A new class of fixed-time bipartite flocking protocols for multi-agent systems

This work is concerned with the fixed-time stability theorem and the fixed-time bipartite flocking with collision avoidance for multi-agent systems. Under the framework of Filippov solution, a new theorem of fixed-time stability is established and a high-precision estimation of settling time is given. As an important application, the fixed-time bipartite flocking protocol of nonlinear multi-agent systems is proposed. Employing this fixed-time stability theorem and the structurally balanced signed graph theorem, the bipartite flocking without collision is achieved within a fixed-time. Moreover, the convergent time of the bipartite flocking is merely depending on the parameters of the protocol and the network connectivity. In addition, the upper bound of the size for each disjoint cluster can be estimated by the parameters of the protocol, the network connectivity and the initial states of the system. These results are novel, which are illustrated by both theoretical analysis and numerical simulations. (C) 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.