Classical Relations And Fuzzy

Relations
 Relations
• This chapter introduces the notion of relation.
• The notion of relation is the basic idea behind
numerous operations on sets such as Cartesian
products, composition of relations , difference of
relations and intersections of relations and
equivalence properties
• In all engineering, science and mathematically
based fields, relations are very important
 Relations
• Similarities can be described with relations.
• In this sense, relations is a very important
notion to many different technologies like graph
theory, data manipulation.

Graph theory
Data manipulations
•In classical relations (crisp relations),
Relationships between elements of the sets are
only in two degrees; “completely related” and
“not related”.

• Fuzzy relations take on an infinitive number of

degrees of relationships between the extremes of
“completely related” and “not related”
Crisp system Fuzzy system

-Crisp, exact - Fuzzy, qualitative, vague

-Based on models (i.e. differential - Uses knowledge (i.e. rules)
equations) - Requires fuzzy data
- Requires complete - Nonlinear method
set of data
- Typically linear
Crisp system Fuzzy logic system

-Complex systems hard to -No traditional modeling,

model inferences based on knowledge
-incomplete information - can handle incomplete
leads to inaccuracy information to some degree
-numerical -linguistic
 Cartesian Product
• Example 3.1. The elements in two sets A and B
are given as A ={0, 1} and B ={a,b, c}.
Various Cartesian products of these two sets can
be written as shown:
A × B ={(0,a),(0,b),(0,c),(1,a),(1,b),(1,c)}
B × A ={(a, 0), (a, 1), (b, 0), (b, 1), (c, 0), (c, 1)}
A × A = A2={(0, 0), (0, 1), (1, 0), (1, 1)}
B × B = B2={(a, a), (a, b), (a, c), (b, a), (b, b), (b,
c), (c, a), (c, b), (c, c)}
Crisp Relations (Classical Relations)
• Cartesian product is denoted in form A1 x A2 x…..x Ar
• An r-ary relation over A1.A2, ... ,Ar, is a subset of the Cartesian
product A1 x A2 x · · · x Ar,.
• The most common case is for r=2 and represent with A1 x A2. This
is called binary relation from A1 to A2.
• When three, four or five sets are involved in the subset of full
Cartesian product then the relations are called ternary, quaternary
and quinary, respectively.
• The Cartesian product of two universes X and Y is determined as
X × Y = {(x, y) | x ∈X,y ∈Y}
• Here the Cartesian product forms an ordered pair of
every x ϵ X with every y ϵ Y.
• This form shows that there is a matching between X and
Y , this is an unconstrained matching.
 Crisp Relations
• Every element in universe X is related
completely to every element in universe Y
• This relationship's strength is measured by the
characteristics function χ
χX×Y(x, y) = 1, (x,y) ∈X × Y
0, (x,y) ∉X × Y
• Complete relationship is showed with 1 and no
relationship is showed with 0
 • When the universes, or sets, are finite the
relation can be conveniently represented by a
matrix, called a relation matrix.

X ={1, 2, 3} and Y ={a, b, c}

Mapping representation of an unconstrained relation

A binary relation in which each element from first set X is not mapped to
more than one element in second set Y is called a function and is
expressed as R: X → Y
 A more general crisp relation, R, exists when matches between elements in
two universes are constrained.
The characteristic function is used to assign values of relationship in the
mapping of the Cartesian space X x Y to the binary values (0, I) and is given
by

• Special cases of the constrained Cartesian product

for sets where r=2 are called identity relation
denoted IA . Consider set A = {0, 1, 2}
IA ={(0, 0), (1, 1), (2, 2)}

• Special cases of the unconstrained Cartesian product

for sets where r=2 are called universal relation
denoted UA
UA ={(0, 0), (0, 1), (0, 2), (1, 0), (1, 1), (1, 2), (2, 0), (2, 1), (2, 2)}
Cardinality Of Crips (Classical) Relations
cardinality refers to the number of elements in a set

•The Cardinality of the relation r between X and Y

is n X x Y = nx * ny

•The cardinality of the power set P(X x Y)

describing the relation is given by:

• Power set (P(X x Y)), nP(X×Y) = 2(nXnY)

Operations On Crips (Classical) Relations
• Define R and S as two separate relations on the
Cartesian universe X × Y.
• The null relation and the complete relation are defined
by the relation matrices øR and ER

Union: R ∪S → χR∪S(x, y) : χR∪S(x, y) =

max[χR(x, y), χS(x, y)]
Intersection: R ∩ S → χR∩S(x, y) : χR∩S(x, y) =
min[χR(x, y), χS(x, y)]
Complement: R →χR(x, y) : χR(x, y) = 1 − χR(x, y)
Containment: R ⊂S →χR(x, y) : χR(x, y) ≤ χS(x, y)
Identity: ø → øR and X → ER
 Properties Of Crips Relations

• Commutativity
• Associativity
• Distributivity
• Involution
• Idempotency
• De Morgan’s Law 2 × (1 + 3) = (2 × 1) + (2 × 3).

