Leader-follower formation control using an onboard leader tracker

Leader-follower formation control of unmanned vehicles in the presence of limited sensing and communication is studied. It is assumed that the follower is equipped with an onboard tracker to measure relative kinematic parameters with respect to the leader. Considering practical measurements obtained from the onboard tracker, a state-space representation for the leader-follower system is obtained, and by employing a state feedback controller, the relative angle and the relative range are regulated to desired values. Then, by modeling of the tracker mechanism, the effect of the tracker dynamics and sensor measurement noise on the formation keeping are studied. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the proposed leader-follower formation control structure.