# All Questions

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### In an integer program, how I can force a binary variable to equal 1 if some condition holds?

Suppose we have a binary or continuous variable $x$, a binary variable $y$, and a constant $b$, and we want to enforce a relationship like If $x \gtreqless b$, then $y = 1$. How can we write this ...
2answers
419 views

### In an integer program, how can I “activate” a constraint only if a decision variable has a certain value?

Suppose we have the constraint $$a_1x_1 + \cdots + a_nx_n \gtreqless b,$$ where $a_i$ and $b$ are constants and $x_i$ are decision variables. Suppose also that we want the constraint to hold if $y=1$ (...
1answer
677 views

### What are good reference books for introduction to operations research?

The reference books should cover the wide range of problem-solving techniques and methods.
1answer
833 views

### How to formulate (linearize) a maximum function in a constraint?

How to formulate (linearize) a maximum function in a constraint? Suppose $C = \max \{c_1, c_2\}$, where both $c_1$ and $c_2$ are variables. If the objective function is minimizing $C$, then it can be ...
1answer
2k views

### How to linearize the product of a binary and a non-negative continuous variable?

Suppose we have a binary variable $x$ and a non-negative continuous variable $y$. How can we linearize the product $x y$?
15answers
1k views

### Recommended books/materials for practical applications of Operations Research in industry

I have a Masters' degree in Mathematics. I've very fair understanding of methods and techniques of Operations Research. I am looking for a good book/material where I can see a lot of examples on Math ...
5answers
2k views

### When to use indicator constraints versus big-M approaches in solving (mixed-)integer programs

Various optimization modeling languages and solvers allow for both indicator constraints (see for example here, here and here) and traditional binary variable and big-M approaches can be used to model ...
2answers
922 views

### Why is it important to choose big-M carefully and what are the consequences of doing it badly?

The question here discusses the two different use of "big-M method", where one of them is the big-M in logical constraints and linearization in (mixed-)integer programming problems (that's what I'm ...
4answers
609 views

### Single reference for Mixed Integer Programming formulations to linearize, handle logical constraints and disjunctive constraints, do Big M, etc?

Is there a single crisp and accessible reference which covers how to generate Mixed Integer Programming formulations to linearize products, handle logical constraints and disjunctive constraints, do ...
2answers
2k views

### How to linearize the product of two binary variables?

Suppose we have two binary variables $x$ and $y$. How can we linearize the product $xy$?
1answer
805 views

### How to linearize min function as a constraint?

I'm trying to solve an optimization problem including following constraint, and I need to linearize it in a maximization nonlinear programming model. Please help me to reformulate it with mixed ...
1answer
291 views

### Comparison of Algebraic modelling languages and general programming languages

Some optimization software/frameworks (commercial or open-source) such as AMPL, GAMS, Cplex, ... have a specific Algebraic modelling language. Some of them have another type of programming that uses ...
1answer
837 views

### What are common and not so common abbreviations in Operations Research?

Many abbreviations are used in Operations Research. For example, we have abbreviations for problem classes (LP, MIP), solution methods (IPM), and specific problems (TSP, VRP). Which abbreviations are ...
4answers
503 views

### Why are integer minimax problems hard?

Problems that have a minimax-type structure are notoriously hard to solve. For example, the $p$-median problem from facility location (choose $p$ facilities to minimize demand-weighted distance to ...
2answers
350 views

### Linear and Integer programming materials

I was wondering if you could refer me to some online video/text resources to learn linear and integer programming. I am intending to work in the field of data science. I greatly appreciate your kind ...
6answers
706 views

### Where can I find open source LP solvers?

I'm familiar with COIN-OR and have also used a couple packages in R to solve LPs. Today I found out Google has their own open source optimization software, and it got me wondering what other open ...
2answers
725 views

### State-of-the-art algorithms for solving linear programs

Průša and Werner (2019) show that the general linear programming problem reduces in nearly linear time to the LP relaxations of many classical NP-hard problems (assuming sparse encoding of instances)....
2answers
445 views

### Expressing a chain of boolean ORs using ILP

How to express a chain of OR operations in an ILP in which each expression is a less than or equal constraint and the left hand side variable in all inequalities is always the same? All the variables ...
5answers
833 views

### How to linearize the product of two continuous variables?

Suppose we have two variables $x, y \in \mathbb R$. How can we linearize the product $xy$? If this cannot be done exactly, is there a way to get an approximate result?
1answer
255 views

### I've formulated my optimization model; now what?

I've formulated my linear/nonlinear/integer/mixed-integer optimization problem in algebraic form (possibly with the help of the folks on this site). Now what? How do I solve it?
7answers
901 views

### Optimization Problem Libraries

Can someone please make a list of optimization problem libraries so that the community can add to and refine it? I know a few off the top of my head.
9answers
1k views

### Counter-intuitive results in OR

When teaching introductory OR courses I have often found that presenting counter-intuitive or paradox-like results is a great eye-opener for the students. I use these examples and results as a ...
10answers
4k views

### Machine learning and operations research projects

Can someone give me some suggestions for projects that use both machine learning/deep learning and operations research to solve business problems? Background: I am a student in OR and I am learning ...
13answers
8k views

### Are Python and Julia used for optimization in industry?

I am giving a small computer exercise that aims at teaching students the basics of a modelling language to model small optimization problems. So far I have been using the modelling language GAMS as ...
8answers
817 views

### Why is the programming code of many algorithms not public in the OR community?

In recent years, a huge number of scholars in AI and ML community are using Python to develop their algorithms and then publishing their papers and codes in GitHub. This provides an opportunity for ...
7answers
658 views

