Rockwell Automation Arena OptQuest Users Guide - Manual (Page 25)

3 • U NDERSTANDING THE T ERMINOLOGY
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Conceptually, an optimization model with uncertainty might resemble the figure below.
OptQuest methodology
OptQuest is a generic optimizer that makes it possible to separate successfully the
optimization solution procedure from the simulation model. This design adaptation of
meta-heuristic methods lets you create a model of your system that includes as many
elements as necessary to represent the “real thing” accurately. While the simulation model
can change and evolve to incorporate additional elements, the optimization routines
remain the same. Hence, there is a complete separation of the model that represents the
system and the procedure that solves optimization problems defined within this model.
The optimization procedure uses the outputs from the simulation model to evaluate the
inputs to the model. Analyzing this evaluation and previous evaluations, the optimization
procedure selects a new set of input values. The optimization procedure performs a
special “non-monotonic search,” where the successively generated inputs produce varying
evaluations, not all of them improving, but which over time provide a highly efficient path
to the best solutions. The process continues until it reaches some termination criterion
(usually a time limit).
Optimization
Procedure
Optimization
Procedure
Simulation
Model
Simulation
Model
Input
Output