Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Author: Ching-Lai Hwang

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 274

ISBN-13: 3642483186

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This mono graph is intended for an advanced undergraduate or graduate course as weIl as for the researchers who want a compilation of developments in this rapidly growing field of operations research. This is a sequel to our previous work entitled "Multiple Objective Decision Making--Methods and Applications: A State-of-the-Art Survey," (No. 164 of the Lecture Notes). The literature on methods and applications of Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) has been reviewed and classified systematically. This study provides readers with a capsule look into the existing methods, their char acteristics, and applicability to analysis of MADM problems. The basic MADM concepts are defined and a standard notation is introduced in Part 11. Also introduced are foundations such as models for MADM, trans formation of attributes, fuzzy decision rules, and methods for assessing weight. A system of classifying seventeen major MADM methods is presented. These methods have been proposed by researchers in diversified disciplines; half of them are classical ones, but the other half have appeared recently. The basic concept, the computational procedure, and the characteristics of each of these methods are presented concisely in Part 111. The computational procedure of each method is illustrated by solving a simple numerical example. Part IV of the survey deals with the applications of these MADM methods.


Book Synopsis Multiple Attribute Decision Making by : Ching-Lai Hwang

Download or read book Multiple Attribute Decision Making written by Ching-Lai Hwang and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This mono graph is intended for an advanced undergraduate or graduate course as weIl as for the researchers who want a compilation of developments in this rapidly growing field of operations research. This is a sequel to our previous work entitled "Multiple Objective Decision Making--Methods and Applications: A State-of-the-Art Survey," (No. 164 of the Lecture Notes). The literature on methods and applications of Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) has been reviewed and classified systematically. This study provides readers with a capsule look into the existing methods, their char acteristics, and applicability to analysis of MADM problems. The basic MADM concepts are defined and a standard notation is introduced in Part 11. Also introduced are foundations such as models for MADM, trans formation of attributes, fuzzy decision rules, and methods for assessing weight. A system of classifying seventeen major MADM methods is presented. These methods have been proposed by researchers in diversified disciplines; half of them are classical ones, but the other half have appeared recently. The basic concept, the computational procedure, and the characteristics of each of these methods are presented concisely in Part 111. The computational procedure of each method is illustrated by solving a simple numerical example. Part IV of the survey deals with the applications of these MADM methods.


Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Author: Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2011-06-22

Total Pages: 352

ISBN-13: 1439861579

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Decision makers are often faced with several conflicting alternatives. How do they evaluate trade-offs when there are more than three criteria? To help people make optimal decisions, scholars in the discipline of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) continue to develop new methods for structuring preferences and determining the correct relative weights for criteria. A compilation of modern decision-making techniques, Multiple Attribute Decision Making: Methods and Applications focuses on the fuzzy set approach to multiple attribute decision making (MADM). Drawing on their experience, the authors bring together current methods and real-life applications of MADM techniques for decision analysis. They also propose a novel hybrid MADM model that combines DEMATEL and analytic network process (ANP) with VIKOR procedures. The first part of the book focuses on the theory of each method and includes examples that can be calculated without a computer, providing a complete understanding of the procedures. Methods include the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), ANP, simple additive weighting method, ELECTRE, PROMETHEE, the gray relational model, fuzzy integral technique, rough sets, and the structural model. Integrating theory and practice, the second part of the book illustrates how methods can be used to solve real-world MADM problems. Applications covered in the book include: AHP to select planning and design services for a construction project TOPSIS and VIKOR to evaluate the best alternative-fuel vehicles for urban areas ELECTRE to solve network design problems in urban transportation planning PROMETEE to set priorities for the development of new energy systems, from solar thermal to hydrogen energy Fuzzy integrals to evaluate enterprise intranet web sites Rough sets to make decisions in insurance marketing Helping readers understand how to apply MADM techniques to their decision making, this book is suitable for undergraduate and graduate students as well as practitioners.


