MEMS Seminar: Research on Autonomous Robot Teams and Swarms at the Naval Research Laboratory

This project explores the production of self-organized states in a system of communicating robots (miniature autonomous blimps) with mass
and physical extent (area or volume) such that collisions may occur. Specifically, we perform experiments to enable a formation
of communicating robots to form a pattern maintained just by interacting communication rules. We study the effects of variation of controlling
parameters including mass, area, and communication with number of nearest neighbors on swarm dynamics and pattern formation as agents
collide and are removed. All collisions are considered catastrophic. Collisions may be reduced or avoided through use of a repulsion term
between agents, but we confirm that this repulsion term affects the swarm dynamics as well. Repulsion also affects the rate of attrition of swarm
agents.

Don Sofge is a Computer Scientist and Roboticist at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) with 30 years of experience in Artificial
Intelligence and Control Systems R&D. He has served as PI or Co-PI on dozens of federally funded R&D programs, and has approximately 110
peer-reviewed publications on autonomy, intelligent control, quantum computing, and related topics, including 5 books, 10 book chapters,
19 journal articles, 62 conference papers, and one patent.

Lunch will be served at 11:30 am.

Hosted by Dr. Mary 'Missy' Cummings.