Fast robust multi-agent motion planning for adversarial space scenarios
Robust Game-theoretic Motion Planning over Extended Time Horizons
Multiagent Systems
Summary
Planning safe and effective paths for multiple moving agents is hard when they affect each other and face uncertainty over a long time. The authors propose a method that treats each agent's planning problem separately but links their shared constraints in a game-like setup. They create an algorithm called WOLF that updates the plans repeatedly, accounting for possible disturbances dynamically rather than fixing them in advance. This approach helps keep trajectories safe and feasible even during unexpected problems, demonstrated with space scenarios where satellites compete stealthily or block sunlight.
What this means in practice
- •For spacecraft control teams: Plan robust trajectories for competing spacecraft operating in close orbit under uncertain disturbances and detection constraints.
- •For robotics motion planners: Generate collision-free, disturbance-resilient plans for multiple agents interacting under competition in long-term tasks.
Authors
Bennet Outland, Vishala Arya
Abstract
This work presents a solution to nonconvex, game-theoretic motion planning problems subject to disturbances over long time horizons. The problem is posed as a partially-decoupled generalized Nash equilibrium problem, in which each agent's dynamics depend only on its own state and control, admitting fast solution methods for competitive multi-agent motion planning. An algorithm, WOLF, is developed that applies receding-horizon model predictive control to an open-loop differential games solver based on sequential convexification. In contrast to robust formulations that fix the uncertainty description offline, the robustness tube here is itself a dynamic state, co-optimized with the trajectory, and its thickness directly sets the tightening of the shared coupling constraints. A sufficient condition is derived under which a nominal trajectory satisfying constraints tightened against all agents' error bounds remains feasible for every admissible disturbance realization. The method is demonstrated on two adversarial on-orbit games with coupled translational-attitude dynamics: a stealthy co-orbital jamming game under an active detection-probability bound, and a sun-blocking game in which an adversary disables an evader by decreasing solar power