Boundary Control for Consensus in Fractional-Order Multi-Agent Systems Under DoS Attacks and Actuator Failures

This paper investigates the consensus problem in fractional-order multi-agent systems (FOMASs) under Denial of Service (DoS) attacks and actuator faults. A boundary control strategy is proposed, which reduces dependence on internal sensors and actuators by utilizing only the state information at the system boundaries, significantly lowering control costs. To address DoS attacks, a buffer mechanism is designed to store valid control signals during communication interruptions and apply them once communication is restored, thereby enhancing the system’s robustness and stability. Additionally, this study considers the impact of actuator performance fluctuations on control effectiveness and proposes corresponding adjustment strategies to ensure that the system maintains consensus and stability even in the presence of actuator failures or performance variations. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is validated through numerical experiments. The results show that, even under DoS attacks and actuator faults, the system can still successfully achieve consensus and maintain good stability, demonstrating the feasibility and effectiveness of this control approach in complex environments.