• Excluded Middle
Law
The null relation øR is analogous to null set ø and the complete relation ER is
analogous to whole set X
Composition
Crisp Binary Relation
Composition of Classical Relations
The operation executed on two compatible binary relations to get a single binary
relation is called composition.
Let R be a relation that maps elements from universe X to universe Y and S be a
relation that maps elements from universe Y to universe Z. The two binary
relations Rand S are compatible if R ⊆ XxYand S ⊆ YxZ

In other words, the second set in R must be the same as the first set in S. On the
basis of this explanation, a relation T can be formed that relates the same
elements of universe X contained in R with the same elements of universe Z
contained in S.

This type of relation can be obtained by performing the composition operation

·over the two given relations. The composition between the two relations is
denoted by R o S. Consider the universal sets given by ---
X = {a1,a2,a3}; Y= {b1,b2,b3}; Z = {c1,c2,c3}
Composition of Classical Relations
• Let the relation R and S be formed by
▫ R = X x Y = {(a1, b1), (a1, b2), (a2, b2), (a3, b3)}
▫ S = Y x Z = {(b1, c1), (b2, c3), (b3, c2)}
T = R o S = {(a1, c1), (a2, c3), (a3, c2), (a1, c3)}
The representation of relations R and S in matrix form is given as:

Composition T = R o S is represented in matrix form as:

 There are two common forms of
the composition operation;

The max-product composition is also known as max-dot composition.

A chain is only as strong as its weakest
link
Example
• Using the max–min composition operation, relation
matrices for R and S would be expressed as

µT(x1, z1) = max[min(1, 0), min(0, 0), min(1, 0), min(0, 0)] = 0
 Example
• Using the max–min composition operation, relation
matrices for R and S would be expressed as

µT(x1, z1) = max[min(1, 0), min(0, 0), min(1, 0), min(0, 0)] = 0
µT(x1, z2) = max[min(1, 1), min(0, 0), min(1, 1), min(0, 0)] = 1

Properties of Composition Operation

Fuzzy Relations
• Fuzzy relations relate elements of one universe
(say X) to those of another universe (say Y)
through the Cartesian product of the two
universes.
• These can also be referred to as fuzzy sets
defined on universal sets, which are Cartesian
products.
• A fuzzy relation is based on the concept that
everything is related to some extent or
unrelated.
Fuzzy Relations
• A fuzzy relation is a fuzzy set defined on the Cartesian
product of classical sets {X1, X2, ...Xn} where tuples
(x1, x2, … , xn) may have varying degrees of
membership μR(x1,x2, … , xn) within the relation. That
is,

• A fuzzy relation between two sets X and Y is called

binary fuzzy relation and is denoted by R(X, Y). A
binary relation R(X, Y) is referred to as bipartite graph
when X ≠ Y.
• The binary relation on a single set X is called directed
graph or digraph. This relation occurs when X = Y and
is denoted as R(X,X) or R(X2).
Fuzzy Relations
• Let,
X = {x1,x2, ... ,xn} and Y = {y1, y2, ... ,ym}
• Fuzzy relation R{X, Y} can be expressed by an
n x m matrix as follows:

