# Fixed-Time Cooperative Formation Control of Heterogeneous Systems Under Multiple Constraints

## TL;DR

This paper introduces a control method for coordinating drones and ground vehicles to form and maintain a specific shape quickly, even when facing challenges like equipment failures and disturbances.

## Contribution

A novel fixed-time adaptive sliding mode control protocol for heterogeneous multi-agent systems under multiple constraints.

## Key findings

- A distributed sliding mode estimator and controller were developed for UAV-UGV systems.
- The control protocol ensures collision avoidance and formation tracking within a fixed time.
- Fixed-time stability was proven using Lyapunov theory.

## Abstract

This paper proposes a fixed-time formation-tracking control problem for a heterogeneous multi-agent system (MAS) consisting of six unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and three unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) under actuator attacks, external disturbances, and input saturation. First, a distributed sliding mode estimator and controller tailored for UAV-UGV heterogeneous systems are proposed based on sliding mode techniques. Second, by integrating repulsive potential functions with sliding manifolds, a distributed fixed-time adaptive sliding mode control protocol was designed. This protocol ensures collision avoidance while enabling the MASs to track desired trajectories and achieve a predefined formation configuration within a fixed time. The fixed-time stability of the closed-loop system was rigorously proven via Lyapunov theory.