Abstract

This study proposes a decentralized many-to-many negotiation protocol for collaborative collision avoidance of Autonomous Surface Vehicles (ASVs). The protocol enables heterogeneous vehicles with different collision avoidance algorithms to negotiate in the same framework using asynchronous communication. To achieve fully decentralized decision-making, the problem is modeled as a Distributed Constraint Optimization Problem (DCOP) and solved using a Distributed Stochastic Search Algorithm (DSSA). Additionally, each vehicle adjusts its decision variables within the range of egocentric and altruistic behaviors using the Monotonic Concession Protocol and Fuzzy Logic. The proposed negotiation protocol is tested with two different reactive collision avoidance algorithms, considering some of the navigational rules (COLREG), and verified both with simulation and field experiments.