Simplex optimisation in practice

Abstract

While the underlying principles of simplex optimisation are easy to understand and the small number of trial experiments involved make the approach very attractive, there are several important issues to be considered in the practical application of the method to the analytical sciences and other areas. These include the selection of suitable factor levels to set the size and position of the initial simplex, and the variation of the step sizes used to find the positions of subsequent simplexes. The possibility of accidentally finding a local maximum rather than a global maximum must also be considered.