Dynamic Role-Switching Coverage Control Strategy for Multi-Agent Systems in Multimodal Gaussian Distributed Environments

Coverage control in multimodal Gaussian environments remains challenging for distributed multi-agent systems with limited sensing and communication capabilities, as existing methods often lead to incomplete coverage, imbalanced agent allocation, and connectivity interruptions. To overcome these challenges, this paper proposes a novel coverage control strategy based on a leader-following framework. The strategy includes a three-role cooperative mechanism: (1) leaders move toward the preassigned Gaussian modes, (2) coverers optimize local coverage, and (3) connectivity maintainers follow leaders and connect coverers. All agents adopt a composite controller that employs role-specific formulations for the coverage term while using the common connectivity controller, with weights adjusted accordingly. The strategy operates in two phases: the leading phase and the coverage phase. Initially, agents whose number is equal to Gaussian modes are randomly selected as leaders and move toward the assigned Gaussian modes, while other agents follow leaders as connectivity maintainers. Upon meeting a global event-triggering condition, the strategy enters the second phase, and the dynamic role-switching strategy is activated. All leaders switch to coverers, while others are dynamically assigned as coverers or connectivity maintainers based on their distances to Gaussian modes. Numerical simulations demonstrate that the proposed strategy achieves coverage ratios exceeding 95% for all approximate high-density regions, while guaranteeing algebraic connectivity above the predefined lower bound. Compared with the previous coverage method, this strategy achieves more comprehensive and balanced coverage while consistently maintaining connectivity.