Abstract
A novel adaptive formation-control strategy for a group of autonomous mobile robots navigating over unknown terrains is presented. A leader-follower formation control architecture is employed. Both direct adaptive control laws and a formation speedadaptation strategy are developed, that (1) bring the robots into a prescribed formation from arbitrary in-plane locations, and (2) enable the group to navigate over unknown and changing terrains while staying in formation in the presence of actuator saturation. The terrain model is comprised of a number of level rough terrain patches, as well as some obstacles to be avoided. A generic friction model, including Coulomb and viscous friction parameters that are unknown to the robots, characterizes the terrain surface. The leader specifies a reference motion for the entire fleet. In order to account for terrain uncertainty and variations, the followers are equipped with adaptive controllers. In saturation events, the formation speed is reduced to the maximum sustainable speed of the slowest saturated robot using internal fleet communication, allowing the formation error to stay bounded and small. A formal proof for asymptotic stability of the formation system in non-saturated conditions is given, and a simulation example is presented.
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