We present a new method to aid a decision maker (DM) in selecting the “most preferred” from a set of design alternatives. The method is deterministic and assumes that the DM’s preferences reflect an implicit value function that is quasi-concave. The method is interactive, with the DM stating preferences in the form of attribute tradeoffs at a series of trial designs, each a specific design under consideration. The method is iterative and uses the gradient of the value function obtained from the preferences of the DM to eliminate lower value designs at each trial design. We present an approach for finding a new trial design at each iteration. We provide an example, the design selection for a cordless electric drill, to demonstrate the method. We provide results showing that (within the limit of our experimentation) our method needs only a few iterations to find the most preferred design alternative. Finally we extend our deterministic selection method to account for uncertainty in the attributes when the probability distributions governing the uncertainty are known.
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Interactive Product Design Selection With an Implicit Value Function
K. Maddulapalli, Graduate Research Assistant,
K. Maddulapalli, Graduate Research Assistant
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
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S. Azarm, Professor,
S. Azarm, Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
11
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A. Boyars, Engineer,
A. Boyars, Engineer,
Code 4330C, Indian Head Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head, MD
Search for other works by this author on:
K. Maddulapalli, Graduate Research Assistant
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
S. Azarm, Professor
11
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
A. Boyars, Engineer,
Code 4330C, Indian Head Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head, MD
Contributed by the Design Theory and Methodology Committee for publication in the JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL DESIGN. Manuscript received December 29, 2003; revised June 4, 2004. Associate Editor: C. Dym.
J. Mech. Des. May 2005, 127(3): 367-377 (11 pages)
Published Online: May 10, 2005
Article history
Received:
December 29, 2003
Revised:
June 4, 2004
Online:
May 10, 2005
Citation
Maddulapalli, K., Azarm, S., and Boyars, A. (May 10, 2005). "Interactive Product Design Selection With an Implicit Value Function ." ASME. J. Mech. Des. May 2005; 127(3): 367–377. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.1829727
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