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RWTHx: Mathematical Optimization for Engineers

4.3 stars
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Learn the mathematical and computational basics for applying optimization successfully. Master the different formulations and the important concepts behind their solution methods. Learn to implement and solve optimization problems in Python through the practical exercises.

8 weeks
6–8 hours per week
Self-paced
Progress at your own speed
Free
Optional upgrade available

There is one session available:

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Starts Mar 19
Ends Dec 11

About this course

Skip About this course

Today, for almost every product on the market and almost every service offered, some form of optimization has played a role in their design.

However, optimization is not a button-press technology. To apply it successfully, one needs expertise in formulating the problem, selecting and tuning the solution algorithm and finally, checking the results. We have designed this course to make you such an expert.

This course is useful to students of all engineering fields. The mathematical and computational concepts that you will learn here have application in machine learning, operations research, signal and image processing, control, robotics and design to name a few.

We will start with the standard unconstrained problems, linear problems and general nonlinear constrained problems. We will then move to more specialized topics including mixed-integer problems; global optimization for non-convex problems; optimal control problems; machine learning for optimization and optimization under uncertainty. Students will learn to implement and solve optimization problems in Python through the practical exercises.

At a glance

  • Institution: RWTHx
  • Subject: Engineering
  • Level: Intermediate
  • Prerequisites:

    You should have basic knowledge of linear algebra, vector calculus and ordinary differential equations. Familiarity with numerical computing is helpful but not required; programming tasks will be kept basic and simple. You will write simple Python scripts in Jupyter notebooks. We will provide some basic Python tutorials.

  • Language: English
  • Video Transcript: English
  • Associated skills:Operations Research, Machine Learning, Image Processing, Python (Programming Language), Mathematical Optimization, Basic Math, Algorithms, Optimal Control, Robotics

What you'll learn

Skip What you'll learn
  • Mathematical definitions of objective function, degrees of freedom, constraints and optimal solution
  • Mathematical as well as intuitive understanding of optimality conditions
  • Different optimization formulations (unconstrained v/s constrained; linear v/s nonlinear; mixed-integer v/s continuous; time-continuous or dynamic; optimization under uncertainty)
  • Fundamentals of the solution methods for each these formulations
  • Optimization with machine learning embedded
  • Hands-on training in implementing and solving optimization problems in Python, as exercises

Week 1: Introduction and math review

  • Mathematical definitions of objective function, degrees of freedom, constraints and optimal solution with real-world examples
  • Review of some mathematical basics needed to take us through the course

Week 2: Unconstrained optimization

  • Basics of iterative descent: step direction and step length
  • Common algorithms like steepest descent, Newton’s method and its variants and trust-region methods.

Week 3: Linear optimization

  • KKT conditions of optimality for constrained problems
  • Simplex method
  • Interior point methods

Week 4: Nonlinear optimization

  • Penalty, log-barrier and SQP methods

Mixed-integer optimization

  • Branch and bound method for mixed-integer linear problems

Week 5: Global optimization

  • Branch and bound method for nonlinear non-convex problems
  • Constructing relaxations
  • Different formulations and their numerical performance
  • Stochastic methods, genetic algorithm and derivative free methods

Week 6: Dynamic optimization

  • Full discretization, single-shooting and multi-shooting methods
  • Nonlinear model predictive control

Week 7: Machine learning for optimization

  • Mechanistic, data-driven and hybrid modelling
  • Basics of training machine learning models
  • Optimization with machine learning embedded

Week 8: Optimization under uncertainty

  • Parametric optimization
  • Two stage stochastic problems
  • Robust optimization via semi-infinite problems

Who can take this course?

Unfortunately, learners residing in one or more of the following countries or regions will not be able to register for this course: Iran, Cuba and the Crimea region of Ukraine. While edX has sought licenses from the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to offer our courses to learners in these countries and regions, the licenses we have received are not broad enough to allow us to offer this course in all locations. edX truly regrets that U.S. sanctions prevent us from offering all of our courses to everyone, no matter where they live.

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