Two formal fluids models for multiagent sweeping and obstacle avoidance (2005) [2 citations — 1 self]
Abstract:
The task addressed here is a dynamic search through a bounded region, while avoiding multiple large obstacles, such as buildings. In the case of limited sensors and communication, maintaining spatial coverage – especially after passing the obstacles – is a challenging problem. Here, we investigate two physics-based approaches to solving this task with multiple mobile robots, one based on artificial forces and the other based on the kinetic theory of gases. The desired behavior is achieved with both methods, and a comparison is made between them. Because both approaches are physics-based, formal assurances can be made about the multi-agent behavior. 1 The Task To Be Accomplished The task being addressed is that of sweeping a large group of mobile robots through a long bounded region (a swath of land, a corridor in a building, a city sector, or an underground passageway/tunnel), to perform a search, which requires maximum coverage. The robots are assumed to lack any active communication capability (e.g., for stealth), and to have a limited sensing range for detecting other agents/objects. It is assumed that robots near the corridor bound-
Citations
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