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Robot formations using only local sensing and control

We study the problem of achieving global behavior in a group of robots using only local sensing and interaction, in the context of formations, where the goal is to have N mobile robots establish and maintain some predetermined geometric shape. We have devised a simple, general, robust, localized, behavior-based algorithm that solves the problem for N robots each equipped with sonar, laser, camera, and a radio link for communicating with other robots. The method uses the idea of keeping a single friend at a desired angle (by panning the camera and keeping the friend centered in the image), and only communicating heartbeat messages. We also developed a general analytical method for evaluating formations and applied it to our algorithm. We validate our algorithm both in simulation and with physical robots.