Leader Detection in Swarms using a Relative Velocity Framework
Animesh Chakravarthy, Debasish Ghose · AIAA SCITECH 2023 Forum · 2023
View Video Presentation: https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2023-1474.vid The problem of performing real-time identification of the leader of an adversarial swarm of vehicles, as this swarm approaches a target, is of active research interest. A defender can use knowledge of the identity of the leader of an incoming swarm to launch a suitable counter-measure that neutralizes or takes down the leader, and thereby foil the intentions of the swarm. In this paper, we address this problem of leader identification by employing a relative velocity framework. The behavior of the leader and followers in the relative velocity plane are shown to be easily distinguishable as the trajectories depart and converge on to trajectories predicted via a analytical treatment of the relative velocity equations. We assume the availability of measurements of relative velocity information by virtue of a radar located in the vicinity of the target, and then use these measurements to make inferences of the identity of the leader of the swarm. Simulation results, in both deterministic and noisy models, are presented.