Integrated formulation of the theory of belief functions from a linear algebraic perspective

This paper presents the integrated formulation of Dempster-Shafer theory/Transferable Belief Model from a linear algebraic perspective. Dempster-Shafer theory/Transferable Belief Model is useful for reasoning with uncertainty since it allows flexible representation of imperfect knowledge and the combination of evidence that narrows the probable hypotheses. However, the formulation of belief functions and the combination process has not necessarily been presented in a fully integrated fashion. This paper addresses the linear algebraic representation of belief functions and develops an integrated formulation of the reasoning process. Based on the obtained results, an example data fusion application is also shown.