Despite their growing popularity, swarms of robots remain limited by the operating time of each individual. We present algorithms which allow a human to sculpt a swarm of robots into a shape that persists in space perpetually, independent of onboard energy constraints such as batteries. Robots generate a path through a shape such that robots cycle in and out of the shape. Robots inside the shape react to human initiated changes and adapt the path through the shape accordingly. Robots outside the shape recharge and return to the shape so that the shape can persist indefinitely. The presented algorithms communicate shape changes throughout the swarm using message passing and robot motion. These algorithms enable the swarm to persist through any arbitrary changes to the shape. We describe these algorithms in detail and present their performance in simulation and on a swarm of mobile robots. The result is a swarm behavior more suitable for extended duration, dynamic shape-based tasks in applications such as agriculture and emergency response.

翻译：尽管机器人群体日益流行，但每个个体的运行时间仍限制了其应用。我们提出了相关算法，允许人类将机器人群体雕刻成一种可在空间中永久存在的形状，该形状不受电池等机载能量限制。机器人通过形状生成路径，使得机器人循环进出该形状。形状内部的机器人会对人类发起的形状变化做出响应，并相应调整穿过形状的路径。形状外部的机器人则进行充电并返回形状，从而使形状能够无限期持续。所提出的算法通过消息传递和机器人运动在整个群体中传达形状变化。这些算法使群体能够适应对形状的任何任意变化。我们详细描述了这些算法，并在仿真和移动机器人群体中展示了其性能。其结果是产生了一种更适用于农业、应急响应等领域中需长时间持续、基于动态形状的任务的群体行为。