Fuzzy sliding-mode formation control for multirobot systems: Design and implementation

This paper mainly addresses the decentralized formation problems for multiple robots, where a fuzzy sliding-mode formation controller (FSMFC) is proposed. The directed networks of dynamic agents with external disturbances and system uncertainties are discussed in consensus problems. To perform a formation control and to guarantee system robustness, a novel formation algorithm combining the concepts of graph theory and fuzzy sliding-model control is presented. According to the communication topology, formation stability conditions can be determined so that an FSMFC can be derived. By Lyapunov stability theorem, not only the system stability can be guaranteed, but the desired formation pattern of a multirobot system can be also achieved. Simulation results are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the provided control scheme. Finally, an experimental setup for the e-puck multirobot system is built. Compared to first-order formation algorithm and fuzzy neural network formation algorithm, it shows that real-time experimental results empirically support the promising performance of desire.