Iterative product configuration with fuzzy logic*

Product configuration provides an important opportunity for taking advantage of a number of the benefits of mass customization. Mass customization is aimed at developing a wide external variety of products to satisfy individual customers, with managed internal diversity to prevent cost proliferation. In this context, we propose an iterative product configuration method applying fuzzy logic which is designed to improve product configuration by replacing features which are of less interest to the customer with features the customer prefers. Fuzzy preference relations are used to evaluate the various configurations through the iterative product configuration process. To measure the level of customer satisfaction for each configuration, a satisfaction rate is also proposed. The integration of fuzzy preference relations and an adapted pseudo-order preference model constitute the basis for the proposed configuration method. An illustrative example is provided to show the applicability and practicality of the method.