Finite-Time Consensus for Multiagent Systems With Cooperative and Antagonistic Interactions

Area of Science:

• Control Theory
• Networked Systems
• Distributed Computing

Background:

• Multiagent systems are crucial for complex tasks.
• Achieving consensus in systems with cooperative and antagonistic interactions presents challenges.
• Finite-time consensus is desirable for rapid state agreement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop finite-time consensus protocols for multiagent systems.
• To address hybrid cooperative and antagonistic interactions.
• To ensure agreement on consensus values with identical modulus but potentially different signs.

Main Methods:

• Design of two consensus protocols based on the nearest neighbor rule.
• Mathematical analysis to prove finite-time convergence.
• Simulation studies to validate protocol effectiveness.

Main Results:

• Guaranteed finite-time consensus for all agents under both protocols.
• Consensus values share the same modulus but can differ in sign.
• The second protocol achieves consensus independent of initial agent states.

Conclusions:

• The proposed protocols effectively solve finite-time consensus problems in complex multiagent systems.
• The nearest neighbor rule is a viable approach for designing such protocols.
• The independence of settling time from initial states is a significant advancement.