Operational Decision Support in the Presence of Uncertainties

Operational Decision Support in the Presence of Uncertainties

Author: Corneliu T. C. Arsene

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published: 2011-05-01

Total Pages: 208

ISBN-13: 9781463535285

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This book addresses the scientific domains of operations research, information science and statistics with a focus on engineering applications. The purpose of this book is to report on the implications of the loop equations formulation of the state estimation procedure of the network systems, for the purpose of the implementation of Decision Support (DS) systems for the operational control of the network systems. In general an operational DS comprises a series of standalone applications from which the mathematical modeling and simulation of the distribution systems and the managing of the uncertainty in the decision-making process are essential in order to obtain efficient control and monitoring of the distribution systems. The mathematical modeling and simulation forms the basis for detailed optimization of the network operations and the second one uses uncertainty based reasoning in order to reduce the complexity of the network system and to increase the credibility of its model. This book reports on the integration of the two aspects of operational DS into a single computational framework of loop network equations. The proposed DS system will be validated using case studies taken from the water industry. The optimal control of water distribution systems is an important problem because the models are non-linear and large-scale and measurements are prone to errors and very often they are incomplete. The problem of steady state analysis of water distribution systems is studied in the context of a co-tree flows simulator algorithm that is derived from the basic loop corrective flows algorithm. It is shown that the co-tree formulation has several inherent advantages over the original formulation due to the use of the spanning trees. This allows a rapid determination of the necessary input data for the simulator (the loop and the topological incidence matrices and the initial flows) as well as the fast calculus of the nodal heads at the end of the simulation. A novel Least Square (LS) state estimator that is suitable for on-line monitoring of the water distribution systems is presented. The state variables are both the loop corrective flows and the variation of nodal demands. It is shown that the input data necessary to build the network equations can be derived from the spanning tree obtained for the co-tree flows simulator and so there is a natural connection between the novel state estimator and the simulator algorithm. In spite of the increased size of the state vector, a satisfactory convergence is obtained through an enhancement in the Jacobian matrix. Furthermore a fine-tuning of the inverse of the tree incidence matrix is carried out in order to avoid the lack of numerical stability characteristic to the nodal heads state estimators. A very efficient and effective loop flows LS state estimator is developed that is tested successfully on realistic water networks. Based on the novel state estimation technique, new algorithms for quantifying the measurement uncertainty impact on the state estimates are developed. The Confidence Limit Analysis (CLA) algorithms include a formulation of an Experimental Sensitivity Matrix (ESM) method, a sensitivity matrix method within the loop equations framework and an Error Maximization technique (EM). The performances of these algorithms are assessed in terms of their computational complexity and the accuracy of the results that they produce. It is shown that the computational efficiency and the accuracy of results of the EM method renders it suitable for online DS applications.


Completing the Forecast

Completing the Forecast

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2006-10-09

Total Pages: 124

ISBN-13: 0309180538

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Uncertainty is a fundamental characteristic of weather, seasonal climate, and hydrological prediction, and no forecast is complete without a description of its uncertainty. Effective communication of uncertainty helps people better understand the likelihood of a particular event and improves their ability to make decisions based on the forecast. Nonetheless, for decades, users of these forecasts have been conditioned to receive incomplete information about uncertainty. They have become used to single-valued (deterministic) forecasts (e.g., "the high temperature will be 70 degrees Farenheit 9 days from now") and applied their own experience in determining how much confidence to place in the forecast. Most forecast products from the public and private sectors, including those from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service, continue this deterministic legacy. Fortunately, the National Weather Service and others in the prediction community have recognized the need to view uncertainty as a fundamental part of forecasts. By partnering with other segments of the community to understand user needs, generate relevant and rich informational products, and utilize effective communication vehicles, the National Weather Service can take a leading role in the transition to widespread, effective incorporation of uncertainty information into predictions. "Completing the Forecast" makes recommendations to the National Weather Service and the broader prediction community on how to make this transition.