Book Synopsis Multiple Attribute Decision Making by : Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng

Download or read book Multiple Attribute Decision Making written by Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2011-06-22 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Decision makers are often faced with several conflicting alternatives. How do they evaluate trade-offs when there are more than three criteria? To help people make optimal decisions, scholars in the discipline of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) continue to develop new methods for structuring preferences and determining the correct relative weights for criteria. A compilation of modern decision-making techniques, Multiple Attribute Decision Making: Methods and Applications focuses on the fuzzy set approach to multiple attribute decision making (MADM). Drawing on their experience, the authors bring together current methods and real-life applications of MADM techniques for decision analysis. They also propose a novel hybrid MADM model that combines DEMATEL and analytic network process (ANP) with VIKOR procedures. The first part of the book focuses on the theory of each method and includes examples that can be calculated without a computer, providing a complete understanding of the procedures. Methods include the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), ANP, simple additive weighting method, ELECTRE, PROMETHEE, the gray relational model, fuzzy integral technique, rough sets, and the structural model. Integrating theory and practice, the second part of the book illustrates how methods can be used to solve real-world MADM problems. Applications covered in the book include: AHP to select planning and design services for a construction project TOPSIS and VIKOR to evaluate the best alternative-fuel vehicles for urban areas ELECTRE to solve network design problems in urban transportation planning PROMETEE to set priorities for the development of new energy systems, from solar thermal to hydrogen energy Fuzzy integrals to evaluate enterprise intranet web sites Rough sets to make decisions in insurance marketing Helping readers understand how to apply MADM techniques to their decision making, this book is suitable for undergraduate and graduate students as well as practitioners.


New Methods and Applications in Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM)

New Methods and Applications in Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM)

Author: Alireza Alinezhad

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2019-08-23

Total Pages: 233

ISBN-13: 3030150097

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This book presents 27 methods of the Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM), which are not discussed in the existing books, nor studied in details, using more applications. Nowadays, decision making is one of the most important and fundamental tasks of management as an organizational goal achievement that depends on its quality. Decision making includes the correct expression of objectives, determining different and possible solutions, evaluating their feasibility, assessing the consequences, and the results of implementing each solution, and finally, selecting and implementing the solution. Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) is sum of the decision making techniques. MCDM is divided into the Multiple Objective Decision Making (MODM) for designing the best solution and MADM for selecting the best alternative. Given that the applications of MADM are mostly more than MODM, wide various techniques have been developed for MADM by researchers over the last 60 years, and the current book introduces some of the other new MADM methods.


Book Synopsis New Methods and Applications in Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) by : Alireza Alinezhad

Download or read book New Methods and Applications in Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) written by Alireza Alinezhad and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2019-08-23 with total page 233 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents 27 methods of the Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM), which are not discussed in the existing books, nor studied in details, using more applications. Nowadays, decision making is one of the most important and fundamental tasks of management as an organizational goal achievement that depends on its quality. Decision making includes the correct expression of objectives, determining different and possible solutions, evaluating their feasibility, assessing the consequences, and the results of implementing each solution, and finally, selecting and implementing the solution. Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) is sum of the decision making techniques. MCDM is divided into the Multiple Objective Decision Making (MODM) for designing the best solution and MADM for selecting the best alternative. Given that the applications of MADM are mostly more than MODM, wide various techniques have been developed for MADM by researchers over the last 60 years, and the current book introduces some of the other new MADM methods.


Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Author: Shu-Jen Chen

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 552

ISBN-13: 3642467687

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This monograph is intended for an advanced undergraduate or graduate course as well as for researchers, who want a compilation of developments in this rapidly growing field of operations research. This is a sequel to our previous works: "Multiple Objective Decision Making--Methods and Applications: A state-of-the-Art Survey" (No.164 of the Lecture Notes); "Multiple Attribute Decision Making--Methods and Applications: A State-of-the-Art Survey" (No.186 of the Lecture Notes); and "Group Decision Making under Multiple Criteria--Methods and Applications" (No.281 of the Lecture Notes). In this monograph, the literature on methods of fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) has been reviewed thoroughly and critically, and classified systematically. This study provides readers with a capsule look into the existing methods, their characteristics, and applicability to the analysis of fuzzy MADM problems. The basic concepts and algorithms from the classical MADM methods have been used in the development of the fuzzy MADM methods. We give an overview of the classical MADM in Chapter II. Chapter III presents the basic concepts and mathematical operations of fuzzy set theory with simple numerical examples in a easy-to-read and easy-to-follow manner. Fuzzy MADM methods basically consist of two phases: (1) the aggregation of the performance scores with respect to all the attributes for each alternative, and (2) the rank ordering of the alternatives according to the aggregated scores.


