenarios where initial conditions are unavailable. Finally, numerical simulations are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical results.     

Finite-time median-related group consensus over directed networks

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we investigate a novel finite-time median-related group consensus problem, where the finial consensus value can be identified as a desired function of the median of initial states instead of the much studied average value. The underlying communication topology is modelled by a weighted dynamical directed network. A distributed control protocol is firstly introduced to ensure that the agents can reach a median-related consensus in finite time in a collaboration network, meaning that all edge-weights of the communication network are non-negative. We then generalise the results to cooperation–competition networks, where the communication network is divided into predetermined collaboration subnetworks allowing possibly negative weights. Effective group control protocols are designed to guarantee the median-related group consensus in finite time. Finally, numerical simulations are presented to illustrate the availability of our theoretical results.     

Step-size sequence design for finite-time average consensus in secure wireless sensor networks

This paper concerns the study of average consensus in wireless sensor networks with aim of providing a way to reach consensus in a finite number of steps. In particular, we investigate the design of consensus protocols when, for security reasons for instance, the underlying graph is constrained to be strongly regular or distance regular. The proposed design method is based on parameters of the intersection array characterizing the underlying graph. With this protocol, at execution time, average consensus is achieved in a number of steps equal to the diameter of the graph, i.e. the smallest possible number of steps to achieve consensus.     

Graph-balancing algorithms for average consensus over directed networks

Consensus strategies find extensive applications in coordination of robot groups and decision-making of agents. Since balanced graph plays an important role in the average consensus problem and many other coordination problems for directed communication networks, this work explores the conditions and algorithms for the digraph balancing problem. Based on the analysis of graph cycles, we prove that a digraph can be balanced if and only if the null space of its incidence matrix contains positive vectors. Then, based on this result and the corresponding analysis, two weight balance algorithms have been proposed, and the conditions for obtaining a unique balanced solution and a set of analytical results on weight balance problems have been introduced. Then, we point out the relationship between the weight balance problem and the features of the corresponding underlying Markov chain. Finally, two numerical examples are presented to verify the proposed algorithms.     

基于事件触发非线性多智能体系统的固定时间一致性

本文研究了在有向拓扑下,带有非线性动力学多智能体系统的固定时间一致性问题.提出了一种新的基于事件触发机制的非线性控制策略,对于每个智能体给出了基于状态信息的事件触发条件,当状态误差满足所给条件时才触发事件,能有效的减小系统的能量耗散和控制器的更新频次.利用Lyapunov稳定性理论和代数图论,证明在该控制策略下,多智能体系统在固定时间能实现领导跟随一致性,且不存在Zeno行为.相较于有限时间一致性策略,采用固定时间一致性策略系统的收敛时间不再依赖于系统的初始状态.最后,仿真实例验证了理论结果的有效性.     

Exponential finite-time couple-group consensus for agents in cooperative-competitive networks via pinning method

This paper investigates the exponential finite-time couple-group consensus problem for multi-agent systems via pinning control method. Considering the hybrid cooperative and competitive interactions among the agents, a new nonlinear distributed control protocol is proposed. Under the pinning control scheme, the criteria for guaranteeing the system with weakly connected communication topology achieve exponential couple-group consensus in finite time are obtained, and the pinning control strategies are presented as well. Furthermore, the results show that the settling time for the system to reach consensus is independent of the initial states of the agents. Finally, the correctness of our results is verified by some simulations.     

Leader-following fixed-time output feedback consensus for second-order multi-agent systems with input saturation

This paper investigates the leader-following fixed-time output feedback consensus problem for second-order multi-agent systems with input saturation. By combing fixed-time control technique and bi-limit homogeneous systems theory, a class of bounded fixed-time consensus protocols are developed for leader-following multi-agent systems. The protocol design is divided into two parts. First, when all the state information of the followers are measurable, a state feedback consensus protocol is designed to achieve fixed-time consensus. Then, when the velocity information is unmeasurable, an observer-based fixed-time consensus protocol is proposed. With the help of Lyapunov stability theorem and the property of a homogeneous function, it is theoretically shown that the states of all followers can track that of the leader in fixed-time in the presence of input saturation. Finally, numerical simulation is carried out to illustrate the effectiveness of theoretical results.     

On average consensus in directed networks of agents with switching topology and time delay

In this article, the average consensus problem in directed networks of agents with both switching topology and coupling delay is investigated. First, based on a specific orthogonal transformation of the Laplacian matrix, an important proposition for verifying the positive definiteness of a class of quadratic forms is provided, which is of independent interest in matrix theory. And the relation between weakly connected and strongly connected digraphs is also investigated. Then, it is proved that all the agents reach the average consensus asymptotically for appropriate time delay if the communication topology keeps weakly connected and balanced. Finally, a numerical example is given to demonstrate the effectiveness and advantage of the new result.     