Operations Research and Decision Aid Methodologies in Traffic and Transportation Management

Operations Research and Decision Aid Methodologies in Traffic and Transportation Management

Author: Martine Labbe

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-06-29

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 3662035146

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Every one relies on some kind of transportation system nearly every day. Go ing to work, shopping, dropping children at school and many other cultural or social activities imply leaving home, and using some form of transportation, which we expect tobe eflicient and reliable. Of course, efliciency and reliabil ity do not occur by chance, but require careful and often relatively complex planning by transportation system managers, both in the public and private sectors. It has long been recognized that mathematics, and, more specifically, op erations research is an important tool of this planning process. However, the range of skills required to cover both fields, even partially, is very large, and the opportunities to gather people with this very diverse expertise are too few. The organization of the NATO Advanced Studies Institute on "Opera tions Research and Decision Aid Methodologies in Traflic and Transportation Management" in March 1997 in Balatonfüred, Hungary, was therefore more than welcome and the group of people that gathered for a very studious two weeks on the shores of the beautiful lake Balaton did really enjoy the truly multidisciplinary and high scientific level of the meeting. The purpose of the present volume is to report, in a chronological order, the various questions that were considered by the lecturers and the' students at the institute. After a general introduction to the topic, the first week focused on issues related to traflic modeling, mostly in an urban context.


Multicriteria Decision-Making Under Conditions of Uncertainty

Multicriteria Decision-Making Under Conditions of Uncertainty

Author: Petr Ekel

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2019-12-12

Total Pages: 368

ISBN-13: 1119534925

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A guide to the various models and methods to multicriteria decision-making in conditions of uncertainty presented in a systematic approach Multicriteria Decision-Making under Conditions of Uncertainty presents approaches that help to answer the fundamental questions at the center of all decision-making problems: "What to do?" and "How to do it?" The book explores methods of representing and handling diverse manifestations of the uncertainty factor and a multicriteria nature of problems that can arise in system design, planning, operation, and control. The authors—noted experts on the topic—and their book covers essential questions, including notions and fundamental concepts of fuzzy sets, models and methods of multiobjective as well as multiattribute decision-making, the classical approach to dealing with uncertainty of information and its generalization for analyzing multicriteria problems in condition of uncertainty, and more. This comprehensive book contains information on "harmonious solutions" in multiobjective problem-solving (analyzing “i>X, F> models), construction and analysis of “i>X, R/i” models, results aimed at generating robust solutions in analyzing multicriteria problems under uncertainty, and more. In addition, the book includes illustrative examples of various applications, including real-world case studies related to the authors’ various industrial projects. This important resource: Explains the design and processing aspect of fuzzy sets, including construction of membership functions, fuzzy numbers, fuzzy relations, aggregation operations, and fuzzy sets transformations Describes models of multiobjective decision-making (“i>X. M/i” models), their analysis on the basis of using the Bellman-Zadeh approach to decision-making in a fuzzy environment, and their diverse applications, including multicriteria allocation of resources Investigates models of multiattribute decision-making (“i>X, R/i” models) and their analysis on the basis of the construction and processing of fuzzy preference relations as well as demonstrating their applications to solve diverse classes of multiattribute problems Explores notions of payoff matrices and fuzzy-set-based generalization and modification of the classic approach to decision-making under conditions of uncertainty to generate robust solutions in analyzing multicriteria problems Written for students, researchers and practitioners in disciplines in which decision-making is of paramount relevance, Multicriteria Decision-Making under Conditions of Uncertainty presents a systematic and current approach that encompasses a range of models and methods as well as new applications.