Book Synopsis Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making by : Shu-Jen Chen

Download or read book Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making written by Shu-Jen Chen and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 552 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This monograph is intended for an advanced undergraduate or graduate course as well as for researchers, who want a compilation of developments in this rapidly growing field of operations research. This is a sequel to our previous works: "Multiple Objective Decision Making--Methods and Applications: A state-of-the-Art Survey" (No.164 of the Lecture Notes); "Multiple Attribute Decision Making--Methods and Applications: A State-of-the-Art Survey" (No.186 of the Lecture Notes); and "Group Decision Making under Multiple Criteria--Methods and Applications" (No.281 of the Lecture Notes). In this monograph, the literature on methods of fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making (MADM) has been reviewed thoroughly and critically, and classified systematically. This study provides readers with a capsule look into the existing methods, their characteristics, and applicability to the analysis of fuzzy MADM problems. The basic concepts and algorithms from the classical MADM methods have been used in the development of the fuzzy MADM methods. We give an overview of the classical MADM in Chapter II. Chapter III presents the basic concepts and mathematical operations of fuzzy set theory with simple numerical examples in a easy-to-read and easy-to-follow manner. Fuzzy MADM methods basically consist of two phases: (1) the aggregation of the performance scores with respect to all the attributes for each alternative, and (2) the rank ordering of the alternatives according to the aggregated scores.


Uncertain Multi-Attribute Decision Making

Uncertain Multi-Attribute Decision Making

Author: Zeshui Xu

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2015-02-05

Total Pages: 375

ISBN-13: 3662456400

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This book introduces methods for uncertain multi-attribute decision making including uncertain multi-attribute group decision making and their applications to supply chain management, investment decision making, personnel assessment, redesigning products, maintenance services, military system efficiency evaluation. Multi-attribute decision making, also known as multi-objective decision making with finite alternatives, is an important component of modern decision science. The theory and methods of multi-attribute decision making have been extensively applied in engineering, economics, management and military contexts, such as venture capital project evaluation, facility location, bidding, development ranking of industrial sectors and so on. Over the last few decades, great attention has been paid to research on multi-attribute decision making in uncertain settings, due to the increasing complexity and uncertainty of supposedly objective aspects and the fuzziness of human thought. This book can be used as a reference guide for researchers and practitioners working in e.g. the fields of operations research, information science, management science and engineering. It can also be used as a textbook for postgraduate and senior undergraduate students.


Book Synopsis Uncertain Multi-Attribute Decision Making by : Zeshui Xu

Download or read book Uncertain Multi-Attribute Decision Making written by Zeshui Xu and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-02-05 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book introduces methods for uncertain multi-attribute decision making including uncertain multi-attribute group decision making and their applications to supply chain management, investment decision making, personnel assessment, redesigning products, maintenance services, military system efficiency evaluation. Multi-attribute decision making, also known as multi-objective decision making with finite alternatives, is an important component of modern decision science. The theory and methods of multi-attribute decision making have been extensively applied in engineering, economics, management and military contexts, such as venture capital project evaluation, facility location, bidding, development ranking of industrial sectors and so on. Over the last few decades, great attention has been paid to research on multi-attribute decision making in uncertain settings, due to the increasing complexity and uncertainty of supposedly objective aspects and the fuzziness of human thought. This book can be used as a reference guide for researchers and practitioners working in e.g. the fields of operations research, information science, management science and engineering. It can also be used as a textbook for postgraduate and senior undergraduate students.


A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods

A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods

Author: Omid Bozorg-Haddad

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2021-04-06

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 1119563496

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Clear and effective instruction on MADM methods for students, researchers, and practitioners. A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods describes multi-attribute decision-making (MADM) methods and provides step-by-step guidelines for applying them. The authors describe the most important MADM methods and provide an assessment of their performance in solving problems across disciplines. After offering an overview of decision-making and its fundamental concepts, this book covers 20 leading MADM methods and contains an appendix on weight assignment methods. Chapters are arranged with optimal learning in mind, so you can easily engage with the content found in each chapter. Dedicated readers may go through the entire book to gain a deep understanding of MADM methods and their theoretical foundation, and others may choose to review only specific chapters. Each standalone chapter contains a brief description of prerequisite materials, methods, and mathematical concepts needed to cover its content, so you will not face any difficulty understanding single chapters. Each chapter: Describes, step-by-step, a specific MADM method, or in some cases a family of methods Contains a thorough literature review for each MADM method, supported with numerous examples of the method's implementation in various fields Provides a detailed yet concise description of each method's theoretical foundation Maps each method's philosophical basis to its corresponding mathematical framework Demonstrates how to implement each MADM method to real-world problems in a variety of disciplines In MADM methods, stakeholders' objectives are expressible through a set of often conflicting criteria, making this family of decision-making approaches relevant to a wide range of situations. A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods compiles and explains the most important methodologies in a clear and systematic manner, perfect for students and professionals whose work involves operations research and decision making.