Iterative learning approaches to design finite-time consensus protocols for multi-agent systems

In this paper, the finite-time output consensus problem of multi-agent systems is considered by using the iterative learning control (ILC) approach. Two classes of distributed protocols are constructed from the two-dimensional system point of view (with time step and iteration number as independent variables), and are termed as iterative learning protocols. If learning gains are chosen appropriately, then all agents in a directed graph can be enabled to achieve finite-time consensus with the iterative learning protocols. Moreover, all agents in a directed graph can be guaranteed to reach finite-time consensus at any desired terminal output if the iterative learning protocols are improved by introducing the desired terminal output to some (not necessarily all) of the agents. Simulation results are finally presented to illustrate the performance and effectiveness of our iterative learning protocols.     

带有不连续动力学的非线性多智能体系统固定时间一致性EI北大核心CSCD

本文研究了一类带有不连续动力学和有界扰动的非线性多智能体系统领导跟随固定时间一致性问题.首先,在不对称的有向拓扑图下,本文设计了一种辅助信号,该辅助信号用于观测领导者状态,且该辅助信号不在通信信道中传输,可以有效地减少系统计算代价.随后,基于辅助信号,本文设计了一种不连续控制协议,以实现多智能体系统固定时间收敛.然后,利用非光滑分析、Lyapunov稳定性理论及代数图论等证明系统可在任意初始状态下达到固定时间一致.最后,仿真实例进一步验证了理论结果的有效性.     

Nonlinear finite-time bipartite consensus protocol for multi-agent systems associated with signed graphs

In this paper, finite-time multi-agent consensus problems are considered under networks associated with signed graphs whose edge weights can be not only positive but also negative. A nonlinear consensus protocol is proposed to guarantee the states of all agents to converge in a finite time. If the signed graph is structurally balanced, then the final consensus states of all agents are the same in modulus but not in sign. Otherwise, if the signed graph is structurally unbalanced, then the states of all agents converge to zero. Moreover, the final consensus states of agents can be provided uniformly regarding a signed-average quantity that depends on both the initial states of agents and the topology structure of the whole multi-agent network. Numerical simulations illustrate that the protocol is effective in achieving the finite-time consensus of agents under signed graphs and can particularly solve the finite-time average consensus problem of agents when their associated graph has all positive edge weights.     

Stability analysis and controller design for consensus in discrete-time networks with heterogeneous agent dynamics

In this paper, we study the heterogeneous consensus problem in directed networks consisting of first- and second-order agents that can only receive the position states of their neighbors. Necessary and sufficient conditions on the controller parameters are obtained in order to achieve consensus in the network. The mathematical expressions of the consensus equilibria are given for two different scenarios. Furthermore, we propose a systematic method for choosing controller parameters to ensure stability in a network of agents with heterogeneous dynamics. Several numerical examples are also provided to illustrate the theoretical results.     

Necessary and sufficient conditions for mean square consensus under Markov switching topologies

This article deals with the mean square consensus problem for second-order discrete-time multi-agent systems. Both cases of systems with and without time delays in Markov switching topologies are considered. With the introduced control protocols, necessary and sufficient conditions for mean square consensus of second-order multi-agent systems are derived. Under the given control protocols in Markov switching topologies, the second-order multi-agent systems can reach mean square consensus if and only if each union of the graphs corresponding to all the nodes in closed sets has a spanning tree. Finally, a simulation example is provided to illustrate the effectiveness of our theoretical results.     

Sliding mode control-based algorithms for consensus in connected swarms

In this article, finite-time consensus algorithms for a swarm of self-propelling agents based on sliding mode control and graph algebraic theories are presented. Algorithms are developed for swarms that can be described by balanced graphs and that are comprised of agents with dynamics of the same order. Agents with first and higher order dynamics are considered. For consensus, the agents' inputs are chosen to enforce sliding mode on surfaces dependent on the graph Laplacian matrix. The algorithms allow for the tuning of the time taken by the swarm to reach a consensus as well as the consensus value. As an example, the case when a swarm of first-order agents is in cyclic pursuit is considered.     

