Nonempirical hybrid multi-attribute decision-making method for design for remanufacturing

Design for remanufacturing(DfRem)is the process of considering remanufacturing characteristics during product design in order to reduce the number of issues during the remanufacturing stage.This decisionmaking in DfRem is influenced by the designers'subjective preferences owing to a lack of explicitly defined remanufacturing knowledge for designers,which can lead to indecisive design schemes.In order to objectively select the optimal design scheme for remanufacturing,a nonempirical hybrid multi-attribute decision-making method is presented to alleviate the impacts of subjective factors.In this method,design characteristics and demand information are characterized through the matter-element theory.Coupled with design principles,some initial design schemes are proposed.Evaluation criteria are established considering the technical,economic,and environmental factors.The entropy weight and vague set are used to determine the optimal design scheme via a multi-attribute decision・making approach.The design of a bearing assembly machine for remanufacturing is taken as an example to illustrate the practicality and validity of the proposed method.The results revealed that the proposed method was effective in the decision-making of DfRem.

Multi-attribute decision-making based on subjective and objective integrated eigenvector method

An integrated approach is proposed to investigate the fuzzy multi-attribute decision-making （MADM） problems, where subjective preferences are expressed by a pairwise comparison matrix on the relative weights of attributes and objective information is expressed by a decision matrix. An eigenvector method integrated the subjective fuzzy preference matrix and objective information is proposed. Two linear programming models based on subjective and objective information are introduced to assess the relative importance weights of attributes in an MADM problem. The simple additive weighting method is utilized to aggregate the decision information, and then all the alternatives are ranked. Finally, a numerical example is given to show the feasibility and effectiveness of the method. The result shows that it is easier than other methods of integrating subjective and objective information.

APPROACH FOR FUZZY MULTI-ATTRIBUTE DECISION-MAKING WITH FUZZY COMPLEMENTARY PREFERENCE RELATION ON ALTERNATIVES

In presented fuzzy multi-attribute decision-making （FMADM） problems, the information about attribute weights is interval numbers and the decision maker （DM） has fuzzy complementary preference relation on alternatives. Firstly, the decision-making information based on the subjective preference information in the form of the fuzzy complementary judgment matrix is uniform by using a translation function. Then an objective programming model is established. Attribute weights are obtained by solving the model, thus the fuzzy overall values of alternatives are derived by using the additive weighting method. Secondly, the ranking approach of alternatives is proposed based on the degree of similarity between the fuzzy positive ideal solution of alternatives （FPISA） and the fuzzy overall values. The method can sufficiently utilize the objective information of alternatives and meet the subjective requirements of the DM as much as possible. It is easy to be operated and implemented on a computer. Finally, the proposed method is applied to the project evaluation in the venture investment.

Behavioral Decision-Making of Key Stakeholders in Public-Private Partnerships:A Hybrid Method and Benefit Distribution Study

Public-private partnerships(PPPs)have been used by governments around the world to procure and construct infrastructural amenities.It relies on private sector expertise and funding to achieve this lofty objective.However,given the uncertainties of project management,transparency,accountability,and expropriation,this phenomenon has gained tremendous attention in recent years due to the important role it plays in curbing infrastructural deficits globally.Interestingly,the reasonable benefit distribution scheme in a PPP project is related to the behavior decisionmaking of the government and social capital,aswell as the performance of the project.In this paper,the government and social capital which are the key stakeholders of PPP projects were selected as the research objects.Based on the fuzzy expected value model and game theory,a hybrid method was adopted in this research taking into account the different risk preferences of both public entities and private parties under the fuzzy demand environment.To alleviate the problem of insufficient utilization of social capital in a PPP project,this paper seeks to grasp the relationship that exists between the benefit distribution of stakeholders,their behavioral decision-making,and project performance,given that they impact the performance of both public entities and private parties,as well as assist in maximizing the overall utility of the project.Furthermore,four game models were constructed in this study,while the expected value and opportunity-constrained programming model for optimal decision-making were derived using alternate perspectives of both centralized decision-making and decentralized decision-making.Afterward,the optimal behavioral decision-making of public entities and private parties in four scenarios was discussed and thereafter compared,which led to an ensuing discussion on the benefit distribution system under centralized decision-making.Lastly,based on an example case,the influence of different confidence levels,price,and fuzzy uncertainties of PPP projects on the equilibrium strategy results of both parties were discussed,giving credence to the effectiveness of the hybrid method.The results indicate that adjusting different confidence levels yields different equilibriumpoints,and therefore signposts that social capital has a fair perception of opportunities,as well as identifies reciprocal preferences.Nevertheless,we find that an increase in the cost coefficient of the government and social capital does not inhibit the effort of both parties.Our results also indicate that a reasonable benefit distribution of PPP projects can assist them in realizing optimum Pareto improvements over time.The results provide us with very useful strategies and recommendations to improve the overall performance of PPP projects in China.

