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Swarm Behavior

Doctrinal Formations, Movement Techniques, and BLE Leader-Spoke Control — Phase 46

Purpose​

Swarm Behavior enables multiple Sphero RVR+ ground robots to coordinate as a tactical unit under DAO governance. A vision-equipped swarm leader (equipped with the Jetson Orin Nano) receives mission assignments from BASTION, translates them into formation commands, and drives headless follower platforms directly over Bluetooth Low Energy. Follower positions are tracked via dead reckoning. The swarm operates in doctrinal formations drawn from joint ground movement doctrine, providing a governance-bound demonstration of multi-robot autonomous coordination.

Components​

Swarm Leader Concept​

  • One RVR+ is designated swarm leader — the only unit equipped with a CSI camera and vision pipeline (detectNet + ORB).
  • The leader receives mission orders from BASTION via the Robot Bridge.
  • The leader computes formation geometry and broadcasts position assignments to followers.
  • Leader shares detection events with followers via BLE relay.
  • If the leader loses contact with BASTION, it continues the last authorized mission within pre-set geographic and temporal bounds.

Six Doctrinal Formations​

Formation selection is based on mission type, threat axis, and terrain:

FormationUse CaseGeometry
WedgeDefault movement, all-around securityLeader at apex, followers rear-left/right
LineMaximum firepower to the frontAll robots abreast, perpendicular to direction of movement
ColumnRoad movement, depth for speedRobots in single file behind leader
Echelon LeftOblique movement, left flank protectionStepped diagonal to the left
Echelon RightOblique movement, right flank protectionStepped diagonal to the right
VeeObservation and firepower to front and flanksInverted wedge, followers forward of leader

Formation parameters include: interval (spacing between robots), reference position (leader's current location and heading), and formation type. Followers compute their target position geometrically relative to the leader.

Four Movement Techniques​

TechniqueDescription
TravelingContinuous movement, all robots advance simultaneously
Traveling OverwatchLead element advances, trail element overwatches then advances
Bounding OverwatchAlternating movement — one element stationary while the other moves
Successive BoundsEach element moves to the next bound point in sequence

Movement technique selection balances speed versus security based on the threat level conveyed in the mission order.

BLE Leader-Spoke Communication​

  • The leader drives headless followers directly over Bluetooth Low Energy.
  • No onboard compute required on followers — the leader computes formation geometry and dispatches per-follower drive commands in parallel.
  • Follower positions tracked via dead reckoning (no GPS or external localization).
  • Communication operates independently of cloud connection — the leader carries mission parameters, formation logic, and follower control locally.
  • A UDP peer mesh protocol (port 5807) is implemented for future expansion to compute-equipped peers that can participate as autonomous swarm members.

DAO-Driven Dynamic Swarm Membership​

  • Swarm membership is governed by the DAO — robots join or leave the swarm through governance proposals.
  • Adding a robot to a swarm requires DAO approval (verifies the robot's DID, authorization level, and mission clearance).
  • Removing a robot triggers graceful departure: the robot moves to a safe position before disconnecting from the formation.
  • Swarm size changes trigger automatic formation recalculation.

Leader Vision Sharing​

  • Detection events from the leader's vision pipeline (detectNet + ORB) are broadcast to all swarm members.
  • Followers receive: detection class, confidence, estimated position, and timestamp.
  • Shared detections feed into the COP layer via the telemetry relay — all swarm member positions and shared detections appear on the Common Operating Picture.

Swarm Telemetry on COP​

The COP tab renders swarm state in real time:

  • Per-robot markers on the map with heading arrows.
  • Formation polygon overlay connecting all swarm member positions.
  • Leader icon distinguished by a star marker.
  • Detection event circles showing where the leader's vision pipeline detected objects.
  • Swarm Telemetry Panel (sidebar) showing per-robot battery, heading, speed, mission state, and leader camera thumbnail.

Role Access​

RoleAccess
CommanderAuthorizes swarm missions. Selects formation and movement technique.
J3 OperationsManages swarm tasking. Monitors telemetry. Issues formation changes.
J2 IntelligenceReviews shared detection data from leader vision.
Robot OperatorPhysical setup. Joins robots to swarm. Monitors hardware health.

Doctrinal Reference​

  • ADP 3-90, Offense and Defense — Movement formations and techniques
  • ATP 3-21.8, Infantry Platoon and Squad — Formation geometry
  • BASTION Phase 46: Swarm Leadership and Doctrinal Formations
  • See also: Robot Bridge — Connectivity architecture
  • See also: Robot Vision — Leader vision pipeline

Part of the BASTION Capability Tabs documentation.