title: A new approach to the stability analysis of continuous-time distributed consensus algorithms.
abstract: In this letter, we propose a new approach for the stability analysis of distributed continuous-time consensus algorithms in directed networks with time-dependent communication patterns. Instead of using a continuous-time Lyapunov function, we show how to analyze such a continuous-time algorithm by converting it to a discrete-time model. By using this method, we obtain a more general convergence result than existing ones. An example with numerical simulation is also provided to illustrate the theoretical results.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Mathematics Science, School of Mathematical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, PR China. liu7bo9@gmail.com
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Wenlian
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Tianping
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D003198:Computer Simulation; D032921:Consensus; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D016571:Neural Networks, Computer; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: Almost sure convergence; Consensus; Discontinuous; Distributed algorithms; Multiagent systems; Switching