A scale variational principle of Herglotz

The Herglotz problem is a generalization of the fundamental problem of the calculus of variations. In this paper, we consider a class of non-differentiable functions, where the dynamics is described by a scale derivative. Necessary conditions are derived to determine the optimal solution for the problem. Some other problems are considered, like transversality conditions, the multi-dimensional case, higher-order derivatives and for several independent variables.

The Herglotz variational problem on spheres and its optimal control approach

The main goal of this paper is to extend the generalized variational problem of Herglotz type to the more general context of the Euclidean sphere S^n. Motivated by classical results on Euclidean spaces, we derive the generalized Euler-Lagrange equation for the corresponding variational problem defined on the Riemannian manifold S^n. Moreover, the problem is formulated from an optimal control point of view and it is proved that the Euler-Lagrange equation can be obtained from the Hamiltonian equations. It is also highlighted the geodesic problem on spheres as a particular case of the generalized Herglotz problem.