Finite-time consensus of second-order multi-agent systems via a structural approach

In this paper the finite-time consensus tracking problem for multi-agent systems with double-integrator dynamics is investigated under directed interaction topology by a structural approach. One continuous structural control strategy with only position measurements, which is based on estimated parameters and a finite-time separation principle, is proposed in order to solve the finite-time consensus tracking problem in a distributed way, i.e., by using the information of each agent׳s neighbors and itself, where control input of the leader, i.e., acceleration, is general instead of zero. Note that neither velocity measurements nor the acceleration of the leader is utilized by the structural control strategy, which provides a class of continuous control protocols for the finite-time consensus tracking problem. Furthermore, two specific control protocols are provided for directed and undirected topologies, respectively, which corroborate the feasibility of the structural control strategy. Finally, one numerical example is presented to demonstrate the efficiency of the theoretical results.