English

Leader-Follower Density Control of Spatial Dynamics in Large-Scale Multi-Agent Systems

Systems and Control 2025-05-08 v4 Systems and Control

Abstract

We address the problem of controlling the density of a large ensemble of follower agents by acting on a group of leader agents that interact with them. Using coupled partial integro-differential equations to describe leader and follower density dynamics, we establish feasibility conditions and develop two control architectures ensuring global stability. The first employs feed-forward control on the followers' and a feedback on the leaders' density. The second implements a dual feedback loop through a reference-governor that adapts the leaders' density based on both populations' measurements. Our methods, initially developed in a one-dimensional setting, are extended to multi-dimensional cases, and validated through numerical simulations for representative control applications, both for groups of infinite and finite size.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2406.01804,
  title  = {Leader-Follower Density Control of Spatial Dynamics in Large-Scale Multi-Agent Systems},
  author = {Gian Carlo Maffettone and Alain Boldini and Maurizio Porfiri and Mario di Bernardo},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2406.01804},
  year   = {2025}
}
R2 v1 2026-06-28T16:52:03.364Z