Fuzzy Analytic Network Process Model Research Articles

Forest fire risk zoning based on fuzzy logic and analytical network process.

Forest fires have a significant impact on human life, property safety, and ecological environment. Deve-loping high-quality forest fire risk maps is beneficial for preventing forest fires, guiding resource allocation for firefighting, assisting in fire suppression efforts, and supporting decision-making. With a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method based on geographic information systems (GIS) and literature review, we assessed the main factors influencing the occurrences of forest fires in Youxi County, Fujian Province. We analyzed the importance of each fire risk factor using the analytic network process (ANP) and assigned weights, and evaluated the sub-standard weights using fuzzy logic assessment. Using ArcGIS aggregation functions, we generated a forest fire risk map and validated it with satellite fire points. The results showed that the areas classified as level 4 or higher fire risk accounted for a considerable proportion in Youxi County, and that the central and northern regions were at higher risk. The overall fire risk situation in the county was severe. The fuzzy ANP model demonstrated a high accuracy of 85.8%. The introduction of this novel MCDA method could effectively improve the accuracy of forest fire risk mapping at a small scale, providing a basis for early fire warning and the planning and allocation of firefighting resources.

Positioning of aerial ambulances to improve health care access: A framework using fuzzy DEMATEL and fuzzy ANP

ABSTRACT Air ambulances are a crucial enabler of emergency health care because of their high speed, ability to reach impassable areas, relocate more patients, provide better treatment while carrying patients, and ease of access to the hospital without traffic or sudden accidents. The right location must be selected according to scientific principles that address relevant factors to increase air ambulance efficiency in an emergency. A descriptive-analytical approach was adopted to solve the problem of identifying the best locations for aerial ambulances, combining three distinct methods. The first step was to identify criteria affecting the location of air ambulances. Then, the location was determined using a fuzzy analytical network process model coupled with a fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) technique and a geographic information system. To examine the method, a case study was conducted in a province in southeast Iran. Case study results showed insufficient aerial ambulance stations and roads to meet the need. This study provides helpful information for city planners and health policymakers to determine the optimal location of air ambulances by analyzing geographical conditions and barriers to delivering high-quality care to remote area. The study can contribute to more sustainable cities through better health services for communities.

Fuzzy Multi-criteria Decision Making for Decision Support in Port Capacity燯pgrade

In many port capacity upgrade projects, choosing a supplier of equipment is a complicated decision, project managers must consider many criteria to choose a supplier to ensure the project is completed on time, optimal in terms of benefit and cost. Therefore, selecting the equipment supplier in this project is a multi-criteria decision-making process. The multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) model is applied in many fields to select the optimal solution, but there are very few studies using the MCDM model to support project managers in evaluating and selecting optimal solutions in port capacity upgrade project. In this research, the authors combine Fuzzy Analytic Network Process model and Weighted Aggregated Sum Product Assessment concepts to develop a decision support system in port capacity upgrade project. The scientific and practical contribution of this study is to successfully propose a decision support model in a fuzzy environment. The results of the study will be a useful guideline to assist decision makers in port capacity upgrading projects in Taiwan as well as in other countries around the world.

A hybrid model of environmental impact assessment of PM2.5 concentration using multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) and geographical information system (GIS)—a case study

In the last decades, Tehran, as the capital of Iran, has faced severe air pollution. Considering the importance of air pollution, particularly PM2.5, the study assesses the environmental impacts (EIA) of PM2.5 in the Tehran metropolis using 4-year consecutive data (2014–2017). For this purpose, the inverse distance weighting model, geographically weighted regression (GWR) model, and fuzzy analytic network process (FANP) for interpolation of PM2.5 concentration, measuring the relationship between main factors and PM2.5 concentration, and EIA were utilized, respectively. The research findings showed that the highest PM2.5 concentration was 56 μg/m3 from 2014 to 2015, then with a decreasing trend in 2016 and 2017. Moreover, the local R2 ranges obtained from the GWR model between PM2.5 concentration and traffic, population distribution, land use, gas, and fuel consumption are 30–69%, 14–23%, 44–76%, 31–42%, and 1–35%, respectively. In the following, in order to study the EIA of PM2.5 using the FANP model, four alternatives, strict environmental management in the surrounding neighborhoods, change in the country’s economic capital, change in the urban management, and NO action, were proposed. Then, the relationships of dependence and pairwise comparisons among criteria and alternatives were performed through grades of membership for linguistic variables of fuzzy sets. Next, the unweighted fuzzy supermatrix was constructed, and the weighted fuzzy supermatrix and limit supermatrix were calculated, respectively. Finally, the centroid of area technique was applied for the defuzzification process and prioritization of the alternatives. The EIA results of the FANP model demonstrated that strict environmental management in surrounding neighborhoods by having the highest weight (38%) is the best alternative.

