Decisions under uncertainty: The fuzzy compromise Decision Support Problem

A compromise Decision Support Problem is used to improve an alternative through modification to achieve multiple objectives. However, the compromise DSP requires precise numerical information to yield rigourously accurate results. In the early stages of conceptual design such precise information is often unavailable. For example, a design should be reliable manufacturable, maintainable and cost-efficient. Although inherently vague, each qualifier specifies an important attribute that the design must possess. Such vagueness may be modeled rigourously using the mathematics of fuzzy set theory. In this paper, the authors introduce a fuzzy formulation of the compromise DSP; a formulation which is particularly suitable for modeling the decisions required in the early stages of engineering design. They investigate the properties of the fuzzy compromise DSP in the context of designing a planar, four-bar linkage.