Consensus algorithm for formation technology of multiple unmanned aerial vehicles

A controller design method is studied for UAVs formation flight. A consensus-based algorithm is proposed to maintain a specified time-varying geometric configuration for formation flight of multiple UAVs. In this approach, the proposed control strategy requires only the local neighbor-to-neighbor information between vehicles. The information flow topologies between the vehicles can be defined by graph Laplacian matrix. Speed and heading synchronization is realized and the two dimensional space formations can be achieved by the proposed consensus algorithm. The effectiveness of the algorithms is demonstrated through detailed simulation studies. ? 2012 Praise Worthy Prize S.r.l.EI073764-3769