Optimal Site Selection for a Solar Power Plant in the Mekong Delta Region of Vietnam

Following the recent development trend in the struggle for cleaning the earth’s environment, solar is the one of most promising area that can partially be used as a replaceable energy from non-renewable fuel sources. As such, it plays a significant role in protecting the environment from global warming. As solar power does not emit harmful gases into the atmosphere, its production, distribution, setup, and operation are vital should the production remain constant. Even solar energy waste emissions are small; when compared to current energy sources, the amount of harmful gases is negligible. This paper presented an integrated approach for site of solar plants by using data envelopment analysis (DEA) and Fuzzy Analytical Network Process (FANP). Furthermore, these integrated methodologies, incorporated with the most relevant parameters of requirements for solar plants, are introduced. First, the paper considers an integrated hierarchical DEA and FANP model for the optimal geographical location of solar plants in Mekong Delta Region, Vietnam. Using the proposed model for implementation would allow the renewable energy policy makers to select and control the optimal location for allocating and constructing a solar energy power plant in Vietnam. This is the preferred strategy for location optimization problems associated with solar plant units in Vietnam and around the world.

An Invasive Weed Optimization-Based Fuzzy Decision-making Framework for Bridge Intervention Prioritization in Element and Network Levels

Recently, the number of deteriorating bridges has drastically increased. Furthermore, tight maintenance budgets are cut down, imposing escalating adverse implications on the safety of bridges. This state of affairs entails the development of decision support systems for the effective management of bridges within the allocated budget. As such, this study introduces an invasive weed optimization-based fuzzy decision-making framework designated for bridge intervention prioritization in both element and network levels. The proposed decision-making platform encompasses three main tiers. The first tier is an optimized fuzzy analytical network process model that aims at computing the weighting vector of the bridge defects, namely corrosion, delamination, cracking, spalling and scaling. In this model, a genetic algorithm optimization model is formulated to improve the consistencies of judgment matrices through circumventing the imprecisions encountered by the classical judgment assignment. The second tier encompasses establishing an integrated bridge deck condition assessment model capitalizing on ground-penetrating radar and inspection reports. In it, the severities of the bridge defects are demonstrated in the form of fuzzy membership functions to address the inherent uncertainties of inspection. Subsequently, a variable-length invasive weed optimization model is structured to automatically calibrate the fuzzy membership functions. The third model is designed for structuring a bridge maintenance decision-making strategy stepping on the integrated condition index. The capabilities of the proposed framework were validated through several levels of comparisons. For instance, it significantly outperformed some of the current condition assessment models. Additionally, it inferred that the thresholds separating the four categories of the integrated bridge deck condition index are 75.651, 67.769 and 60.318.

GIS-based forest fire risk mapping using the analytical network process and fuzzy logic

This research investigates the efficiency of combining the Analytical Network Process (ANP) and fuzzy logic for developing a fire risk map. Major factors influencing the occurrence of forest fires were identified from the literature. The importance of each factor was determined by an ANP ranking procedure, which yielded the criteria weights, while fuzzy logic was employed for assessing the weights of the subcriteria. Then, GIS-based aggregation functions were employed to produce a fire risk map. In order to validate the results, forest fire locations were identified using field data, satellite images, and national reports. This validation revealed a very high accuracy of 0.819 for the fuzzy ANP model. The results will serve as guidelines for researchers and scientists by introducing new and robust MCDA methods. In general, the mentioned Hybrid method can be applied to early warning, fire suppression resources planning, and allocation work in the study area.

