Cooperative Dynamic Target Tracking: Distributed Time-Varying Optimization for Multi-UAV System

Even with the development of advanced target tracking strategies for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), cooperative target tracking of multiple UAVs continues to pose practical and technological challenges due to the need of performance optimality and rapid convergence. In order to address this problem, a distributed time-varying optimization algorithm is put forth, which relies solely on local communication and information to jointly guide multiple UAVs toward the required configuration around the target. Coordinated minimization of a convex global time-varying cost function is the fundamental goal of distributed optimization. With collision avoidance guaranteed, the proposed method significantly enhances the consensus convergence and optimal performance for multi-UAV system. Finally, numerical examples are provided to confirm the validity, scalability and superiority of proposed distributed optimization approach.