Two-phase TOPSIS of uncertain multi-attribute group decision-making

To solve the uncertain multi-attribute group decision-making of unknown attribute weights,three optimal models are built to decide the corresponding ideal solution weights,standard deviation weights and mean deviation weights.The comprehensive attribute weights are gotten through the product of the above three kinds of weights.And each decision maker＇s weighted decision matrices are also received by using the integrated attribute weights.The closeness degrees are also gotten by use of technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution（TOPSIS） through dealing with the weighted decision matrices.At the same time the group decision matrix and weighted group decision matrix are gotten by using each decision-maker＇s closeness degree to every project.Then the vertical TOPSIS method is used to calculate the closeness degree of each project.So these projects can be ranked according to their values of the closeness degree.The process of the method is also given step by step.Finally,a numerical example demonstrates the feasibility and effectiveness of the approach.

An Improved Method Based on TODIM and TOPSIS for Multi-Attribute Decision-Making with Multi-Valued Neutrosophic Sets

Due to the complexity of decision-making problems and the subjectivity of decision-makers in practical application,it is necessary to adopt different forms of information expression according to the actual situation of specific decision-making problems and choose the best method to solve them.Multi-valued neutrosophic set,as an extension of neutrosophic set,can more effectively and accurately describe incomplete,uncertain or inconsistent information.TODIM and TOPSIS methods are two commonly used multi-attribute decision-making methods,each of which has its advantages and disadvantages.This paper proposes a new method based on TODIM and TOPSIS to solve multi-attribute decision-making problems under multi-valued neutrosophic environment.After introducing the related theory of multi-valued neutrosophic set and the traditional TODIM and TOPSIS methods,the new method based on a combination of TODIM and TOPSIS methods is described.And then,two illustrative examples proved the feasibility and validity of the proposed method.Finally,the result has been compared with some existing methods under the same examples and the proposed method’s superiority has been proved.This paper studies this kind of decision-making problem from algorithm idea,algorithm steps and decision-making influencing factors.

Multi-attribute decision-making approach dealing with uncertain linguistic assessment information

An approach is presented to deal with a multi-attribute decision-making problem in which the attribute weights are unknown and the attribute values take the form of uncertain linguistic variables. First, a linguistic assessment standard is set up to deal with the uncertain linguistic attributes, and the operation laws of uncertain linguistic variables and the uncertain linguistic weighting average(ULWA)operator are introduced. Then a ranking formula of uncertain linguistic variables based on expectation-variance is proposed. As for the case without weight information, a goal program based on a warp function is constructed to determine the attribute weights, and the ULWA operator is utilized to aggregate the assessment information of uncertain linguistic variables, and the corresponding alternatives are ranked by a formula based on expectation-variance. Finally, a numerical example is given, and the results demonstrate that it is much easier and faster for the ranking method based on expectation-variance when compared to the existing methods.

Application of Interval Multi-attribute Decision-Making Method to Aeroengine Performance Ranking

In view of the uncertainty of the monitored performance parameters of aeroengines, the fluctuating scope of the monitored infurmation during a period is taken as interval numbers, and the interval multi-attribute decision-making method is employed to predict the performance of aeroengine, The synthetic weights of interval numbers are obtained by calculating deviation degree and possibility degree. As an example of application, 5 performance parameters monitored on 10 CF6 aeroengines of China Eastern Airlines Co., Ltd are adopted as decision attributes to verify the algorithm. The obtained synthetic ranking result shows the effectiveness and rationality of the proposed method in reflecting the performance stares of aeroengins.

