Multi-robot coverage control

Abstract

Robots have become an essential part of society. Their uses range from domestic to industrial and with emerging applications like the rise in self-driving vehicles, it is becoming more evident that robots can undertake more responsibilities that are typically associated with humans. The applications for multiple robot systems are also becoming more common, especially within the field of swarm robotics. Every job that robots can do are due to multiple and complex algorithms that make each application possible. Coverage control algorithms provide the tools necessary for multiple robots to be able to organise themselves within an area, and effectively cover all the area in the most optimal way. Such algorithms can give rise to new applications for robots in autonomous surveillance or search and rescue for example. The primary objectives of this dissertation are to review relevant theory and current mathematical approaches taken to solve the coverage control problem, implement one or more of the approaches found in literature and validate it on a group of mobile robots. Further complexities could be introduced with the application of a single peak, multiple peak or time varying density function that represents the importance of each region in the environment, by taking the robot dynamics into account, or by assuming a fleet of robots with different energy levels and sensing capabilities. The dissertation starts by looking at the mathematical approaches for tackling the coverage control problem. A coverage control algorithm is then explained and broken into its main components, which are further explained in more detail. Then, the approach taken to create and simulate the coverage control algorithm along with each one of its components is described. The added complexities are then introduced and explained. Finally, the results obtained from the modelling of the coverage control algorithm are evaluated and discussed. The results validated the algorithms successfully and the resulting simulation could be used to demonstrate the effectiveness of a real coverage control algorithm for a fleet of mobile robots.