Dynamically Augmented CVaR for MDPs

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Feinberg, Eugene A., Ding, Rui
Format: Preprint
Published: 2022
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author Feinberg, Eugene A.
Ding, Rui
author_facet Feinberg, Eugene A.
Ding, Rui
contents This paper studies optimization of Conditional Value-at-Risk (CVaR) for Markov Decision Processes (MDPs) with finite state and action sets. It introduces the Dynamically augmented CVaR (DCVaR) risk measure and provides an algorithm for its optimization. This paper investigates a specially defined Robust MDP (RMDP), in which the state space is augmented with the tail risk level. This RMDP, which we call the Dynamically augmented RMDP (DRMDP), was introduced to the literature for calculations of optimal CVaR values by value iteration more than ten years ago, but, as was understood later, these value iterations compute lower bounds of minimal static CVaRs. DCVaR is defined as a time consistent version of the static CVaR, and it is a lower bound of the static CVaR. It also can be considered as a dynamic version of the nested CVaR. This paper provides an algorithm constructing a policy optimizing DCVaR of total discounted costs. The correctness of this algorithm is proved by studying a special mass transfer problem. The results on RMDPs needed for this paper are provided in the appendix.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2211_07288
institution arXiv
publishDate 2022
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Dynamically Augmented CVaR for MDPs
Feinberg, Eugene A.
Ding, Rui
Optimization and Control
90C40, 91B05
This paper studies optimization of Conditional Value-at-Risk (CVaR) for Markov Decision Processes (MDPs) with finite state and action sets. It introduces the Dynamically augmented CVaR (DCVaR) risk measure and provides an algorithm for its optimization. This paper investigates a specially defined Robust MDP (RMDP), in which the state space is augmented with the tail risk level. This RMDP, which we call the Dynamically augmented RMDP (DRMDP), was introduced to the literature for calculations of optimal CVaR values by value iteration more than ten years ago, but, as was understood later, these value iterations compute lower bounds of minimal static CVaRs. DCVaR is defined as a time consistent version of the static CVaR, and it is a lower bound of the static CVaR. It also can be considered as a dynamic version of the nested CVaR. This paper provides an algorithm constructing a policy optimizing DCVaR of total discounted costs. The correctness of this algorithm is proved by studying a special mass transfer problem. The results on RMDPs needed for this paper are provided in the appendix.
title Dynamically Augmented CVaR for MDPs
topic Optimization and Control
90C40, 91B05
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2211.07288