Fermatean Hesitant Fuzzy Prioritized Heronian Mean Operator and Its Application in Multi-Attribute Decision Making

In real life,incomplete information,inaccurate data,and the preferences of decision-makers during qualitative judgment would impact the process of decision-making.As a technical instrument that can successfully handle uncertain information,Fermatean fuzzy sets have recently been used to solve the multi-attribute decision-making(MADM)problems.This paper proposes a Fermatean hesitant fuzzy information aggregation method to address the problem of fusion where the membership,non-membership,and priority are considered simultaneously.Combining the Fermatean hesitant fuzzy sets with Heronian Mean operators,this paper proposes the Fermatean hesitant fuzzy Heronian mean(FHFHM)operator and the Fermatean hesitant fuzzyweighted Heronian mean(FHFWHM)operator.Then,considering the priority relationship between attributes is often easier to obtain than the weight of attributes,this paper defines a new Fermatean hesitant fuzzy prioritized Heronian mean operator(FHFPHM),and discusses its elegant properties such as idempotency,boundedness and monotonicity in detail.Later,for problems with unknown weights and the Fermatean hesitant fuzzy information,aMADM approach based on prioritized attributes is proposed,which can effectively depict the correlation between attributes and avoid the influence of subjective factors on the results.Finally,a numerical example of multi-sensor electronic surveillance is applied to verify the feasibility and validity of the method proposed in this paper.

Two-Sided Matching Decision Making with Multi-Attribute Probabilistic Hesitant Fuzzy Sets

In previous research on two-sided matching(TSM)decision,agents’preferences were often given in the form of exact values of ordinal numbers and linguistic phrase term sets.Nowdays,the matching agent cannot perform the exact evaluation in the TSM situations due to the great fuzziness of human thought and the complexity of reality.Probability hesitant fuzzy sets,however,have grown in popularity due to their advantages in communicating complex information.Therefore,this paper develops a TSM decision-making approach with multi-attribute probability hesitant fuzzy sets and unknown attribute weight information.The agent attribute weight vector should be obtained by using the maximum deviation method and Hamming distance.The probabilistic hesitancy fuzzy information matrix of each agent is then arranged to determine the comprehensive evaluation of two matching agent sets.The agent satisfaction degree is calculated using the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution(TOPSIS).Additionally,the multi-object programming technique is used to establish a TSM method with the objective of maximizing the agent satisfaction of two-sided agents,and the matching schemes are then established by solving the built model.The study concludes by providing a real-world supply-demand scenario to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.The proposed method is more flexible than prior research since it expresses evaluation information using probability hesitating fuzzy sets and can be used in scenarios when attribute weight information is unclear.

Design of Multi-attribute Knowledge Base Based on Hybrid Knowledge Representation

Based on the knowledge representation and knowledge reasoning, this paper addresses the creation of the multi-attribute knowledge base on the basis of hybrid knowledge representation, with the help of object-oriented programming language and relational database. Compared with general knowledge base, multi-attribute knowledge base can enhance the ability of knowledge processing and application; integrate the heterogeneous knowledge, such as model, symbol, case-based sample knowledge; and support the whole decision process by integrated reasoning.

A Novel Multi-Attribute Decision-Making Method Based on Probabilistic Hesitant Fuzzy Soft Set and Its Application

The probabilistic hesitant fuzzy multi-attribute group decision-making method introduces probability and hesitation into decision-making problems at the same time,which can improve the reliability and accuracy of decision-making results,and has become a research hotspots in recent years.However,there are still many problems,such as overly complex calculations and difficulty in obtaining probability data.Based on these,the paper proposes a multi-attribute group decision-making model based on probability hesitant fuzzy soft sets.Firstly,the definition of probabilistic hesitant fuzzy soft set is given.Then,based on soft set theory and probabilistic hesitant fuzzy set,the similarity measure of probabilistic hesitant fuzzy soft set is proposed,and the two measures are further combined.Finally,it is applied to the construction of multi-attribute group decision-making model,and the effectiveness and rationality of the model are verified by an example.The example shows that the new similarity calculation formula and algorithm model in this paper have higher accuracy,and the calculation process is more simple,it provides a feasible method for multi-attribute group decision making problems.