Book Synopsis A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods by : Omid Bozorg-Haddad

Download or read book A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods written by Omid Bozorg-Haddad and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2021-04-06 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Clear and effective instruction on MADM methods for students, researchers, and practitioners. A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods describes multi-attribute decision-making (MADM) methods and provides step-by-step guidelines for applying them. The authors describe the most important MADM methods and provide an assessment of their performance in solving problems across disciplines. After offering an overview of decision-making and its fundamental concepts, this book covers 20 leading MADM methods and contains an appendix on weight assignment methods. Chapters are arranged with optimal learning in mind, so you can easily engage with the content found in each chapter. Dedicated readers may go through the entire book to gain a deep understanding of MADM methods and their theoretical foundation, and others may choose to review only specific chapters. Each standalone chapter contains a brief description of prerequisite materials, methods, and mathematical concepts needed to cover its content, so you will not face any difficulty understanding single chapters. Each chapter: Describes, step-by-step, a specific MADM method, or in some cases a family of methods Contains a thorough literature review for each MADM method, supported with numerous examples of the method's implementation in various fields Provides a detailed yet concise description of each method's theoretical foundation Maps each method's philosophical basis to its corresponding mathematical framework Demonstrates how to implement each MADM method to real-world problems in a variety of disciplines In MADM methods, stakeholders' objectives are expressible through a set of often conflicting criteria, making this family of decision-making approaches relevant to a wide range of situations. A Handbook on Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Methods compiles and explains the most important methodologies in a clear and systematic manner, perfect for students and professionals whose work involves operations research and decision making.


Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Multiple Attribute Decision Making

Author: Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2011-06-22

Total Pages: 348

ISBN-13: 1439861587

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Decision makers are often faced with several conflicting alternatives. How do they evaluate trade-offs when there are more than three criteria? To help people make optimal decisions, scholars in the discipline of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) continue to develop new methods for structuring preferences and determining the correct relative


Book Synopsis Multiple Attribute Decision Making by : Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng

Download or read book Multiple Attribute Decision Making written by Gwo-Hshiung Tzeng and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2011-06-22 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Decision makers are often faced with several conflicting alternatives. How do they evaluate trade-offs when there are more than three criteria? To help people make optimal decisions, scholars in the discipline of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) continue to develop new methods for structuring preferences and determining the correct relative


Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods

Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods

Author: R. Venkata Rao

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-08-27

Total Pages: 297

ISBN-13: 1447143752

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Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods presents the concepts and details of applications of MADM methods. A range of methods are covered including Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), VIšekriterijumsko KOmpromisno Rangiranje (VIKOR), Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), Preference Ranking METHod for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE), ELimination Et Choix Traduisant la Realité (ELECTRE), COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS), Grey Relational Analysis (GRA), UTility Additive (UTA), and Ordered Weighted Averaging (OWA). The existing MADM methods are improved upon and three novel multiple attribute decision making methods for solving the decision making problems of the manufacturing environment are proposed. The concept of integrated weights is introduced in the proposed subjective and objective integrated weights (SOIW) method and the weighted Euclidean distance based approach (WEDBA) to consider both the decision maker’s subjective preferences as well as the distribution of the attributes data of the decision matrix. These methods, which use fuzzy logic to convert the qualitative attributes into the quantitative attributes, are supported by various real-world application examples. Also, computer codes for AHP, TOPSIS, DEA, PROMETHEE, ELECTRE, COPRAS, and SOIW methods are included. This comprehensive coverage makes Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods a key reference for the designers, manufacturing engineers, practitioners, managers, institutes involved in both design and manufacturing related projects. It is also an ideal study resource for applied research workers, academicians, and students in mechanical and industrial engineering.


