AMO - Advanced Modeling and Optimization, Volume 10, Number 1, 2008 81 Multicriteria Choice of Night Vision Devices Considering the Impact of Their Performance Parameters Daniela Borissova 1 and Ivan Mustakerov 2 Institute of Information Technologies – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev St., Block 2, 1113 - Sofia, Bulgaria E-mail: 1 danbor@post.com, 2 mustakerov@iit.bas.bg Abstract The problem of technical devices evaluation and choosing is not easy decision making process. The technological development and the availability of many different technical solutions with different performance parameters specify complex combinatorial choice problems. The night vision devices (NVD) have become quite popular recently and are an example of complex technical choice with conflicting performance parameters. The paper describes important NVD parameters that should be considered and a multicriteria optimization approach for smart NVD choice. The proposed approach uses popular weighted sum method to comply with different user preferences by defining relative weights among NVD parameters considered as objective functions. The practical applicability of the proposed approach has been demonstrated by some case study examples of choosing night vision goggles satisfying different user preferences. Real set of devices offered on Internet are used to formulate and solve optimization tasks reflecting user’s preferences. The proposed multicriteria choice approach can be used for all types of night vision devices and other technical devices also to make a smart choice corresponding to decision-makers preferences and restrictions. Keywords: night vision devices choice, multicriteria optimization, weighted sum method, case study examples. 1. Introduction The problem of the technical device evaluation and choosing based on mathematical quantative analysis could be a complex combinatorial problem. The technological development and the availability of many design variants and different technical solutions with different performance parameters define sets of devices to choose from. Due to the combinatorial nature of the available choices all of them have to be evaluated and selected by complex decision-making processes. One of the possible ways to solve that kind of problems could be the using of proper optimization methods. The choosing of night vision devices (NVD) is an example for such complex selection problem. The night vision devices are used to enhance visual capability during low light level (night) activities as security, hunting, wildlife observation, boating, law enforcement, etc. Night vision devices use two different technologies – light enhancement or thermal imaging. The NVD using light enhancement technology are more popular and come in many different types with different parameters. They intensify available ambient illumination making it possible to see in the dark despite insufficient light for normal vision [4]. The NVD are basically composed of optical system (objective) which projects an image onto the photocathode of an image intensifier tube (IIT) which in its turn produces a light intensified image that is viewed through another optical system (ocular). All of these modules including the needed for IIT electrical power supply are mounted in some mechanic construction as a complete (and usually portable) device. Depending on the optical magnification and application area there are different types of night vision devices – night vision goggles, night vision binoculars and monoculars, night vision digital cameras (still or video), night vision sights, etc. The device parameters – AMO - Advanced Modeling and Optimization. ISSN: 1841-4311