This paper presents a Lie group setting for the problem of control of formations, as a natural outcome of the analysis of a planar two-vehicle formation control law. The vehicle trajectories are described using the planar Frenet-Serret equations of motion, which capture the evolution of both the vehicle position and orientation for unit-speed motion subject to curvature (steering) control. The set of all possible (relative) equilibria for arbitrary G-invariant curvature controls is described (where G =SE (2) is a symmetry group for the control law), and a global convergence result for the two-vehicle control law is proved. An n-vehicle generalization of the two-vehicle control law is also presented, and the corresponding (relative) equilibria for the n-vehicle problem are characterized. Work is on-going to discover stability and convergence results for the n-vehicle problem.

Abstract-Motivated by the problem of formation control for vehicles moving at unit speed in three-dimensional space, we are led to models of gyroscopically interacting particles, which require the machinery of curves and frames to describe and analyze. A Lie group formulation arises naturally, and we discuss the general problem of determining (relative) equilibria for arbitrary G-invariant controls (where G = SE(3) is a symmetry group for the control law). We then present global convergence (and non-collision) results for specific two-vehicle interaction laws in three dimensions, which lead to specific formations (i.e., relative equilibria). Generalizations of the interaction laws to n vehicles is also discussed, and simulation results presented.

Motion camouflage is a stealth strategy observed in nature. We formulate the problem as a feedback system for particles moving at constant speed, and define what it means for the system to be in a state of motion camouflage. (Here we focus on the planar setting, although the results can be generalized to three-dimensional motion.) We propose a biologically plausible feedback law, and use a high-gain limit to prove accessibility of a motion camouflage state in finite time. We discuss connections to work in missile guidance. We also present simulation results to explore the performance of the motion camouflage feedback law for a variety of settings.Comment: 8 page

Abstract-We formulate and analyze a three-dimensional model of motion camouflage, a stealth strategy observed in nature. A high-gain feedback law for motion camouflage is formulated in which the pursuer and evader trajectories are described using natural Frenet frames (or relatively parallel adapted frames), and the corresponding natural curvatures serve as controls. The biological plausibility of the feedback law is discussed, as is its connection to missile guidance. Simulations illustrating motion camouflage are also presented. This paper builds on recent work on motion camouflage in the planar setting [8].