NeTS: Medium: Collaborative Research: Optimal Communication for Faster Sensor Network Coordination

该项目的目标是开发一个新的框架，在这个框架中，移动机器人团队可以自行设计其通信网络的结构，以改进用于团队协调的分布式算法的性能。实现这项工作的关键思想是网络结构的度量表示，该度量依赖于网络邻接和拉普拉斯矩阵的完整特征值谱，但可以以非常有效和分散的方式进行近似。然后，这些指标可以与流行的、分布式的、协调算法的性能相关，例如共识、八卦和病毒式信息传播。本研究的智力优势在于开发了一种在网络构型空间和机器人位置空间上共同控制的移动机器人混合网络。集成系统的研究需要从控制理论、谱图理论、无线网络和优化等方面综合新的理论成果。该混合网络结合了以下相互关联的目标：机器人网络的频谱分析和分布式控制；集成网络和移动控制；更丰富的传播空间模式；平台部署和验证。这项研究的成功完成将为促进移动自主系统的设计和促进其采用提供这些必要的组件。这种系统的广泛可用性可以对诸如搜索、救援和恢复行动、国土安全环境监测或监视和侦察任务产生重大的社会影响。该项目的更广泛影响在于在产业界和学术界传播研究成果。

The goal of this project is to develop a new framework where teams of mobile robots self-engineer the structure of their communication network in order to improve on the performance of distributed algorithms used for team coordination. The key idea that enables this work is the representation of the network structure in terms of metrics that depend on the full eigenvalue spectrum of the network's adjacency and Laplacian matrices, but can be approximated in a very efficient and decentralized way. These metrics can then be related to the performance of popular, distributed, coordination algorithms, such as consensus, gossiping, and viral information dissemination. The intellectual merit of this research lies in the development of a hybrid network of mobile robots that is controlled jointly in the space of network configurations and robot positions. The study of the integrated system requires the synthesis of new theoretical results drawing from control theory, spectral graph theory, wireless networking, and optimization. This hybrid network combines the following interrelated objectives: Spectral analysis and distributed control of robot networks; Integrated network and mobility control; Richer models of the communication space; Platform deployment and validation.Successful completion of this research will provide these necessary components in facilitating the design of mobile autonomous systems and fostering their adoption. Wide availability of such systems can have a significant societal impact on, e.g., search, rescue and recovery operations, environmental monitoring for homeland security, or surveillance and reconnaissance missions. The broader impact of this project lies on disseminating the research output in the industry and academia.