Applying numerical trees to evaluate asymmetric decision problems

Abstract

This paper describes some ideas for applying numerical trees in order to represent and solve asymmetric decision problems with influence diagrams (IDs). Constraint rules are used to represent the asymmetries between the variables of the ID. These rules will be transformed into numerical trees during the evaluation of the ID. The application of numerical trees can reduce the number of operations required to evaluate the ID. The paper also presents how numerical trees may be approximated, thereby enabling complex decision problems to be evaluated.