Uncertainty and Imprecision in Decision Making and Decision Support - New Advances, Challenges, and Perspectives

Uncertainty and Imprecision in Decision Making and Decision Support - New Advances, Challenges, and Perspectives

Author: Krassimir T. Atanassov

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2023-10-20

Total Pages: 353

ISBN-13: 3031450698

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This volume is composed of selected papers from two conferences held in Warsaw, Poland on October 13-15, 2022: the BOS/SOR’2022 - National Conference on Operational and Systems Research, one of premiere conferences in the field of operational and systems research, and the Twentith International Workshop on Intuitionistic Fuzzy Sets and Generalized Nets, IWIFSGN-2022, one of premiere conferences on fuzzy logic, notably on extensions of the traditional fuzzy sets, also comprising a considerable part on the Generalized Nets (GNs). A joint publication of selected papers from the two conferences follows a long tradition of such a joint organization, and – from a substantial point of view – combines systems modeling, systems analysis, broadly perceived operational research, notably optimization, decision making and decision support, with various aspects of uncertain and imprecise information and their related tools and techniques.


Decision Making under Deep Uncertainty

Decision Making under Deep Uncertainty

Author: Vincent A. W. J. Marchau

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2019-04-04

Total Pages: 408

ISBN-13: 3030052524

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This open access book focuses on both the theory and practice associated with the tools and approaches for decisionmaking in the face of deep uncertainty. It explores approaches and tools supporting the design of strategic plans under deep uncertainty, and their testing in the real world, including barriers and enablers for their use in practice. The book broadens traditional approaches and tools to include the analysis of actors and networks related to the problem at hand. It also shows how lessons learned in the application process can be used to improve the approaches and tools used in the design process. The book offers guidance in identifying and applying appropriate approaches and tools to design plans, as well as advice on implementing these plans in the real world. For decisionmakers and practitioners, the book includes realistic examples and practical guidelines that should help them understand what decisionmaking under deep uncertainty is and how it may be of assistance to them. Decision Making under Deep Uncertainty: From Theory to Practice is divided into four parts. Part I presents five approaches for designing strategic plans under deep uncertainty: Robust Decision Making, Dynamic Adaptive Planning, Dynamic Adaptive Policy Pathways, Info-Gap Decision Theory, and Engineering Options Analysis. Each approach is worked out in terms of its theoretical foundations, methodological steps to follow when using the approach, latest methodological insights, and challenges for improvement. In Part II, applications of each of these approaches are presented. Based on recent case studies, the practical implications of applying each approach are discussed in depth. Part III focuses on using the approaches and tools in real-world contexts, based on insights from real-world cases. Part IV contains conclusions and a synthesis of the lessons that can be drawn for designing, applying, and implementing strategic plans under deep uncertainty, as well as recommendations for future work. The publication of this book has been funded by the Radboud University, the RAND Corporation, Delft University of Technology, and Deltares.


Fuzzy Optimization, Decision-making and Operations Research

Fuzzy Optimization, Decision-making and Operations Research

Author: Chiranjibe Jana

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2023-11-25

Total Pages: 753

ISBN-13: 3031356683

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After developing fuzzy set theory, many contributors focused their research on the extension of fuzzy sets and their computational methodologies, strengthening modern science and technology. In some real-life phenomena, the conventional methods and traditional fuzzy sets cannot be explained, whereas the extension of fuzzy sets and effective new computing methods can explain it adequately. This edited book presents a new view of fuzzy set-measurement methods entitled "Fuzzy Optimization, Decision Making and Operations Research: Theory and Applications", which deals with different perspectives and areas of research. All chapters are divided into three parts: fuzzy optimization, fuzzy decision-making, and fuzzy operation research. The goal of this book is to provide a relevant methodological framework covering the core fields of fuzzy decision-making method, fuzzy optimization method, fuzzy graphics method, fuzzy operations research, fuzzy optimization using graph theory, fuzzy support systems and its real and industrial applications. For many people, fuzzy words' industrial engineering and scientific meanings are still an advanced system for improving modern science and technology. Although fuzzy logic can be applied to many different areas, people do not know how different fuzzy approaches can be applied to various products currently on the market. It is written for professionals who wish to share their expertise, improve their findings, and provide relevant information in the fields of fuzzy methods and their application in decision-making, optimization theory, graph theory and operations research. This book is aimed at experts and practitioners in the fields of fuzzy optimization, fuzzy decision-making, and fuzzy operation research.