Predictive control as defined in this book is a method of process control in which a model is used to predict the future behavior of the process. This prediction is then compared with the actual, controlled process behavior, which is then fed back into the model.

After a brief introduction, this book contains four chapters: “Design,” “Analysis of Design Parameters,” “Control with Output Constraints,” and “Applications.” The author provides six appendices, and an excellent bibliography details 68 otherwise hard-to-find papers and reports published through 1991.

The author suggests that the book is suitable for graduate students and research workers, and the text justifies this claim. The presentation, while highly mathematical, is lucid. Two detailed practical applications are discussed: the high-speed wind tunnel at the Dutch National Aerospace Laboratory and the distillation column at a major Dutch refinery.

A large number of examples can be worked out by the reader or illuminated by the solutions that the author provides. An excellent feature is Appendix F, where a complete set of applications software in MATLAB script form is to be found. The book achieves its objective and can be recommended to all students and workers in control engineering.