COLLECTIVE BEHAVIOR AND SENSOR NETWORK -- A MULTI-AGENT DYNAMIC SYSTEM APPROACH

Abstract

This research presents both theoretical foundation and numerical simulation work for design and analysis of a multi-agent dynamic system on the collective formation behavior patterns of grouped agents. A mass model with tunable control parameters is proposed. This model can realistically represent the aggregation pattern and the formation shape of multiple agents. Stability analysis is also provided to prove the stability of the second-order dynamic system. Several simulations will also be given according to the proposed model to show the aggregation patterns. The research on self-organizing characteristics of collective agent behaviors has a wide range of applications in nature and engineering. The formation such as a flock of birds, a school of fish, or a swarm of locusts, is the emergence of ordered state in which the moving agents can organize as formation. Design and control of the self-organizing dynamic system has implications on wireless general design of mobile sensor networks, sensor network data fusion, attitude alignment of satellite clusters and congestion control of communication networks.