• The matrix representing a fuzzy relation is

called fuzzy matrix.
Fuzzy Relations
• A fuzzy relation R is a mapping from the
Cartesian space X x Y to the interval [0,1], where
the strength of the mapping is expressed by the
membership function of the relation μR(x,y)
▫ μR : A × B → [0, 1]
▫ R = {((x, y), μR(x, y))| μR(x, y) ≥ 0 , x ∈A, y ∈B}
Fuzzy Relations
• A fuzzy graph is a graphical representation of a
binary fuzzy relation. Each element in X and Y
corresponds to a node in the fuzzy graph.
• The connection links are established between
the nodes by the elements of X x Y with
nonzero membership grades in R(X,Y).
• The links may also be present in the form of
arcs. These links are labeled with the
membership values as μR(xi,yj). When X ≠ Y,
the link connecting the two nodes is an
undirected binary graph called bipartite graph.
Fuzzy Relations
• Here, each of the sets X and Y can be represented by a set of nodes
such that the nodes corresponding to one set are clearly
differentiated from the nodes representing the other set.
• When X = Y, a node is connected to itself and directed links are
used; in such a case, the fuzzy graph is called directed graph. Here,
only one set of nodes corresponding to set X is used.
• The domain of a binary fuzzy relation R(X Y) is the fuzzy set, dom
R(X, Y), having the membership function as

• The range of a binary fuzzy relation R(X Y) is the fuzzy set, ran
R(X, Y), having the membership function as
Fuzzy Relations
• Consider a universe X= [x1, x2, x3, x4] and the
binary fuzzy relation on X as:

Simple Fuzzy Graph

Bipartite Graph
Fuzzy Relations
• Let R be a relation from X to Y given by:

• The corresponding fuzzy matrix for relation R

is: Graph of Fuzzy Relation R = XxY
Crisp relation vs. Fuzzy relation

Crisp relation Fuzzy relation

Cardinality of Fuzzy Relations
• Since the cardinality of fuzzy sets on any
universe is infinity, the cardinality of a fuzzy
relation between two or more universes is also
infinity.
 Operations on Fuzzy Relations
• Let R and S be fuzzy relations on the Cartesian space X ×
Y. Then the following operations apply for the
membership values for various set operations:
1. Union: µR∪S (x, y) = max(µR (x, y),µS(x, y))
2. Intersection: µR∩S (x, y) = min(µR (x, y),µS (x,y))
3. Complement: µR(x, y) = 1 − µR(x, y)
4. Containment: R⊂ S⇒µR (x, y) ≤ µS (x, y)
Operations on Fuzzy Relations
PROPERTIES OF FUZZY RELATIONS
The properties of fuzzy sets (given below) hold good for fuzzy relations
as well.

Commutativity,
Associativity,
Distributivity,
Involution,
Idempotency,
DeMorgan’s Law

The excluded middle laws are nor satisfied in fuzzy relations as for fuzzy sets. This is
because a fuzzy relation R is also a fuzzy set, and there exists an overlap, between a
relation and and its complement.
Fuzzy Cartesian Product and Composition

• A fuzzy relation R is a mapping from the

Cartesian space X x Y to the interval [0,1], where
the strength of the mapping is expressed by the
membership function of the relation μR(x,y)
▫ μR : A × B → [0, 1]
▫ R = {((x, y), μR(x, y))| μR(x, y) ≥ 0 , x ∈A, y ∈B}
Properties of Fuzzy Composition
Max-min Composition
• Two fuzzy relations R and S are defined on sets
A, B and C. That is, R ⊆A × B, S ⊆B × C. The
composition R•S = RS of two relations R and S
is expressed by the relation from A to C:
▫ For (x, y) ∈A × B, (y, z) ∈B × C,
µR•S (x, z) = max [min (µR (x, y), µS (y, z))]
= ∨[μR (x, y) ∧μS (y,z)]
MR•S = MR•MS (matrix notation)
Max-product Composition
• Two fuzzy relations R and S are defined on sets
A, B and C. That is, R ⊆A × B, S ⊆B × C. The
composition R•S = RS of two relations R and S is
expressed by the relation from A to C:
▫ For (x, y) ∈A × B, (y, z) ∈B × C,
μR•S (x, z) = maxy [μR (x, y) • μS (y, z)]
= ∨y [μR (x, y) • μS (y, z)
MR•S = MR • MS (matrix notation)
Example
• Suppose we have two fuzzy sets, A defined on a universe of three
discrete temperatures, X = {x1, x2, x3}, and B defined on a universe
of two discrete pressures, Y = {y1, y2}, and we want to find the fuzzy
Cartesian product between them. Fuzzy set A could represent the
“ambient” temperature and fuzzy set B the “near optimum” pressure
for a certain heat exchanger, and the Cartesian product might
represent the conditions (temperature–pressure pairs) of the
exchanger that are associated with “efficient” operations.
• Fuzzy Cartesian product, using
µS•R (x, z) = max [min (µR (x, y), µS (y, z))]
results in a fuzzy relation R (of size 3 × 2)
representing “efficient” conditions,
Example
• X = {x1, x2}, Y = {y1, y2}, and Z = {z1, z2, z3}
Consider the following fuzzy relations:

