Robust optimal identification experiment design for multisine excitation

In least costly experiment design, the optimal spectrum of an identification experiment is determined in such a way that the cost of the experiment is minimized under some accuracy constraint on the identified parameter vector. Like all optimal experiment design problems, this optimization problem depends on the unknown true system, which is generally replaced by an initial estimate. One important consequence of this is that we can underestimate the actual cost of the experiment and that the accuracy of the identified model can be lower than desired. Here, based on an a-priori uncertainty set for the true system, we propose a convex optimization approach that allows to prevent these issues from happening. We do this when the to-be-determined spectrum is the one of a multisine signal.