Uncertainty in the conjunctive approach to fuzzy inference

Abstract

Fuzzy inference using the conjunctive approach is very popular in many practical applications. It is intuitive for engineers, simple to understand, and characterized by the lowest computational complexity. However, it leads to incorrect results in the cases when the relationship between a fact and a premise is undefined. This article analyses the problem thoroughly and provides several possible solutions. The drawbacks of uncertainty in the conjunctive approach are presented using fuzzy inference based on a fuzzy truth value, first introduced by Baldwin (1979c). The theory of inference is completed with a new truth function named 0-undefined for two-valued logic, which is further generalized into fuzzy logic as α-undefined. Eventually, the proposed modifications allow altering existing implementations of conjunctive fuzzy systems to interpret the undefined state, giving adequate results.