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1. Maths
2. Math Article
3. Linear Programming
Linear Programming

In Mathematics, linear programming is a method of optimising operations with some

constraints. The main objective of linear programming is to maximize or minimize the
numerical value. It consists of linear functions which are subjected to the constraints in
the form of linear equations or in the form of inequalities. Linear programming is
considered an important technique that is used to find the optimum resource utilisation.
The term “linear programming” consists of two words as linear and programming. The
word “linear” defines the relationship between multiple variables with degree one. The
word “programming” defines the process of selecting the best solution from various
alternatives.

Linear Programming is widely used in Mathematics and some other fields such as
economics, business, telecommunication, and manufacturing fields. In this article, let us
discuss the definition of linear programming, its components, and different methods to
solve linear programming problems.

Table of Contents:

 Definition
 Components
 Characteristics
 Linear programming Problems
 Linear programming Methods

 Simplex Method

 Graphical Method

 Applications
 Uses
 Practice Problems
 FAQs
What is Linear Programming?
Linear programming (LP) or Linear Optimisation may be defined as the problem
of maximizing or minimizing a linear function that is subjected to linear constraints. The
constraints may be equalities or inequalities. The optimisation problems involve the
calculation of profit and loss. Linear programming problems are an important class of
optimisation problems, that helps to find the feasible region and optimise the solution in
order to have the highest or lowest value of the function.

In other words, linear programming is considered as an optimization method to

maximize or minimize the objective function of the given mathematical model with the
set of some requirements which are represented in the linear relationship. The main aim
of the linear programming problem is to find the optimal solution.

Linear programming is the method of considering different inequalities relevant to a

situation and calculating the best value that is required to be obtained in those
conditions. Some of the assumptions taken while working with linear programming are:

 The number of constraints should be expressed in the quantitative terms

 The relationship between the constraints and the objective function should be
linear
 The linear function (i.e., objective function) is to be optimised

Components of Linear Programming

The basic components of the LP are as follows:

 Decision Variables
 Constraints
 Data
 Objective Functions

Characteristics of Linear Programming

The following are the five characteristics of the linear programming problem:

Constraints – The limitations should be expressed in the mathematical form, regarding

the resource.
Objective Function – In a problem, the objective function should be specified in a
quantitative way.

Linearity – The relationship between two or more variables in the function must be
linear. It means that the degree of the variable is one.

Finiteness – There should be finite and infinite input and output numbers. In case, if the
function has infinite factors, the optimal solution is not feasible.

Non-negativity – The variable value should be positive or zero. It should not be a

negative value.

Decision Variables – The decision variable will decide the output. It gives the ultimate
solution of the problem. For any problem, the first step is to identify the decision
variables.

Linear Programming Problems

The Linear Programming Problems (LPP) is a problem that is concerned with finding the
optimal value of the given linear function. The optimal value can be either maximum
value or minimum value. Here, the given linear function is considered an objective
function. The objective function can contain several variables, which are subjected to
the conditions and it has to satisfy the set of linear inequalities called linear constraints.
The linear programming problems can be used to get the optimal solution for the
following scenarios, such as manufacturing problems, diet problems, transportation
problems, allocation problems and so on.

Methods to Solve Linear Programming Problems

The linear programming problem can be solved using different methods, such as the
graphical method, simplex method, or by using tools such as R, open solver etc. Here,
we will discuss the two most important techniques called the simplex method and
graphical method in detail.

Linear Programming Simplex Method

The simplex method is one of the most popular methods to solve linear programming
problems. It is an iterative process to get the feasible optimal solution. In this method,
the value of the basic variable keeps transforming to obtain the maximum value for the
objective function. The algorithm for linear programming simplex method is provided
below:

Step 1: Establish a given problem. (i.e.,) write the inequality constraints and objective
function.

Step 2: Convert the given inequalities to equations by adding the slack variable to each
inequality expression.

Step 3: Create the initial simplex tableau. Write the objective function at the bottom
row. Here, each inequality constraint appears in its own row. Now, we can represent the
problem in the form of an augmented matrix, which is called the initial simplex tableau.

Step 4: Identify the greatest negative entry in the bottom row, which helps to identify
the pivot column. The greatest negative entry in the bottom row defines the largest
coefficient in the objective function, which will help us to increase the value of the
objective function as fastest as possible.

Step 5: Compute the quotients. To calculate the quotient, we need to divide the entries
in the far right column by the entries in the first column, excluding the bottom row. The
smallest quotient identifies the row. The row identified in this step and the element
identified in the step will be taken as the pivot element.

Step 6: Carry out pivoting to make all other entries in column is zero.

Step 7: If there are no negative entries in the bottom row, end the process. Otherwise,
start from step 4.

Step 8: Finally, determine the solution associated with the final simplex tableau.

