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Inside Collection:

Collection by: Rupinder Sekhon. E-mail the author

# Linear Programming: A Geometric Approach

Module by: Rupinder Sekhon. E-mail the author

Summary: This chapter covers principles of a geometrical approach to linear programming. After completing this chapter students should be able to: solve linear programming problems that maximize the objective function and solve linear programming problems that minimize the objective function.

## Chapter Overview

In this chapter, you will learn to:

1. Solve linear programming problems that maximize the objective function.
2. Solve linear programming problems that minimize the objective function.

## Maximization Applications

Application problems in business, economics, and social and life sciences often ask us to make decisions on the basis of certain conditions. These conditions or constraints often take the form of inequalities. In this section, we will look at such problems.

A typical linear programming problem consists of finding an extreme value of a linear function subject to certain constraints. We are either trying to maximize or minimize our function. That is why these linear programming problems are classified as maximization or minimization problems, or just optimization problems. The function we are trying to optimize is called an objective function, and the conditions that must be satisfied are called constraints. In this chapter, we will do problems that involve only two variables, and therefore, can be solved by graphing. We begin by solving a maximization problem.

### Example 1

#### Problem 1

Niki holds two part-time jobs, Job I and Job II. She never wants to work more than a total of 12 hours a week. She has determined that for every hour she works at Job I, she needs 2 hours of preparation time, and for every hour she works at Job II, she needs one hour of preparation time, and she cannot spend more than 16 hours for preparation. If she makes $40 an hour at Job I, and$30 an hour at Job II, how many hours should she work per week at each job to maximize her income?

##### Solution

We start by choosing our variables.

Let x=The number of hours per week Niki will work at Job I.x=The number of hours per week Niki will work at Job I. size 12{x="The number of hours per week Niki will work at Job I" "." } {}

and y=The number of hours per week Niki will work at Job II.y=The number of hours per week Niki will work at Job II. size 12{y="The number of hours per week Niki will work at Job II" "." } {}

Now we write the objective function. Since Niki gets paid $40 an hour at Job I, and$30 an hour at Job II, her total income I is given by the following equation.

I=40x+30yI=40x+30y size 12{I="40"x+"30"y} {}
(1)

Our next task is to find the constraints. The second sentence in the problem states, "She never wants to work more than a total of 12 hours a week." This translates into the following constraint:

x+y12x+y12 size 12{x+y <= "12"} {}
(2)

The third sentence states, "For every hour she works at Job I, she needs 2 hours of preparation time, and for every hour she works at Job II, she needs one hour of preparation time, and she cannot spend more than 16 hours for preparation." The translation follows.

2x+y162x+y16 size 12{2x+y <= "16"} {}
(3)

The fact that xx size 12{x} {} and yy size 12{y} {} can never be negative is represented by the following two constraints:

x0x0 size 12{x >= 0} {}, and y0y0 size 12{y >= 0} {}.

Well, good news! We have formulated the problem. We restate it as

Maximize I = 40 x + 30 y I = 40 x + 30 y size 12{I="40"x+"30"y} {}

Subject to: x + y 12 x + y 12 size 12{x+y <= "12"} {}

2x+y162x+y16 size 12{2x+y <= "16"} {}
(4)
x0;y0x0;y0 size 12{x >= 0;y >= 0} {}
(5)

In order to solve the problem, we graph the constraints as follows.

Observe that we have shaded the region where all conditions are satisfied. This region is called the feasibility region or the feasibility polygon.

The Fundamental Theorem of Linear Programming states that the maximum (or minimum) value of the objective function always takes place at the vertices of the feasibility region.

Therefore, we will identify all the vertices of the feasibility region. We call these points critical points. They are listed as (0, 0), (0, 12), (4, 8), (8, 0). To maximize Niki's income, we will substitute these points in the objective function to see which point gives us the highest income per week. We list the results below.

 Critical Points Income (0,0) 40 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 0 ) = $0 40 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 0 ) =$ 0 size 12{"40" $$0$$ +"30" $$0$$ =$0} {} (0.12) 40 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 12 ) =$ 360 40 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 12 ) = $360 size 12{"40" $$0$$ +"30" $$"12"$$ =$"360"} {} (4,8) 40 ( 4 ) + 30 ( 8 ) = $400 40 ( 4 ) + 30 ( 8 ) =$ 400 size 12{"40" $$4$$ +"30" $$8$$ =$"400"} {} (8,0) 40 ( 8 ) + 30 ( 0 ) =$ 320 40 ( 8 ) + 30 ( 0 ) = $320 size 12{"40" $$8$$ +"30" $$0$$ =$"320"} {}

