A new concept of compatibility structure in new product development

Notwithstanding the existence of few publications addressing the compatibility issues in new product development, an axiomatic basis supporting this literature and driving new contributions to the subject is still lacking. In this paper, we propose a definition of a compatibility structure that lays down the foundations of an axiomatic basis for modelling compatibility in new product development. Regarding the number of conditions comprised in this definition, a minimal representation of compatibility structure is proposed to ease the use and manipulation of a compatibility structure. The definition of compatibility structure and its minimal representation are inspired by those of preference structure in preference modelling. The similarities and dissimilarities between preference structures and compatibility structures are emphasized. The construction and the characterization of a compatibility structure without incomparability using the proposed definition are provided. In this paper, we also propose a method to evaluate the crisp compatibility relations between two alternatives with respect to attributes/criteria. The compatibility relations are evaluated by investigating the impact that an alternative has on another, and vice-versa with respect to a single attribute/criterion. Future research related to the compatibility structure proposed in this paper is described.