Geared toward upper-level undergraduates, this text introduces three aspects of optimal control theory: dynamic programming, Pontryagin's minimum principle, and numerical techniques for trajectory optimization. The text focuses first on describing systems and evaluating their performances; then, it treats dynamic programming followed by the calculus of variations and Pontryagin's minimum principle. Finally, there is an examination of iterative numerical techniques for finding optimal controls and trajectories. Numerous problems, which introduce additional topics and illustrate basic concepts, appear throughout the text. 1970 ed. 131 figures. 14 tables. Index. Solution guide available upon request.