An optimization toolbox for MATLAB

Reports on research into the development of tools to assist control engineers in the application of optimization to control system design. An optimization toolbox has been developed to run within the Pro-MATLAB environment and there is close collaboration between academics, industrial control engineers and software providers. Research is continuing in a number of areas, one of which is to improve the interface between control engineers who have no special expertise in optimization and the application of these tools. The paper describes the toolbox in detail and illustrates its use through a case study: the optimization of a typical two spool gas turbine engine by two methods, conventional multiobjective optimization and semi-infinite optimization. Future developments of the toolbox are also described