A systematic approach for public-private partnership projects CSFs evaluation

PurposePublic–private partnership (PPP) projects are increasingly significant in many countries. The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of critical success factors (CSFs) on PPP projects and comprehensively consider the interrelations and interaction among dimensions and factors to achieve a better understanding of PPP project management.Design/methodology/approachAn evaluation index system for PPP projects such as the presented case study is proposed based on a literature review and a survey. Then, interpretative structural modeling is used to transform the CSFs dimension into a multi-level hierarchical model to reflect the driven-dependency relation of each dimension; the fuzzy analytic network process model optimized by moment estimation theory is used to investigate the impact of CSFs by considering their internal impact.FindingsRegarding the project used as the case study, the driving force and dependence for driving layer and dependent layer are determined. Moreover, in driving layer, efficient and well-structured payment mechanism is the most important CSF if considering the internship and interaction among CSFs, and efficient and well-structured payment mechanism and good governance provide most positive interaction; in dependent layer, population of beneficiaries is the most important CSF if considering the internship and interaction among CSFs, and public client’s satisfaction provides most positive interaction.Originality/valueThis paper developed an evaluation model to explore the interrelationships of dimensions and factors and then determine the impact of CSFs. The model propose in this paper relaxes the independence assumptions of traditional methods and is more in line with reality; besides, weighting method is optimized to obtain more objective and reasonable evaluation results. Through an empirical study, the validity of the model has been verified; therefore, the study can help project stakeholders better understand the CSFs and further improve project performance.

Utilizing the Hierarchy Structural Fuzzy Analytical Network Process Model to Evaluate Critical Elements of Marketing Strategic Alliance Development in Mobile Telecommunication Industry

Extant studies on marketing strategic alliance development lack systematic measurement models; consequently, they cannot provide a holistic picture of the relationship evaluation stage. In addition, it is difficult to clearly understand the interactive effects between the critical elements of marketing strategic alliance development. Therefore, this study proposes a systematic measurement model, called the hierarchy structural fuzzy analytical network process model (H-S FANP model), to evaluate the correlation, interaction, and mutual dependence of the critical elements at the evaluation stage. This model combines four methods, i.e., the interpretation of structural model, Matrice d’ Impacts Croises Multiplication Appliquee a un Classement, fuzzy linguistic preference relations, and analytical network process (ANP), to overcome various problems encountered when using the conventional ANP. To illustrate how the H-S FANP model can be applied, this study uses the mobile telecommunications industry in Taiwan as an empirical subject. The findings show that the H-S FANP model can assist the mobile telecommunications industry in its long-term marketing strategic alliance development and help decision-makers in improving their evaluation quality and calculation efficiency when analyzing critical elements during the evaluation stage of development.

Exploring the linkage effects of place attachment in rural areas using the fuzzy analytic network process

ABSTRACTThough previous research has developed an evaluation measurement for place attachment, it has ignored the interdependence of the criteria and subcriteria associated with that evaluation tool. Because it is challenging for researchers to digest the multi-criteria messages presented in place attachment and to understand the multiple place attachment terms, this study adopts the fuzzy analytic network process (FANP) model to identify the characteristics of place attachment, and categorizes these characteristics into three dimensions, namely personal context, community context, and environment context. Using the FANP model, an empirical survey was conducted that included the collected survey data of 187 respondents from the Meinong region of Taiwan to determine the typical features of place attachment. Our research results demonstrate that, with respect to successful community involvement, familiarity is essential for place attachment. As familiarity establishes social ties with the setting, one’s emotional attachment to the location or environment increases. The ability to define clear priority weights for personal, community, and environment contexts is one of the benefits of using the FANP method to evaluate place attachment. Accordingly, the findings regarding these three contexts raise issues about the role of local government and self-efficacy in place attachment in Taiwanese environments.

Hybrid SWOT - ANP - FANP model for prioritization strategies of sustainable development of ecotourism in National Park Djerdap, Serbia

The paper presents the results of the research for prioritization strategies of sustainable development of ecotourism in National Park Djerdap (NPDJ), Serbia. Ecotourism as a possible type of tourism in national parks is observed through SWOT situation analysis of NPDJ, Serbia. Based on the results presented in the TOWS matrix - possible SO, WO, ST and WT strategies, which enable sustainable development of ecotourism in the national park, were defined. Using multi-criteria Analytical Network Process (ANP) and Fuzzy Analytical Network Process (FANP) the prioritization defined strategy was determined. It allows sustainable development of ecotourism in NPDJ, Serbia, through the promotion of EU standards for the NPDJ involvement of academic institutions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). By applying the defined prioritization of certain strategies, there is a possibility of a continuous increase of NPDJ performances which would contribute to the sustainability of the defined ecotourism concept.

