The study on collective circular motion has attracted researchers over the past years. Many control algorithms have been successfully developed for achieving various circular motion patterns. However, the existing algorithms rely on more or less global information including a reference beacon, a common reference frame, agent labels, or agent homogeneity. In this paper, an improved algorithm is proposed for a group of heterogeneous agents, not relying on any of the aforementioned global information. The algorithm is supported by analytical analysis and verified in both simulation and experiments. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.