Robustness in formation control of mobile robots using leader-follower method

This paper presents the robustness in formation control of multiple mobile robots using leader-follower method. The uncertainty considered is the measured error which is included in the relative state. The robust stability conditions against the relative state error are derived by Lyapunov’s stability theory (direct method). We also obtain the formation steady-state deviation when formation stability is ensured. The formation control environment is constructed on Simulink. The validity of the stability condition and the steady-state deviation is demonstrated by numerical simulation. It is seen that the L-F method provides a robust control law against the relative state error although large formation steady-state deviation is occurred in some cases.