Formal techniques for the modelling and validation of a co-operating UAV team that uses Dubins set for path planning

Formal methods have been deployed with great success to validate zero-fault tolerant systems such as hardware chips, real-time operating systems (RTOSs). Another feasible application area for formal techniques is in the modelling and verification of cooperative unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) teams. The rationale being, multi-UAV coordination for cooperative control is a time-critical, zero-fault tolerant activity involving dynamic planning and real-time decision making. This provides sufficient incentive for designers to prove that the proposed system architecture works as advertised. In this paper, a simulation scenario involving multiple UAVs for co-ordinated arrival at a specified target using Dubins' curves, is modelled using the Kripke models of "possible worlds". This formal model is then subjected to a proof verification technique known as model checking, for verifying the safety, reachability, etc. This novel framework is sophisticated enough to be reusable, and consequently, be able to address scalability issues.