Abstract: The emerging engineering and engineering education reform have highlighted the three concepts of student-centered, outcome-based and continuous improvement in China. It points out the direction for curriculum construction and reform. The textbook construction is significant but easily overlooked in curriculum construction and reform, which is an important support for talent training. Taking the optimal control course as an example, this paper presents the textbook construction based on the concept of outcome-based education (OBE). On the basis of briefing the development history of the optimal control over the past 300 years and related textbook construction during the past 60 years, this study introduces the design procedure and characteristics of new textbooks in detail. It would provide references for the construction of OBE textbooks in the future.