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2.5 Variational problems with constraints

In Section 2.3 we showed that the Euler-Lagrange equation is a necessary condition for optimality in the context of the Basic Calculus of Variations Problem, where the boundary points are fixed but the curves are otherwise unconstrained. In this section we generalize that result to situations where equality constraints are imposed on the admissible curves. Before proceeding, the reader should find it helpful to review the material in Section 1.2.2 devoted to constrained optimality and the method of Lagrange multipliers for finite-dimensional problems. It is also useful to recall the general definitions of an extremum from Section 1.3.1 and of an admissible perturbation from Section 1.3.2; here the function space $ V$ is the same as at the beginning of Section 2.3 while the subset $ A$ is smaller because it reflects additional constraints (to be specified below). Finally, the explanation given at the beginning of Section 2.3 applies here as well: the conditions in this section are developed mainly with the 1-norm in mind, i.e., they are primarily designed to test for weak rather than strong minima.



Subsections
next up previous contents index
Next: 2.5.1 Integral constraints Up: 2. Calculus of Variations Previous: 2.4.3 Principle of least   Contents   Index
Daniel 2010-12-20