Distributed UAV Swarm Formation and Collision Avoidance Strategies Over Fixed and Switching Topologies
提出一个控制框架，让多架无人机在固定和切换拓扑下整合编队飞行与群集部署模式，设计分布式控制器实现快速编队和避碰，实验验证了有效性。
This article proposes a controlling framework for multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to integrate the modes of formation flight and swarm deployment over fixed and switching topologies. Formation strategies enable UAVs to enjoy key collective benefits including reduced energy consumption, but the shape of the formation and each UAV's freedom are significantly restrained. Swarm strategies are thus proposed to maximize each UAV's freedom following simple yet powerful rules. This article investigates the integration and switch between these two strategies, considering the deployment environment factors, such as poor network conditions and unknown and often highly mobile obstacles. We design a distributed formation controller to guide multiple UAVs in orderless states to swiftly reach an intended formation. Inspired by starling birds and similar biological creatures, a distributed collision avoidance controller is proposed to avoid unknown and mobile obstacles. We further illustrated the stability of the controllers over both fixed and switching topologies. The experimental results confirm the effectiveness of the framework.