Clearly, the point (4, 8) gives the most profit: $400. Therefore, we conclude that Niki should work 4 hours at Job I, and 8 hours at Job II. ### Example 2 #### Problem 1 A factory manufactures two types of gadgets, regular and premium. Each gadget requires the use of two operations, assembly and finishing, and there are at most 12 hours available for each operation. A regular gadget requires 1 hour of assembly and 2 hours of finishing, while a premium gadget needs 2 hours of assembly and 1 hour of finishing. Due to other restrictions, the company can make at most 7 gadgets a day. If a profit of$20 is realized for each regular gadget and $30 for a premium gadget, how many of each should be manufactured to maximize profit? ##### Solution We choose our variables. Let x=The number of regular gadgets manufactured each day.x=The number of regular gadgets manufactured each day. size 12{x="The number of regular gadgets manufactured each day" "." } {} and y=The number of premium gadgets manufactured each day.y=The number of premium gadgets manufactured each day. size 12{y="The number of premium gadgets manufactured each day" "." } {} The objective function is P=20x+30yP=20x+30y size 12{P="20"x+"30"y} {} (6) We now write the constraints. The fourth sentence states that the company can make at most 7 gadgets a day. This translates as x+y7x+y7 size 12{x+y <= 7} {} (7) Since the regular gadget requires one hour of assembly and the premium gadget requires two hours of assembly, and there are at most 12 hours available for this operation, we get x+2y12x+2y12 size 12{x+2y <= "12"} {} (8) Similarly, the regular gadget requires two hours of finishing and the premium gadget one hour. Again, there are at most 12 hours available for finishing. This gives us the following constraint. 2x+y122x+y12 size 12{2x+y <= "12"} {} (9) The fact that xx size 12{x} {} and yy size 12{y} {} can never be negative is represented by the following two constraints: x0x0 size 12{x >= 0} {}, and y0y0 size 12{y >= 0} {}. We have formulated the problem as follows: Maximize P = 20 x + 30 y P = 20 x + 30 y size 12{P="20"x+"30"y} {} Subject to: x + y 7 x + y 7 size 12{x+y <= 7} {} x+2y12x+2y12 size 12{x+2y <= "12"} {} (10) 2x+y122x+y12 size 12{2x+y <= "12"} {} (11) x0;y0x0;y0 size 12{x >= 0;y >= 0} {} (12) In order to solve the problem, we graph the constraints as follows: Again, we have shaded the feasibility region, where all constraints are satisfied. Since the extreme value of the objective function always takes place at the vertices of the feasibility region, we identify all the critical points. They are listed as (0, 0), (0, 6), (2, 5), (5, 2), and (6, 0). To maximize profit, we will substitute these points in the objective function to see which point gives us the maximum profit each day. The results are listed below.  Critical point Income (0,0) 20 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 0 ) =$ 0 20 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 0 ) = $0 size 12{"20" $$0$$ +"30" $$0$$ =$0} {} (0,6) 20 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 6 ) = $180 20 ( 0 ) + 30 ( 6 ) =$ 180 size 12{"20" $$0$$ +"30" $$6$$ =$"180"} {} (2,5) 20 ( 2 ) + 30 ( 5 ) =$ 190 20 ( 2 ) + 30 ( 5 ) = $190 size 12{"20" $$2$$ +"30" $$5$$ =$"190"} {} (5,2) 20 ( 5 ) + 30 ( 2 ) = $160 20 ( 5 ) + 30 ( 2 ) =$ 160 size 12{"20" $$5$$ +"30" $$2$$ =$"160"} {} (6,0) 20 ( 6 ) + 30 ( 0 ) =$ 120 20 ( 6 ) + 30 ( 0 ) = $120 size 12{"20" $$6$$ +"30" $$0$$ =$"120"} {}

The point (2, 5) gives the most profit, and that profit is $190. Therefore, we conclude that we should manufacture 2 regular gadgets and 5 premium gadgets daily for a profit of$190.

Although we are mostly focusing on the standard maximization problems where all constraints are of the form ax+by0ax+by0 size 12{ ital "ax"+ ital "by" <= 0} {}, we will now consider an example where that is not the case.

### Example 3

#### Problem 1

Solve the following maximization problem graphically.

