On synchronous robotic networks--Part I: models, tasks, and complexity

This paper proposes a formal model for a network of robotic agents that move and communicate. Building on concepts from distributed computation, robotics, and control theory, we define notions of robotic network, control and communication law, coordination task, and time and communication complexity. We illustrate our model and compute the proposed complexity measures in the example of a network of locally connected agents on a circle that agree upon a direction of motion and pursue their immediate neighbors. Index Terms--Complexity measures, cooperative control, coordination tasks, distributed algorithms, formal models, robotic networks.