Dynamic event‐triggered consensus control of multi‐agent systems with switching topology and multiple time delays

Abstract This study addresses the dynamic event‐triggered consensus issue for multi‐agent systems (MASs) under directed and switching topologies, considering communication and input time delays. First, a key challenge tackled is the performance degradation caused by these delays. To mitigate this, a delay‐compensation technique is introduced to deal with latency issues and enhance system robustness. Second, to address the excessive consumption of network communication resources, a consensus controller based on a dynamic event‐triggered mechanism is designed. The proposed event‐triggered mechanism avoids continuous updates of the controller and prevents Zeno phenomena by specifying a minimum time interval. The stability of the closed‐loop system is analyzed using the Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional method, with linear matrix inequalities (LMIs) employed to establish and resolve the stability. Furthermore, the strategy also accounts for intermittent information transmission and unreliable communication, while ensuring consensus across dynamic network topologies. Lastly, simulation examples are provided to demonstrate the theoretical analysis, showing its distinct superiority over existing techniques in addressing delays and complex network topologies.