Maximize P = 10 x + 15 y P = 10 x + 15 y size 12{P="10"x+"15"y} {}

Subject to: x + y 1 x + y 1 size 12{x+y >= 1} {}

x+2y6x+2y6 size 12{x+2y <= 6} {}
(13)
2x+y62x+y6 size 12{2x+y <= 6} {}
(14)
x0;y0x0;y0 size 12{x >= 0;y >= 0} {}
(15)
##### Solution

The graph is shown below.

The five critical points are listed in the above figure. Clearly, the point (2, 2) maximizes the objective function to a maximum value of 50. The reader should observe that the first constraint x+y1x+y1 requires that feasibility region must be bounded below by the line x+y=1x+y=1.

Finally, we address an important question. Is it possible to determine the point that gives the maximum value without calculating the value at each critical point?

### Example 6

#### Problem 1

Professor Hamer is on a low cholesterol diet. During lunch at the college cafeteria, he always chooses between two meals, Pasta or Tofu. The table below lists the amount of protein, carbohydrates, and vitamins each meal provides along with the amount of cholesterol he is trying to minimize. Mr. Hamer needs at least 200 grams of protein, 960 grams of carbohydrates, and 40 grams of vitamins for lunch each month. Over this time period, how many days should he have the Pasta meal, and how many days the Tofu meal so that he gets the adequate amount of protein, carbohydrates, and vitamins and at the same time minimizes his cholesterol intake?

 Pasta Tofu Protein 8g 16g Carbohydrates 60g 40g Vitamin C 2g 2g Cholesterol 60mg 50mg
##### Solution

We choose the variables as follows.

Let x = The number of days Mr. Hamer eats Pasta.

and y = The number of days Mr. Hamer eats Tofu.

Since he is trying to minimize his cholesterol intake, our objective function represents the total amount of cholesterol C provided by both meals.

C=60x+50yC=60x+50y
(23)

The constraint associated with the total amount of protein provided by both meals is as follows:

8x+16y2008x+16y200
(24)

Similarly, the two constraints associated with the total amount of carbohydrates and vitamins are obtained, and they are

60x+40y96060x+40y960
(25)
2x+2y402x+2y40
(26)

The constraints that state that x and y are non-negative are

x0,andy0x0,andy0
(27)

We summarize all information as follows:

Minimize C=60x+50yC=60x+50y

Subject to: 8x+16y2008x+16y200

60x+40y96060x+40y960
(28)
2x+2y402x+2y40
(29)
x0;y0x0;y0
(30)

To solve the problem, we graph the constraints as follows.

Again, we have shaded the unbounded feasibility region, where all constraints are satisfied.

To minimize the objective function, we find the vertices of the feasibility region. These vertices are (0, 24), (8, 12), (15, 5) and (25, 0). To minimize cholesterol, we will substitute these points in the objective function to see which point gives us the smallest value. The results are listed below.

 Critical Points Income (0,24) 60 ( 0 ) + 50 ( 24 ) = 1200 60 ( 0 ) + 50 ( 24 ) = 1200 size 12{"60" $$0$$ +"50" $$"24"$$ ="1200"} {} (8,12) 60 ( 8 ) + 50 ( 12 ) = 1080 60 ( 8 ) + 50 ( 12 ) = 1080 size 12{"60" $$8$$ +"50" $$"12"$$ ="1080"} {} (15,5) 60 ( 15 ) + 50 ( 5 ) = 1150 60 ( 15 ) + 50 ( 5 ) = 1150 size 12{"60" $$"15"$$ +"50" $$5$$ ="1150"} {} (25,0) 60 ( 25 ) + 50 ( 0 ) = 1500 60 ( 25 ) + 50 ( 0 ) = 1500 size 12{"60" $$"25"$$ +"50" $$0$$ ="1500"} {}

The point (8, 12) gives the least cholesterol, which is 1080 mg. This states that for every 20 meals, Professor Hamer should eat Pasta 8 days, and Tofu 12 days.

Although the method of solving minimization problems is similar to that of the maximization problems, we still feel that we should summarize the steps involved.

### Minimization Linear Programming Problems

1. Write the objective function.
2. Write the constraints.
1. a) For standard minimization linear programming problems, constraints are of the form: ax+bycax+byc size 12{ ital "ax"+ ital "by" >= c} {}
2. b) Since the variables are non-negative, include the constraints: x0x0 size 12{x >= 0} {}; y0y0 size 12{y >= 0} {}.
3. Graph the constraints.
5. Find the corner points.
6. Determine the corner point that gives the minimum value.
1. a) This can be done by finding the value of the objective function at each corner point.
2. b) This can also be done by moving the line associated with the objective function.
3. c) There is the possibility that the problem has no solution.

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