### Deploying OR solutions and shipping projects

My background is a bachelor in mathematics. I learned basics OR on my own using the following : Introduction to Operations Research by F. Hillier and G. Lieberman Integer programming by l. Wolsey How ...
3answers
3k views

### How to select a Constraint Programming Solver

I would like to clarify that I am absolutely not an expert when it comes to constraint programming (I happen to use it when it seems to be the right tool for the right job). It is my understanding ...
9answers
3k views

### What are Operations Research applications for 'good causes'?

I am looking for applications of OR for good causes, possibly with some literature. I intend a good cause loosely defined in the sense that the scope is that of improving the well-being of others, e.g....
6answers
2k views

### List of Implementations for common OR problems

For the TSP there famously is the concord solver (http://www.math.uwaterloo.ca/tsp/concorde.html) which is argubly the fastest exact solver for the TSP. There are many other problems that also show ...
7answers
528 views

### What are the main differences between Operations Research in the academic world, in the enterprise world and in the government world?

For anyone who's been on both sides of the fence: how does academic OR differ from OR in enterprises or governments?
6answers
1k views

### How to compare two different formulations of a problem?

I somewhat know how to compare two MILP formulations of a problem that both use the same set of decision variables (as in the classical MTZ vs DFJ formulations of the TSP). I was wondering how two ...
4answers
2k views

### Find feasible point in polynomial time in linear programming

Background A while ago my team was implementing an interior point LP solver and we came across the following conundrum: Is there a polynomial-time algorithm to find a feasible starting point in ...
3answers
319 views

### Feeding known lower bounds to solvers

Given an optimization problem that aims at minimizing some objective function, a lower bound that is valid for all optimal solutions, and your solver of choice: For what theoretical and/or practical (...
5answers
1k views

### Examples of machine learning applied to operations research?

Can someone give me a few examples, if they exist, of problems in operations research that could be solved using machine learning. I am aware that machine learning examples are data-driven and do not ...
3answers
3k views

### What is the purpose of libraries like Pyomo and Google OR tools?

I'm new to the OR world, and trying to learn the various tools available. I originally thought that Pyomo and Google OR tools were open source alternatives to commercial solvers like Gurobi or CPLEX. ...
4answers
490 views

### CPLEX non-convex Quadratic Programming algorithms

CPLEX solves non-convex quadratic problems to global optimality with a global optimality option (in version 12). The relevant pages are this and this. I benchmarked many solvers, and see that CPLEX ...
3answers
1k views

### What is the difference between integer programming and constraint programming?

At first glance both approaches appear to be very similar. What are the major differences between integer programming and constraint programming?
2answers
1k views

### How does a warm start work in LP/MIP?

Can someone explain how warm starts/ MIP starts work? How do solvers like CPLEX/GUROBI use warm start with the Simplex algorithm? I am interested in understanding how the entire warm start ...
3answers
425 views

### Using CPLEX “solution pool” to count feasible points

Some problems call for a count of the number of integer "lattice" points contained in a feasible region (rather than for locating the minimum or maximum objective function value in that region). See ...
1answer
225 views

### Expressing a chain of boolean ORs using ILP involving different variables

How can I express a chain of OR operations in an ILP, given that each operand is an inequality between two binary variables? I have asked a similar question here: Chain of Boolean ORs. In that ...
5answers
2k views

### Algorithms vs LP or MIP

Is there a way of writing an algorithm with if-, while-statements to find an optimal solution without using linear-programming (LP)/MIP? If so, what would the benefits be against the LP/MIP? Is it ...
3answers
1k views

### Is there a heuristic approach to the MILP problem?

I have the following optimization problem which is a MILP. I can solve it with a MILP solver. \begin{align}\min_t&\quad t\\\text{s.t.}&\quad d_{c}-t\le \sum_{n=1}^{N} B_{n,c}x_{n}\le d_{c}+t,...
1answer
169 views

### When using docplex.cp is it possible to get all feasible solutions?

I would like to solve an ILP and get all feasible solutions (even the worst one). How could I do that using docplex.cp? I've seen a similar question in: Using CPLEX "solution pool" to count ...
2answers
184 views

### Matrix in ampl: constraint that the values ​are all different

I'm solving the magic square problem for my operational research exam. The constraints of my model are that the sum of the elements on the lines must be equal to a constant (var constant), that the ...
0answers
78 views

### Conditional constraint formulation [duplicate]

How can I create constraints to make sure $x=1$ if $k\geq 0$ and $x=0$ if $k<0$, where $x\in \{0,1\}$ and $k\in \mathbb{R}$? Here is my attempt: \label{cons:1} \begin{aligned} ...
2answers
191 views

### Some theories and laws of Operations Research? [closed]

Can I know some theories and laws of Operation Research which has being widely used nowadays?
9answers
381 views

### Reference for column generation applications

When talking about column generation algorithms, the main example is the cutting stock problem. I'm aware that variations of vehicle routing problem (VRP) can be solved using a column generation ...
10answers
6k views

### Are there any COVID-19 (coronavirus) related optimization problems with input datasets that we can “crowd solve”?

Is anyone aware of a medicine/vaccine related challenges with a good problem definition and some available input datasets, ideally related to COVID-19? What kind of constraint solving challenges would ...
9answers
5k views

### What are the reasons OR industry projects fail?

You probably have done some OR projects within the industry or - if you are in academia - for the industry. I'm wondering if you've seen some patterns of why such projects fail (or at least do not ...
3answers
391 views

### What are best practices to make optimization user interfaces intuitive for the user?

For many operations research applications a user will often be in charge of making the final decision and will use the optimization algorithms software as a part of their planning flow. Therefore, ...

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