Control systems with nonlinear finite-dimensional state equation and nonlinear output equation are considered. A method for designing different types of moving horizon observers is proposed. The moving horizon observer produces an estimate of the state of the nonlinear system. The proposed design method is based on some optimization strategy. In the second part of the paper, it is shown that a combined observer-controller strategy ensures global stabilization of the closed- loop nonlinear system.
Moreover, many remarks and comments on observers and stabilization of nonlinear systems are presented. A significant feature of the results presented here consists in the relaxation of assumptions given in [the authors, “Moving horizon observers” in Proc. IFAC Symposium on “Nonlinear Control Systems Design” NOLCOS’92, Bordeaux/France, June, 1992, pp. 576-581].