 Applications of Linear Graphs

 Linear Equations Applications

 Difference Between Linear and

Non-linear Equations

 Graphical Method Linear

Programming
Graphical Method
The graphical method is used to optimize the two-variable linear programming. If the
problem has two decision variables, a graphical method is the best method to find the
optimal solution. In this method, the set of inequalities are subjected to constraints.
Then the inequalities are plotted in the XY plane. Once, all the inequalities are plotted in
the XY graph, the intersecting region will help to decide the feasible region. The feasible
region will provide the optimal solution as well as explains what all values our model
can take. Let us see an example here and understand the concept of linear
programming in a better way.

Example:

Calculate the maximal and minimal value of z = 5x + 3y for the following constraints.

x + 2y ≤ 14

3x – y ≥ 0

x–y≤2

Solution:

The three inequalities indicate the constraints. The area of the plane that will be marked
is the feasible region.

The optimisation equation (z) = 5x + 3y. You have to find the (x,y) corner points that
give the largest and smallest values of z.

To begin with, first solve each inequality.

x + 2y ≤ 14 ⇒ y ≤ -(1/2)x + 7

3x – y ≥ 0 ⇒ y ≤ 3x

x–y≤2⇒y≥x–2

Here is the graph for the above equations.

Now pair the lines to form a system of linear equations to find the corner points.

y = -(½) x + 7

y = 3x

Solving the above equations, we get the corner points as (2, 6)

y = -1/2 x + 7

y=x–2

Solving the above equations, we get the corner points as (6, 4)

y = 3x

y=x–2
Solving the above equations, we get the corner points as (-1, -3)

For linear systems, the maximum and minimum values of the optimisation equation lie
on the corners of the feasibility region. Therefore, to find the optimum solution, you only
need to plug these three points in z = 3x + 4y

(2, 6) :

z = 5(2) + 3(6) = 10 + 18 = 28

(6, 4):

z = 5(6) + 3(4) = 30 + 12 = 42

(–1, –3):

z = 5(-1) + 3(-3) = -5 -9 = -14

Hence, the maximum of z = 42 lies at (6, 4) and the minimum of z = -14 lies at (-1, -3)

Linear Programming Applications

A real-time example would be considering the limitations of labours and materials and
finding the best production levels for maximum profit in particular circumstances. It is
part of a vital area of mathematics known as optimisation techniques. The applications
of LP in some other fields are

 Engineering – It solves design and manufacturing problems as it is helpful for

doing shape optimisation
 Efficient Manufacturing – To maximise profit, companies use linear expressions
 Energy Industry – It provides methods to optimise the electric power system.
 Transportation Optimisation – For cost and time efficiency.

Importance of Linear Programming

Linear programming is broadly applied in the field of optimisation for many reasons.
Many functional problems in operations analysis can be represented as linear
programming problems. Some special problems of linear programming are such as
network flow queries and multi-commodity flow queries are deemed to be important to
have produced much research on functional algorithms for their solution.
Linear Programming Video Lesson

Linear Programming Problem

841

Linear Programming Practice Problems

Solve the following linear programming problems:

1. A doctor wishes to mix two types of foods in such a way that the vitamin
contents of the mixture contain at least 8 units of vitamin A and 10 units of
vitamin C. Food ‘I’ contains 2 units/kg of vitamin A and 1 unit/kg of vitamin C.
Food ‘II’ contains 1 unit/kg of vitamin A and 2 units/kg of vitamin C. It costs Rs 50
per kg to purchase Food ‘I’ and Rs 70 per kg to purchase Food ‘II’. Formulate this
problem as a linear programming problem to minimise the cost of such a mixture
2. One kind of cake requires 200g of flour and 25g of fat, and another kind of cake
requires 100g of flour and 50g of fat. Formulate this problem as a linear
programming problem to find the maximum number of cakes that can be made
 from 5kg of flour and 1 kg of fat assuming that there is no shortage of the other
ingredients used in making the cakes.

Frequently Asked Questions on Linear Programming

Q1

What is Linear Programming?

Linear programming is a process of optimising the problems which are subjected to
certain constraints. It means that it is the process of maximising or minimizing the
linear functions under linear inequality constraints. The problem of solving linear
programs is considered as the easiest one.
Q2

Mention the different types of linear programming.

The different types of linear programming are:
Solving linear programming by Simplex method
Solving linear programming using R
Solving linear programming by graphical method
Solving linear programming with the use of an open solver.
Q3

What are the requirements of linear programming?

The five basic requirements of linear programming are:
Objective function
Constraints
Linearity
Non-negativity
Finiteness
Q4

Mention the advantages of Linear programming

The advantages of linear programming are:
Linear programming provides insights to the business problems
It helps to solve multi-dimensional problems
According to the condition change, LP helps in making the adjustments
By calculating the cost and profit of various things, LP helps to take the best optimal
solution
Q5

What is meant by linear programming problems?

The linear programming problems (LPP) helps to find the best optimal solution of a
linear function (also, known as the objective function) which are placed under certain
constraints (set of linear inequality constraints)

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