Allowable sampling period for consensus control of multiple general linear dynamical agents in random networks

This article studies the consensus problem for a group of sampled-data general linear dynamical agents over random communication networks. Dynamic output feedback protocols are applied to solve the consensus problem. When the sampling period is sufficiently small, it is shown that as long as the mean topology has globally reachable nodes, the mean square consensus can be achieved by selecting protocol parameters so that n???1 specified subsystems are simultaneously stabilised. However, when the sampling period is comparatively large, it is revealed that differing from low-order integrator multi-agent systems the consensus problem may be unsolvable. By using the hybrid dynamical system theory, an allowable upper bound of sampling period is further proposed. Two approaches to designing protocols are also provided. Simulations are given to illustrate the validity of the proposed approaches.     

Reaching a consensus in networks of high-order integral agents under switching directed topologies

Consensus problem of high-order integral multi-agent systems under switching directed topology is considered in this study. Depending on whether the agent’s full state is available or not, two distributed protocols are proposed to ensure that states of all agents can be convergent to a same stationary value. In the proposed protocols, the gain vector associated with the agent’s (estimated) state and the gain vector associated with the relative (estimated) states between agents are designed in a sophisticated way. By this particular design, the high-order integral multi-agent system can be transformed into a first-order integral multi-agent system. Also, the convergence of the transformed first-order integral agent’s state indicates the convergence of the original high-order integral agent’s state, if and only if all roots of the polynomial, whose coefficients are the entries of the gain vector associated with the relative (estimated) states between agents, are in the open left-half complex plane. Therefore, many analysis techniques in the first-order integral multi-agent system can be directly borrowed to solve the problems in the high-order integral multi-agent system. Due to this property, it is proved that to reach a consensus, the switching directed topology of multi-agent system is only required to be ‘uniformly jointly quasi-strongly connected’, which seems the mildest connectivity condition in the literature. In addition, the consensus problem of discrete-time high-order integral multi-agent systems is studied. The corresponding consensus protocol and performance analysis are presented. Finally, three simulation examples are provided to show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.     

Global bounded consensus of multi-agent systems with non-identical nodes and communication time-delay topology

This article investigates the global bounded consensus problem of networked multi-agent systems exhibiting nonlinear, non-identical node dynamics with communication time-delays. Globally bounded consensus conditions for both delay-independent and delay-dependent conditions based on the Lypunov–Krasovskii functional method are derived. The proposed consensus criteria ensures that all agents eventually move along the desired trajectories in the sense of boundedness. The proposed consensus criteria generalises the case of identical agent dynamics to the case of non-identical agent dynamics, and many related results in this area can be viewed as special cases of the above results. We finally demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical results by means of a numerical simulation.     

Distributed finite-time consensus tracking for nonlinear multi-agent systems with a time-varying reference state

This paper investigates the consensus tracking problem for nonlinear multi-agent systems with a time-varying reference state. The consensus reference is taken as a virtual leader, whose output is only its position information that is available to only a subset of a group of followers. The dynamics of each follower consists of two terms: nonlinear inherent dynamics and a simple communication protocol relying only on the position of its neighbours. In this paper, the consensus tracking problem is respectively considered under fixed and switching communication topologies. Some corresponding sufficient conditions are obtained to guarantee the states of followers can converge to the state of the virtual leader in finite time. Rigorous proofs are given by using graph theory, matrix theory, and Lyapunov theory. Simulations are presented to illustrate the theoretical analysis.     

Finite-time consensus protocols for networks of dynamic agents by terminal iterative learning

This paper aims to address finite-time consensus problems for multi-agent systems under the iterative learning control framework. Distributed iterative learning protocols are presented, which adopt the terminal laws to update the control input and are offline feedforward design approaches. It is shown that iterative learning protocols can guarantee all agents in a directed graph to reach the finite-time consensus. Furthermore, the multi-agent systems can be enabled to achieve a finite-time consensus at any desired terminal state/output if iterative learning protocols can be improved by introducing the desired terminal state/output to a portion of agents. Simulation results show that iterative learning protocols can effectively accomplish finite-time consensus objectives for both first-order and higher order multi-agent systems.     

Fixed-time consensus for multi-agent systems with discontinuous inherent dynamics over switching topology

This paper is concerned with the fixed-time consensus problem of multi-agent systems. Unlike conventional consensus-based investigations, where nonlinear inherent dynamics satisfying the Lipschitz continuous condition is assumed or simply no inherent dynamics is involved for each agent, we are dealing with a more general case: agents with discontinuous nonlinear inherent dynamics. By using non-smooth analysis and fixed-time stability techniques, distributed protocols are proposed to achieve the fixed-time consensus over fixed and switching topology. Then, for a class of linear multi-agent systems, a new distributed controller is proposed to further reduce the calculation cost while achieving the agreement. A distinctive feature of the work is that the estimation of settling time for consensus is independent of initial states of agents, which provides flexibility for applications implemented in unknown environment. Finally, numerical simulations are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the theoretical results.