Pairwise vs coalition game networks for multi-robot systems

This paper considers the bidirectional interaction between states and communication network in a multi-robot system. It proposes two alternative games that are extremes of each other for network formation. In pairwise games, each robot decides to establish or break off a link based on the improvement this offers to it individually. In turn, its state evolves based on state information received from its immediate neighbors only. In coalition games, all the robots in each coalition decide collectively and new links are added or removed based on the improvement they offer to the respective coalition. This time, the state of each robot evolves based on state information from all the other robots in its coalition, albeit with delays that depend on their geodesic proximity. Simulation results provide insights on comparative performance with respect to task completion and connectivity under varying move periods.