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A dual-control effect preserving formulation for nonlinear output-feedback stochastic model predictive control with constraints

We propose a formulation for approximate constrained nonlinear output-feedback stochastic model predictive control. Starting from the ideal but intractable stochastic optimal control problem (OCP), which involves the optimization over output-dependent policies, we use linearization with respect to the uncertainty to derive a tractable approximation which includes knowledge of the output model. This allows us to compute the expected value for the outer functions of the OCP exactly. Crucially, the dual control effect is preserved by this approximation. In consequence, the resulting controller is aware of how the choice of inputs affects the information available in the future which in turn influences subsequent controls.