Energy-Efficient Anti-Flocking Control for Mobile Sensor Networks on Uneven Terrains

Anti-flocking controlled mobile sensor networks (MSNs) have demonstrated impressive dynamic area coverage performances. Even though MSNs are often utilized in outdoor environments that consist of uneven terrains, existing anti-flocking control protocols are designed for flat terrain navigation. Thus, they tend to maneuver mobile sensory units along shortest paths between navigation goals in an area of interest. Even though navigating along shortest paths can be both time- and energy-efficient on flat terrains, such motions can often result in excessive energy consumptions on uneven terrains. This brief proposes an energy-efficient anti-flocking control protocol for MSNs based on a terrain adaptation force and a navigation goal selection method. The proposed control protocol encourages mobile sensory units to follow terrain contours whenever feasible. Test results show that the proposed control protocol is a promising energy-efficient solution for MSNs operating on uneven terrains.