Product-service supplier pre-evaluation with modified fuzzy ANP reducing decision information distortion

The main challenge of new product-service supplier (PSS) selection is the lack of historical performance information of the suppliers. As one of the most popular techniques in supplier evaluation, the analytic network process (ANP) has an advantage in organising and analysing PSS pre-evaluation problems. However, the decision information distortion caused by matrix revision is a major factor affecting the wide application of the ANP when the consistency of the comparison matrix is unqualified. In this paper, a modified fuzzy ANP (F-ANP) with six criteria and 20 sub-criteria is suggested for PSS pre-evaluation. With the purpose of reducing decision information distortion in the pre-evaluation, the geometric scale is employed to improve the consistency of the judgment matrices and a linear approach is proposed for the unqualified judgment matrix revision. It is the first time that the decision information in the comparison matrix can be evaluated and retained as much as possible in generating and selecting the substitute using the proposed linear approach. The improved F-ANP model is verified in a real-life case study. Compared with the approaches in the literature, the linear approach shows advantages in retaining original decision information and the improved F-ANP outperforms the ANP and analytic hierarchy process models in terms of obtaining a stable rank of suppliers and distinguishing the importance of the criteria.

A rating based fuzzy analytic network process (F-ANP) model for evaluation of ship maneuverability

In this paper, a novel rating based fuzzy analytic network process (F-ANP) model is proposed for the evaluation of ship maneuverability and the improvement of maneuverability standards. By incorporating the F-ANP technique into the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) maneuverability standards, the proposed model is able to solve the problem of mutual dependencies of the maneuvering factors inherent in the evaluation of ship maneuverability and the insufficiency of unreasonable weights of maneuvering factors assigned in current maneuverability standards. Following this model, the more synthesized and advanced evaluation process for ship maneuverability is achieved and the more reasonable weights for each maneuvering factor are assigned. The pairwise comparison matrices are formed by the expert team. To deal with the problem of ambiguity and vagueness, the index attribute values are fuzzied with triangular fuzzy number. Furthermore, the maneuvering data of three ships are applied to the case studies and discussions to illustrate the reasonableness, effectiveness and advantages of the proposed rating based F-ANP model by comparing with the common F-AHP model and current ABS standards. The comparative results are encouraging, and show that the proposed rating based F-ANP approach is a viable and effective tool for evaluation of ship maneuverability.

A fuzzy analytic network process model to mitigate the risks associated with offshore wind farms

In the offshore renewable energy industry, it is extremely important to reduce the likelihood as well as the magnitude of potential risk events during system’s actual operation. Operational risks (either risk of system failures or environmental risks) may cause catastrophic damages to personnel or infrastructure and result in substantial costs in terms of lost production and emergency maintenance operations. Selection of a suitable strategy for mitigation of the risks associated with offshore renewable energy projects is a very complex and critical task. The aim of this paper is to propose a fuzzy analytic network process (FANP) approach, based on Chang’s extent analysis, in order to select the “most appropriate risk mitigation strategy” for offshore wind farms. Our proposed model consists of four possible alternatives (variation of offshore site layout, improvement of maintenance services, upgrading the monitoring systems, and modification in design of wind turbines) among which the decision maker has to select the best strategy according to four comparison criteria: safety, added value, cost and feasibility. The model is then applied to determine a suitable risk mitigation strategy for an offshore wind farm consisting of 30 wind turbines of 2MW. Finally, the results are compared with those obtained using the crisp AHP and ANP models.

