Project Info
Communication Decisions in Robot Swarms
Neil Dantam | ndantam@mines.edu
Communication is critical to successful cooperation in robot swarms. Robots must decide, when, what, and with whom they will communicate. Communication decisions interact with the swarm’s ability to achieve its overall task. However, the many combinations of possible decisions present a challenge for computational efficiency. This project will explore techniques to efficiently make communication
decisions in robot swarms. Possible approaches include optimization, search, and constraint-satisfaction.
More Information
A data collection protocol for real-time sensor
applications. (http://pecs.mines.edu/docs/pmc09.pdf)
NS-3 Network Simulator. (https://www.nsnam.org/)
The Ach IPC Library. (http://www.neil.dantam.name/papers/dantam2014multiprocess.pdf)
The Task-Motion Kit
(http://www.neil.dantam.name/papers/dantam2018tmkit.pdf).
Grand Engineering Challenge: Not applicable
Student Preparation
Qualifications
Student must be familiar with basic data structures and the C or C++programming language. Necessary Courses: CSCI-262. Desired Courses: CSCI-358, MATH 213.
Time Commitment
20 hours/month
Skills/Techniques Gained
Student will develop an understanding of systems programming,
distributed networking, and robot swarm communication. Student will
learn various methods and algorithms for decision-making in
combinatorial spaces.
Mentoring Plan
Weekly individual meetings with the MURF student and faculty member to discuss progress and provide directed guidance. Weekly lab meetings to discuss the overall project and integration. Assigned graduate student mentor for the MURF student.