Scribd
Upload
50 views3 pages

Minimization Problem With Solver

This document discusses using Excel's Solver tool to automatically group cells containing floating point numbers representing file sizes into groups that each sum to approximately 1000. There are 277 total cells summing to 5739.49, so there should be 4 groups of 1000 and a 5th leftover group. The Solver needs constraints set to minimize the squared errors between each group sum and the 1000 target, using an integer variable for each cell's group assignment.

Uploaded by

sharkass
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
50 views3 pages

Minimization Problem With Solver

This document discusses using Excel's Solver tool to automatically group cells containing floating point numbers representing file sizes into groups that each sum to approximately 1000. There are 277 total cells summing to 5739.49, so there should be 4 groups of 1000 and a 5th leftover group. The Solver needs constraints set to minimize the squared errors between each group sum and the 1000 target, using an integer variable for each cell's group assignment.

Uploaded by

sharkass
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

I have an excel file that has one column which contains numbers that represent file sizes, each of

those numbers is a floating point number with a max decimal places of two (Ex: 23.04). the total cells
count is (277 cells).i want to automatically group cells that add up to (1000) or as close as possible to
that number (1000). the sum of all the cells is (5739.49) so, there should be (4) groups of cells, each
adds up to (1000) and the last one (5th group) doesn't matter how much it adds up to. now :

I know that this can be solved using "THE SOLVER" in excel for each group But i'm not sure
what constraints i should use and which solving method (i.e, the simplex, GRG nonlinear or the
evolutionary) methods because i'm not familiar with it
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------As I mentioned in the comment, the standard solver in Excel has a maximum limit for decision
variables of 200.
This example is limited to 200 variables - if you have the premium solver, you can expand the solution.
This was done using Excel 2016.
Worksheet setup
1.
Column A contains the size data.
2.

Column B contains the "Group" that each member in Column A will belong to. It is initially
populated using the formula =RANDBETWEEN(1,5). It was then overridden using Copy / Paste
Special - Values.
3.
Column D contains the aggregated groups, labelled 1 through 5.
4.

Column E contains the aggregated size within each group. It is calculated


with =SUMIF($B$2:$B$201,"="&D2,$A$2:$A$201)
5.
Column F contains the target value for each group (1000 for groups 1 through 4, ignored for
group 5).
6.

Column G contains the squared error from the target value for each group. It is calculated
with =(E2-F2)^2
7.
Cell G7 will be the "Set Objective" cell and is the sum of error squared. It is calculated
with =SUM(G2:G5)
Below is a screen shot of the setup worksheet, before using solver.

Solver Setup
Solver is setup with the following criteria ...
1.
2.

"Set Objective:" is $G$7


"To:" is "Min"

3.
4.

"By Changing Variable Cells:" is $B$2:$B$201


"Subject to the Constraints:" includes: $B$2:$B$201 <= 5, $B$2:$B$201 = integer,
and $B$2:$B$201 >= 1
5.
"Select a Solving Method:" is Evolutionary. Note: You could use GRG, but it will be much
slower.
6.
In "Options", on the "All Methods" tab, in the "Solving with Integer Constraints" area, make
sure Ignore Integer Constraints is not checked.
Below is a screen shot of the Solver Parameters dialog:

Solution
Your optimal region may be "flat" so there are multiple possible solutions.
Below is a screen shot of a solution I generated ...

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy