Collaborative Research: CISE-MSI: DP: CNS: An Edge-Based Approach to Robust Multi-Robot Systems in Dynamic Environments

该奖项全部或部分由2021年美国救援计划法案（公法117-2）资助。多机器人系统由在共享环境中进行交互以实现共同目标的自主机器人组成。它们广泛应用于现实世界的应用领域，如运输，灾难管理以及仓储和制造。该项目开发了一个高效，强大，安全的多机器人系统，称为EdgeRobot。EdgeRobot建立了一个基于边缘计算的架构和算法框架，以促进动态环境中的多机器人协作和协调。该研究为多机器人协调系统提供了新的模型、体系结构和理论依据。此外，该项目通过与美国六个地理位置不同的少数群体服务机构建立伙伴关系，建立可持续的研究能力，以培训代表性不足的学生：休斯顿大学克利尔湖分校（南）、密歇根大学弗林特分校（北）、纽约市立大学新约克城市理工学院（东北）、摩根州立大学（东）、弗朗西斯科州立大学（西）和加州州立大学多明格斯山（西）。跨机构合作不仅提高了所有六个参与机构的研究能力，而且还为代表性不足的少数民族学生提供了综合研究和教育经验。本项目的最终目的是建立和完善一个有效的合作模式，以培训和教育来自不同地理位置的少数群体服务机构的代表性不足的学生。首先，新的边缘计算基础设施为协作机器人提供最佳和位置感知的计算服务，以实现其共同目标。此外，基于强化学习的算法解决多机器人调度和路由问题，建模为奖金收集旅行推销员问题的变体。其次，在需要协作行动的任务中，例如合作目标跟踪，多智能体强化学习使机器人团队能够在动态和人类居住的环境中稳健而安全地操作，学习和适应。第三，集成现代密码和安全原语，确保多机器人系统中边缘节点之间的协作。因此，EdgeRobot与其人类团队成员之间的接口建立了一个共享的自主模型。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).Multi-robot systems consist of autonomous robots interacting in a shared environment to achieve common goals. They are widely used in real-world application domains such as transportation, disaster management, as well as warehousing and manufacturing. This project develops an efficient, robust, and secure multi-robot system, called EdgeRobot. EdgeRobot establishes an edge computing based architecture and algorithmic framework to facilitate multi-robot collaboration and coordination in dynamic environments. This work provides new model, architecture, and theory for coordinated multi-robot systems. In addition, this project builds research capacity, sustainable for training underrepresented students via the partnership of six geographically diverse minority-serving institutions in the United States: the University of Houston-Clear Lake (South), the University of Michigan Flint (North), CUNY-New York City College of Technology (Northeast), Morgan State University (East), San Francisco State University (West), and California State University Dominguez Hills (West). The cross-institutional collaboration not only boosts research capacity in all six participating institutions but also provides integrative research and education experience to their underrepresented minority students. Ultimately, this project establishes and exemplifies an effective collaboration model for training and educating underrepresented students from geographically diverse minority-serving institutions.This project consists of the following three research thrusts. First, the novel edge computing infrastructure provides optimal and location-aware computing services for collaborative robots to achieve their common goals. Besides, reinforcement learning-based algorithms solve the multi-robot scheduling and routing problems, modeled as variants of the prize-collecting traveling salesman problem. Second, in tasks requiring collaborative actions, such as cooperative target tracking, multi-agent reinforcement learning enables teams of robots to operate, learn, and adapt in dynamic and human-populated environments robustly and safely. Third, integrating modern cryptographic and security primitives secures the collaboration among edge nodes in multi-robot systems. Consequently, the interface between EdgeRobot and its human team members builds a shared autonomy model.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.