Time series prediction using belief network models

Abstract

We address the problem of generating normative forecasts efficiently from a Bayesian belief network. Forecasts are predictions of future values of domain variables conditioned on current and past values of domain variables. To address the forecasting problem, we have developed a probability forecasting methodology, Dynamic Network Models (DNMs), through a synthesis of belief network models and classical time-series models. The DNM methodology is based on the integration of fundamental methods of Bayesian time-series analysis, with recent additive generalizations of belief network representation and inference techniques. We apply DNMs to the problem of forecasting episodes of apnea, that is, regular intervals of breathing cessation in patients afflicted with sleep apnea. We compare the one-step-ahead forecasts of chest volume, an indicator of apnea, made by autoregressive models, belief networks, and DNMs. We also construct a DNM to analyse the multivariate time series of chest volume, heart rate and oxygen saturation data.