The optimization of complex systems with respect to multiple criteria.

A difficult aspect of system optimization is the choice of a single cost function relating system parameters to the quality of the design; there are generally conflicting criteria by which the system can be evaluated. This paper discusses the problem of optimization with respect to multiple criteria, i.e., with a vector-valued cost function, without prespecifying constraints or the weighting of the criteria. The paper discusses theoretical results concerning the set of non-inferior solutions so generated and a computational algorithm for obtaining a characteristic set of non-inferior solutions.