Stability indices for multi-agent mobile systems in discrete space

This paper proposes a stability indicator, 'Static Mobility Indices (SMI)' for multi-agent robotic mobile systems. The SMI consists of several index values to describe the quasi-static stability of the whole system composed of homogeneous modules with mobility function such as wheels or legs. Those index values are computed with the configuration characteristics, 'radius' and 'diameter' in terms of graph theory for instance, of the interconnected modules. The computation scheme of SMI is defined and formulated with respect to a three-axis coordinate system, 'HoneyComb by Projection (HCP),' over a two-dimensional discrete space. A series of experiments using a distributed legged mobile robot prototype was performed with the selected gaits and system configurations to examine the significance of the proposed indicator. The results of the experiments suggested that the obtained SMI appropriately described the status of the system stability that is profitable to improve the robustness and the adaptability of the system.