Method of Selection Manufacturing Projects Based on FANP Model

Selecting an optimal manufacturing project is a very important link in the production and operation chain. Only by the scientific system of decision-making process can the experts find out the best project which is not only quality and economical, but also safe and ecological. Considering the interaction and dependence of the indices and the uncertain and imperfect information during the process, a model for selecting an optimal manufacturing project based on fuzzy analytic network process (FANP) is established. Firstly an evaluation index system is built by taking into account the interaction and dependence relationship between indices. Secondly the weights of each level are determined by fuzzy preference programming (FPP) method and Matlab program .Then the alternatives are calculated by this system to find out which is the best one. Finally by comparing the result with that of ANP and FAHP, to prove the applicability and effectiveness of this decision-making methods.

A novel balanced scorecard design based on fuzzy analytic network process and its application

In this paper, wepropose a novel balanced scorecard design based on fuzzy analytic networkprocess and then conduct performance evaluation through a case study. Afteranalyzing the related works about balanced scorecard design and the algorithmof fuzzy analytic network process, we illustrate the improved balancedscorecard design. Firstly, the basic concepts for the balanced scorecardsare introduced. Secondly, four perspectives of the balanced scorecards design are provided.Thirdly, the method to promote the performance of balanced scorecard designthrough the fuzzy analytic network process is demonstrated. In the proposeddesign, a fuzzy number is represented by the left and right formation of eachdegree of membership in fuzzy analytic network process. Furthermore, the degreepossibility for a convex fuzzy number to be larger than a given convex fuzzynumbers can be represented by an effective scheme. Particularly, the basicstructure in the fuzzy analytic network process model is organized hierarchically,and the local weights of the strategies, balanced scorecard perspectives andperformance indicators can be obtained by matrix computing. Finally, a casestudy of college English classroom teaching quantitative evaluation is given todemonstrate the performance of the proposed balanced scorecard design.Experimental results show that the proposed balanced scorecard design is quiteeffective. DOI : http://dx.doi.org/10.11591/telkomnika.v12i4.4804

A fuzzy ANP model for the selection of 3D coordinate-measuring machine

The analytic network process (ANP) method is normally used to determine the relative weights of a set of evaluation criteria when ranking the competing alternatives in terms of their overall perfor...

Fuzzy multi-criteria decision making model for different scenarios of electrical power generation in Egypt

In the analytic network process (ANP) a hierarchy or network is created to represent a decision and establishes a matrix containing the pair wise comparison judgments for the elements linked under a parent element. A priority vector of relative weights for these elements is derived. Then all the priority vectors are appropriately weighted and summed to obtain the overall priorities for the alternatives of a decision. In this paper we will develop an efficient fuzzy ANP model which helps decision makers to choose among the alternatives for the Egyptian scenarios of electrical power generation.

Fuzzy Group Decision-Making in the Measurement of Ecotourism Sustainability Potential

Both theoretical and practical efforts to evaluate ecotourism development often neglect alternative characteristics that may interact with and mutually influence the primary indicators. To evaluate the sustainability of an ecotourism site, this study utilizes subjective measures to analyze the relationships among tourism, resources, community, economy and society. Yangshan Ecological Park in Kinmen is examined to demonstrate the implementation of the proposed integrated framework in ecotourism development. First, the Fuzzy Delphi Method was applied to select the critical factors. Local residents, tourists and resource administrators were interviewed to explore each group’s perception of relationships. Then, Interpretive Structural Modeling was employed to determine the interrelationship among the critical factors. A Fuzzy Analytic Network process model was constructed to evaluate the potential sustainability of ecotourism and the relative importance the weights of the criteria and sub-criteria. The study provides a valuable integrated tool for sustainable destination management.

A multi-criteria decision-making methodology on the selection of facility location: fuzzy ANP

Analytical ways to reach the best decisions are the most preferable issues in many business platforms. During the decision processes, besides the measurable variables, there exist qualitative variables, especially if the decision is based on a selection problem. Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and analytic network process (ANP) are two of the best ways to decide among the complex criteria structure in different levels using qualitative variables. When there are interactions between the criteria in different levels of the hierarchy, then AHP cannot be used because of their one-way direction of hierarchy; the ANP has been developed for this kind of need. In this study, a fuzzy ANP method is developed for a multi-criteria facility location selection problem where the criteria set includes interactions with each other on the hierarchy structure. Besides the fuzzy ANP model development and implementation on facility location, sensitivity analysis was also originally performed to indicate the upper and lower bounds for the importance levels of alternative locations.