COoperative Multiagent System for automated TArget Recognition by UAVs (COMSTAR)

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) use has increased significantly, from rudimentary reconnaissance to complex missions. In the process of becoming smarter, UAVs have also become more complex and a lot more expensive. An alternative to the complex and costly UAV model is a new paradigm employing multiple, smaller UAVs that operate in virtual swarms to achieve the complex objectives of today’s missions. The advantage of this approach is clearly in the overall cost, increased redundancy, and a drastic reduction in single points of failure. The challenge is to develop swarming behaviors that can cope with the difficult conditions of combat. The team of 21st Century Systems, Inc. and the University of Nebraska, Omaha propose to continue research and development of a concept called Co-Operative Multi-agent Automated Target Recognition UAVs (COMSTAR) to take advantage of advances in multi-agent system software and the latest sensor and processing capabilities. The strength of the proposed concept is in the use of ant-based algorithms to produce emergent properties via software agents forming a larger entity with behavioral properties in its own right. Members of a COMSTAR swarm can congregate to exchange information and resources with each other making them more resilient to communication failures and degradation.