Distributed Output Feedback Prescribed Performance Control for High-Order Nonlinear Multi-Agent Systems

This paper presents an output feedback prescribed performance control method for a class of high-order nonlinear uncertain multiagent systems. General prescribed performance consensus control for multiagent systems requires that the initial consensus error is constraining within a boundary value. Unlike existing works, the conservative condition of prescribed performance consensus control for multiagent systems is relaxed as the consensus error is independent of the initial state. In this condition, we employ a control scheme with improved prescribed performance to constraint the transient behavior of the system. By designing reduce order dynamic gain K-filter, the state variables of the systems are reconstructed. Based on the baskstepping method and dynamic surface control technology, we introduce an innovative prescribed performance event-triggered approach aimed at ensuring prescribed performance levels for both transient and steady-state aspects of consensus control and reducing the communication bandwidth resource. Furthermore, we rigorously demonstrated through the Lyapunov function that all agents can achieve consensus with the leader driven by the controller. The simulation results have demonstrated the effective tracking performance of the developed control approach. Finally, the effectiveness and reliability of the proposed control strategy are verified through the successful execution of multi-QUAVs formation encirclement control.Note to Practitioners—This paper considers output feedback prescribed performance consensus control problem of multiagent systems, which can be applied to some practical systems, e.g., low-altitude formation flight of autonomous aerial vehicle with specified transient performance, multi underwater robot for oil field line-cruising, etc. Furthermore, in harsh working environments, the states of agent devices are difficult to measure or cannot be measured. Hence the control objective in these applications can be transformed into output feedback prescribed performance consensus control problem of multiagent systems. Besides, in military applications, high-speed aircraft need to fly at a certain height above the ground in order to avoid radar detection, which poses strong limitations on the position of the aircraft. This challenging issue can be well addressed through prescribed performance control. Compared with the existing results, this paper proposed a novel prescribed performance control strategy for multiagent systems with unrestricted initial state. It should be noted that in practical applications, communication bandwidth resources are extremely limited, so we propose event triggered control to effectively alleviate the communication pressure of multiagent system cooperative control. The nonlinear high-order system model studied in this article can be converted into a Lagrangian system, multi-complexity manipulator system and an autonomous aerial vehicle system, which has strong engineering practical significance.