Cooperative output regulation of heterogeneous multi-agent systems with a leader of bounded inputs

• Published in: IET control theory & applications Vol. 12; no. 2; pp. 233 - 242
• Main Authors: Yuan, Chengzhi, He, Haibo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: The Institution of Engineering and Technology 30.01.2018
• Subjects: asymptotic output regulation performance; asymptotic stability; cooperative output regulation control; cooperative output regulation problem; distributed control; exact output regulation performance; finite‐time estimation; heterogeneous multiagent systems; leader dynamics; leader of bounded inputs; leader of zero input; leader state information estimation; linear matrix equations; linear matrix inequalities; lower‐layer distributed output regulator; Lyapunov function method; Lyapunov methods; multi‐agent systems; multi‐robot systems; Research Article; solvability conditions; tracking trajectories; two‐layer hierarchical design framework; upper‐layer cooperative estimator; lower-layer distributed output regulator; multi-agent systems; distributed control; cooperative output regulation problem; multi-robot systems; leader of bounded inputs; leader state information estimation; finite-time estimation; linear matrix equations; asymptotic stability; cooperative output regulation control; linear matrix inequalities; leader dynamics; two-layer hierarchical design framework; tracking trajectories; upper-layer cooperative estimator; solvability conditions; Lyapunov function method; leader of zero input; heterogeneous multiagent systems; exact output regulation performance; asymptotic output regulation performance; Lyapunov methods
• ISSN: 1751-8644; 1751-8652; 1751-8652
• DOI: 10.1049/iet-cta.2017.0641

In this study, the cooperative output regulation problem for heterogeneous multi-agent systems is addressed by considering a leader dynamics subject to bounded (possibly non-zero, persistent, and time varying) inputs. Compared to many existing works with a leader of zero input, using such a leader dynamics will facilitate realisation of more diverse and sophisticated tracking trajectories for cooperative output regulation control. However, it also poses a challenge to pursue exact output regulation performance. To this end, a new two-layer hierarchical design framework is proposed. This framework consists of an upper-layer cooperative estimator for estimating the leader's state information in finite time, and a lower-layer distributed output regulator to achieve exact output regulation performance. Both finite-time estimation and asymptotic output regulation performance are analysed using the Lyapunov function method, and the associated solvability conditions are established as a set of linear matrix inequalities plus linear matrix equations. Simulation studies are also included to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.