A general piecewise necessity regression analysis based on linear programming

In possibilistic regression analysis proposed by Tanaka and Ishibuchi (1992), linear programming (LP) formulation of necessity analysis has no feasible solution under the enormous variation of the given data. This work proposes a general piecewise necessity regression analysis based on LP rather than a non-linear interval model that they recommended to obtain the necessity area of the given data. In addition to maintaining a linear property, the proposed method prevents the necessity analysis from having no feasible solution. The problematic univariate example and a multivariate example with respect to different number of change-points are demonstrated by the general piecewise necessity regression. The proposed method characteristic is that, according to data distribution, practitioners can specify the number and the positions of change-points. The proposed method maintains the linear interval model and the order of necessity regression function does not need to be determined.