Predefined Time and Prespecified Precision for Bearing-Constrained AAV Swarm

This article presents a bearing-based formation control method for autonomous aerial vehicle (AAV) swarms, allowing users to specify both convergence time and precision in advance. Unlike traditional distance-based methods, which rely on intricate distance measurements, our approach simplifies constraints using bearing information, reducing hardware and sensing requirements. It also eliminates the need to update control commands for each AAV, as formation reconfiguration can be achieved solely by adjusting the motion trajectory of formation leaders. Moreover, the strategy demonstrates enhanced robustness in addressing real-world input constraints. A continuous hyperbolic tangent saturation function and an input saturation compensation system are incorporated, ensuring system convergence and precision while addressing singularity issues. In addition, unlike conventional bearing-based strategies focusing primarily on convergence time, the proposed algorithm enables preset control over both convergence time and precision. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed approach is validated through several illustrative examples, including a 6-degree-of-freedom (6DoF) quadrotor AAV swarm, highlighting its practical applicability and performance.