Book Synopsis Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods by : R. Venkata Rao

Download or read book Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods written by R. Venkata Rao and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-08-27 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods presents the concepts and details of applications of MADM methods. A range of methods are covered including Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), VIšekriterijumsko KOmpromisno Rangiranje (VIKOR), Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), Preference Ranking METHod for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE), ELimination Et Choix Traduisant la Realité (ELECTRE), COmplex PRoportional ASsessment (COPRAS), Grey Relational Analysis (GRA), UTility Additive (UTA), and Ordered Weighted Averaging (OWA). The existing MADM methods are improved upon and three novel multiple attribute decision making methods for solving the decision making problems of the manufacturing environment are proposed. The concept of integrated weights is introduced in the proposed subjective and objective integrated weights (SOIW) method and the weighted Euclidean distance based approach (WEDBA) to consider both the decision maker’s subjective preferences as well as the distribution of the attributes data of the decision matrix. These methods, which use fuzzy logic to convert the qualitative attributes into the quantitative attributes, are supported by various real-world application examples. Also, computer codes for AHP, TOPSIS, DEA, PROMETHEE, ELECTRE, COPRAS, and SOIW methods are included. This comprehensive coverage makes Decision Making in Manufacturing Environment Using Graph Theory and Fuzzy Multiple Attribute Decision Making Methods a key reference for the designers, manufacturing engineers, practitioners, managers, institutes involved in both design and manufacturing related projects. It is also an ideal study resource for applied research workers, academicians, and students in mechanical and industrial engineering.


Multiple Attribute Decision Making, Methods and Applications

Multiple Attribute Decision Making, Methods and Applications

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 1981

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13:

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Book Synopsis Multiple Attribute Decision Making, Methods and Applications by :

Download or read book Multiple Attribute Decision Making, Methods and Applications written by and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:


Multiple Objective Decision Making — Methods and Applications

Multiple Objective Decision Making — Methods and Applications

Author: C.-L. Hwang

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 366

ISBN-13: 3642455115

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Decision making is the process of selecting a possible course of action from all the available alternatives. In almost all such problems the multiplicity of criteria for judging the alternatives is pervasive. That is, for many such problems, the decision maker (OM) wants to attain more than one objective or goal in selecting the course of action while satisfying the constraints dictated by environment, processes, and resources. Another characteristic of these problems is that the objectives are apparently non commensurable. Mathematically, these problems can be represented as: (1. 1 ) subject to: gi(~) ~ 0, ,', . . . ,. ! where ~ is an n dimensional decision variable vector. The problem consists of n decision variables, m constraints and k objectives. Any or all of the functions may be nonlinear. In literature this problem is often referred to as a vector maximum problem (VMP). Traditionally there are two approaches for solving the VMP. One of them is to optimize one of the objectives while appending the other objectives to a constraint set so that the optimal solution would satisfy these objectives at least up to a predetermined level. The problem is given as: Max f. ~) 1 (1. 2) subject to: where at is any acceptable predetermined level for objective t. The other approach is to optimize a super-objective function created by multiplying each 2 objective function with a suitable weight and then by adding them together.


Book Synopsis Multiple Objective Decision Making — Methods and Applications by : C.-L. Hwang

Download or read book Multiple Objective Decision Making — Methods and Applications written by C.-L. Hwang and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Decision making is the process of selecting a possible course of action from all the available alternatives. In almost all such problems the multiplicity of criteria for judging the alternatives is pervasive. That is, for many such problems, the decision maker (OM) wants to attain more than one objective or goal in selecting the course of action while satisfying the constraints dictated by environment, processes, and resources. Another characteristic of these problems is that the objectives are apparently non commensurable. Mathematically, these problems can be represented as: (1. 1 ) subject to: gi(~) ~ 0, ,', . . . ,. ! where ~ is an n dimensional decision variable vector. The problem consists of n decision variables, m constraints and k objectives. Any or all of the functions may be nonlinear. In literature this problem is often referred to as a vector maximum problem (VMP). Traditionally there are two approaches for solving the VMP. One of them is to optimize one of the objectives while appending the other objectives to a constraint set so that the optimal solution would satisfy these objectives at least up to a predetermined level. The problem is given as: Max f. ~) 1 (1. 2) subject to: where at is any acceptable predetermined level for objective t. The other approach is to optimize a super-objective function created by multiplying each 2 objective function with a suitable weight and then by adding them together.