Analyzing the Roles of Agricultural Extension Agents in Hybrid Rice Technology Decision-Making Process of Farmers

The study determined the roles of agricultural extension in hybrid rice technology decision-making process by extension agents,Nay Pyi Taw,Myanmar.The specific objectives were:to study personal characteristics of agricultural extension agents,experiences and their roles,to identify extension agents’opinion on hybrid rice technology decision-making process,and to determine relationship between the roles of agricultural extension agents and decision-making process of hybrid rice production.One hundred and eight extension agents were collected who were working in Department of Agriculture,Nay Pyi Taw area and surveyed and interviewed by questionnaires.The study revealed that majority of agricultural extension agents(65.7%)were female staffs and most of extension agents(40.7%)were under 30 years as young staffs.Majority of extension agents(81.5%)were educated only Agri-Diploma.More than half(54.6%)had one to five-year experiences in employment and 58.3%had no hybrid rice training experience and source of information regarding the hybrid rice production was received 63.9%from Department of Agriculture(DOA).Study found that there was highly significant relationship between most of the roles of agricultural extension agents and hybrid rice technology decision-making process of stages 4 and 5.And then most of the extension agents’roles singnificantly related with stage 2 except role of conducting introduction of hybrid seeds and distribution through by Seed Co.Ltds which was highly significant.Beside,most of the roles of extension agents significantly related with stage 3.However stages 1 and 6 were no singnificantly related.Finally above all,a well structure seed business,Good Agricultural Practices and farm level mechanization and quality extension service are very important to increase the adoption of hybrid rice in Myanmar.

Method for uncertain multi-attribute decisionmaking with preference information in the form of interval numbers complementary judgment matrix

The uncertain multi-attribute decision-making problems because of the information about attribute weights being known partly, and the decision maker＇s preference information on alternatives taking the form of interval numbers complementary to the judgment matrix, are investigated. First, the decision-making information, based on the subjective uncertain complementary preference matrix on alternatives is made uniform by using a translation function, and then an objective programming model is established. The attribute weights are obtained by solving the model, thus the overall values of the alternatives are gained by using the additive weighting method. Second, the alternatives are ranked, by using the continuous ordered weighted averaging （C-OWA） operator. A new approach to the uncertain multi-attribute decision-making problems, with uncertain preference information on alternatives is proposed. It is characterized by simple operations and can be easily implemented on a computer. Finally, a practical example is illustrated to show the feasibility and availability of the developed method.

Defending Against Link Failure in Virtual Network Embedding Using a Hybrid Scheme

Nowadays network virtualization is utterly popular.As a result,how to protect the virtual networks from attacking on the link is increasingly important.Existing schemes are mainly backup-based,which suffer from data loss and are helpless to such attacks like data tampering.To offer high security level,in this paper,we first propose a multipath and decision-making(MD) scheme which applies multipath simultaneously delivery and decision-making for protecting the virtual network.Considering different security requirement for virtual link,we devise a hybrid scheme to protect the virtual links.For the critical links,MD scheme is adopted.For the other links,we adopt the Shared Backup Scheme.Our simulation results indicate the proposed scheme can significantly increase the security level of the critical link high in the loss of less acceptance ratio.

A review of multi-attributes decision-making models for offshore oil and gas facilities decommissioning

With the development of the offshore fossil energy industry,the designing life of many offshore oil and gas facilities will end.The decommissioning of these facilities has become an urgent task due to unpre-dictable costs,high risks,and environmental protection issues of public concern.Decision-making,as the core in the pre-decommissioning stage,plays a decisive role in the cost,risk,and impact of the entire de-commissioning.Therefore,the multi-attribute decision-making model has attracted much attention from industry and academia.An efficient,accurate,and simply using multi-attribute decision-making model can enable governments,energy companies,other marine users,and environmental protection organi-zations to reasonably fulfill their concerns.It is of great significance to all parties.This review mainly studies the multi-attribute decision-making models that have been used in the decommissioning of off-shore oil and gas facilities,and conducts a more detailed interpretation of them,including the relevant regulations,frameworks,methodology,preferences and advantages and disadvantages of different mod-els.In addition,a more comprehensive review of the cost assessment model,an important part of the decision-making model,is carried out,including the general framework and methodology of the cost as-sessment model,and the accuracy of the models is explored.And then the current evaluation method of accuracy of the cost assessment model raises the author’s personal doubts.At the end of the article,this paper names two core problems of the current decision-making model,that is,the lack of basic data and the incomplete MCDA(Multi-criteria Decision Analysis)method.This review can provide a comprehen-sive reference and feasible research directions for future scholars who aims to study the decommissioning of offshore oil and gas facilities especially in the North Sea in the UK and point out the direction for the industry to improve its current multi-attribute decision-making models.

