A Multi-Step Least-Squares Method for Nonlinear Rational Models

Models rational in the parameters arise frequently in biosystems and other applications. As with all models that are non-linear in the parameters, direct parameter estimation, using e.g. nonlinear least-squares, can become challenging due to the issues of local minima and finding good initial estimates. Here we propose a multi-step least-squares method for a class of nonlinear rational models. The proposed method is applied to an extended Monod-type model. Numerical simulations indicate that the proposed method is consistent.