Finite-Time Formation for Two-Wheeled Mobile Robots With a Triggered and Saturated Control

In practical applications, input saturation is an unavoidable phenomenon that can degrade system performance and even lead to instability. This work, therefore, addresses the practical finite-time formation control problem of two-wheeled mobile robots under input saturation, a consequence of the physical limitations of their drive motors. To mitigate the adverse effects of input saturation while achieving finite-time convergence, a saturated controller is developed to realize leader-follower formation control. Furthermore, event-triggered strategies—both with and without continuous monitoring—are incorporated into the proposed controller to accommodate the limited computational resources of two-wheeled mobile robots. The Zeno phenomenon is explicitly excluded by ensuring that all inter-event intervals are bounded below by a strictly positive constant. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the developed controller in achieving finite-time formation for two-wheeled mobile robots in real-world applications.