Some interval-valued intuitionistic uncertain linguistic hybrid Shapley operators

Two interval-valued intuitionistic uncertain linguistic hybrid operators cal ed the induced interval-valued intuitionistic uncertain linguistic hybrid Shapley averaging （I-IIULHSA） operator and the induced interval-valued intuitionistic uncertain linguistic hybrid Shapley geometric （I-IIULHSG） operator are defined. These operators not only reflect the importance of elements and their ordered positions, but also consider the correlations among elements and their ordered positions. Since the fuzzy measures are defined on the power set, it makes the problem exponentially complex. In order to simplify the complexity of solving a fuzzy measure, we further define the induced interval-valued intuitionistic uncertain linguistic hybrid λ-Shapley averaging （I-IIULHλSA） operator and the induced interval-valued intuitionistic uncertain linguistic hybrid λ-Shapley geometric （I-IIULHλSG） operator. Moreover, an approach for multi-attribute group decision making under the interval-valued intuitionistic uncertain linguistic environment is developed. Finally, a numerical example is provided to verify the developed procedure and demonstrate its practicality and feasibility.

Hybrid Power System Options for Off-Grid Rural Electrification in Northern Kenya

For domestic consumers in the rural areas of northern Kenya, as in other developing countries, the typical source of electrical supply is diesel generators. However, diesel generators are associated with both CO2 emissions, which adversely affect the environment and increase diesel fuel prices, which inflate the prices of consumer goods. The Kenya government has taken steps towards addressing this issue by proposing The Hybrid Mini-Grid Project, which involves the installation of 3 MW of wind and solar energy systems in facilities with existing diesel generators. However, this project has not yet been implemented. As a contribution to this effort, this study proposes, simulates and analyzes five different configurations of hybrid energy systems incorporating wind energy, solar energy and battery storage to replace the stand-alone diesel power systems servicing six remote villages in northern Kenya. If implemented, the systems proposed here would reduce Kenya’s dependency on diesel fuel, leading to reductions in its carbon footprint. This analysis confirms the feasibility of these hybrid systems with many configurations being profitable. A Multi-Attribute Trade-Off Analysis is employed to determine the best hybrid system configuration option that would reduce diesel fuel consumption and jointly minimize CO2 emissions and net present cost. This analysis determined that a wind-diesel-battery configuration consisting of two 500 kW turbines, 1200 kW diesel capacity and 95,040 Ah battery capacity is the best option to replace a 3200 kW stand-alone diesel system providing electricity to a village with a peak demand of 839 kW. It has the potential to reduce diesel fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by up to 98.8%.

Optimal allocation of hybrid energy storage for microgrids based on multi-attribute utility theory

To satisfy the requirements of high energy density,high power density,quick response and long lifespan for energy storage systems(ESSs),hybrid energy storage systems(HESSs)have been investigated for their complementary characteristics of‘high energy density components’and‘high power density components’.To optimize HESS combinations,related indices such as annual cost,fluctuation smoothing ability as well as safety and environmental impact have to be evaluated.The multiattribute utility method investigated in this paper is aimed to draw an overall conclusion for HESS allocation optimization in microgrid.Building on multi-attribute utility theory,this method has significant advantages in solving the incommensurability and contradiction among multiple attributes.Instead of determining the weights of various attributes subjectively,when adopting the multi-attribute utility method,the characteristics of attributes and the relation among them can be investigated objectively.Also,the proper utility function and merging rules are identified to achieve the aggregate utility which can reflect comprehensive qualities of HESSs.

Threat sequencing of multiple UCAVs with incomplete information based on game theory

The threat sequencing of multiple unmanned combat air vehicles(UCAVs) is a multi-attribute decision-making(MADM)problem. In the threat sequencing process of multiple UCAVs,due to the strong confrontation and high dynamics of the air combat environment, the weight coefficients of the threat indicators are usually time-varying. Moreover, the air combat data is difficult to be obtained accurately. In this study, a threat sequencing method of multiple UCAVs is proposed based on game theory by considering the incomplete information. Firstly, a zero-sum game model of decision maker( D) and nature(N)with fuzzy payoffs is established to obtain the uncertain parameters which are the weight coefficient parameters of the threat indicators and the interval parameters of the threat matrix. Then,the established zero-sum game with fuzzy payoffs is transformed into a zero-sum game with crisp payoffs(matrix game) to solve. Moreover, a decision rule is addressed for the threat sequencing problem of multiple UCAVs based on the obtained uncertain parameters. Finally, numerical simulation results are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.