This paper describes a new way for groups of robots to make a shared choice, based on how ants seem to decide on the best new nest. Each robot only talks locally with nearby robots, but together they can still agree on the best option out of several, while avoiding the group splitting into separate camps.
It also lets the robots judge each option using several different factors, not just one. In simulations based on rock ant nest-moving behaviour, the method successfully helped the swarm pick the best choice and stay unified.