Then the resulting relation, T, which relates

elements of universe X to elements of universe Z,
μT(x1, z1) = max[min(0.7, 0.9), min(0.5, 0.1)] = 0.7
and by max–product composition,

μT(x2, z2) = max[(0.8 . 0.6), (0.4 . 0.7)] = 0.48

Example
• A simple fuzzy system is given, which models the brake
behaviour of a car driver depending on the car speed. The
inference machine should determine the brake force for a
given car speed. The speed is specified by the two linguistic
terms "low" and "medium", and the brake force by "moderate"
and "strong". The rule base includes the two rules
• (1) IF the car speed is low THEN the brake force is moderate
• (2) IF the car speed is medium THEN the brake force is strong
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 Crisp Equivalence Relation
• A relation R on a universe X can also be thought
of as a relation from X to X. The relation R is
an equivalence relation and it has the following
three properties:
• Reflexivity
• Symmetry
• Transitivity
Reflexivity
• (xi ,xi ) ∈R or χR(xi ,xi ) = 1
• When a relation is reflexive every vertex in the
graph originates a single loop, as shown in
Symmetry
• (xi, xj ) ∈R → (xj, xi) ∈R
Transitivity
• (xi ,xj ) ∈R and (xj ,xk) ∈R → (xi ,xk) ∈R
Crisp Tolerance Relation
Example

• Suppose in an airline transportation system we

have a universe composed of five elements: the
cities Omaha, Chicago, Rome, London, and
Detroit. The airline is studying locations of
potential hubs in various countries and must
consider air mileage between cities and takeoff
and landing policies in the various countries.
Example
• These cities can be enumerated as the
elements of a set, i.e.,
X ={x1,x2,x3,x4,x5}={Omaha, Chicago, Rome,
London, Detroit}
• Suppose we have a tolerance relation, R1, that
expresses relationships among these
cities:

This relation is reflexive and symmetric.

Example
• The graph for this tolerance relation

• If (x1,x5) ∈R1 can become an equivalence relation

Example:
• This matrix is equivalence relation because it has
(x1,x5)

Five-vertex graph of equivalence relation

(reflexive, symmetric, transitive)
FUZZY EQUIVALENCE RELATION
FUZZY TOLERANCE RELATION
A binary fuzzy relation that possesses the properties of reflexivity and
symmetryis calledfuzzy tolerancerelationor resemblance relation.

The equivalence relations are a special case of the tolerance relation.

The fuzzy tolerance relation can be reformed into fuzzy equivalence
relation in the same way as a crisp tolerance relation is reformed into
crispequivalence relation, i.e.,

where ‘n’ is the cardinality of the set thatdefines R1.

FUZZY TOLERANCE AND EQUIVALENCE
RELATIONS
• Reflexivity μR(xi, xi) = 1

• Symmetry μR(xi, xj ) = μR(xj, xi)

• Transitivity μR(xi, xj ) = λ1 and μR(xj, xk) = λ2

μR(xi, xk) = λ where λ ≥ min[λ1, λ2].
Example
• Suppose, in a biotechnology experiment, five potentially new
strains of bacteria have been detected in the area around an
anaerobic corrosion pit on a new aluminum-lithium alloy
used in the fuel tanks of a new experimental aircraft. In order
to propose methods to eliminate the biocorrosion caused by
these bacteria, the five strains must first be categorized. One
way to categorize them is to compare them to one another. In
a pairwise comparison, the following " similarity" relation,R1,
is developed. For example, the first strain (column 1) has a
strength of similarity to the second strain of 0.8, to the third
strain a strength of 0 (i.e., no relation), to the fourth strain a
strength of 0.1, and so on. Because the relation is for pairwise
similarity it will be reflexive and symmetric. Hence,
 is reflexive and symmetric. However, it is not transitive

μR(x1, x2) = 0.8, μR(x2, x5) = 0.9 ≥ 0.8

but
μR(x1, x5) = 0.2 ≤ min(0.8, 0.9)
One composition results in the following relation:

where transitivity still does not result; for example,

μR2(x1, x2) = 0.8 ≥ 0.5 and μ 2R(x2, x4) = 0.5

but
μR2(x1, x4) = 0.2 ≤ min(0.8, 0.5)
Finally, after one or two more compositions, transitivity results: