A dynamic model of classifier competence based on the local fuzzy confusion matrix and the random reference classifier

Abstract

Abstract Nowadays, multiclassifier systems (MCSs) are being widely applied in various machine learning problems and in many different domains. Over the last two decades, a variety of ensemble systems have been developed, but there is still room for improvement. This paper focuses on developing competence and interclass cross-competence measures which can be applied as a method for classifiers combination. The cross-competence measure allows an ensemble to harness pieces of information obtained from incompetent classifiers instead of removing them from the ensemble. The cross-competence measure originally determined on the basis of a validation set (static mode) can be further easily updated using additional feedback information on correct/incorrect classification during the recognition process (dynamic mode). The analysis of computational and storage complexity of the proposed method is presented. The performance of the MCS with the proposed cross-competence function was experimentally compared against five reference MCSs and one reference MCS for static and dynamic modes, respectively. Results for the static mode show that the proposed technique is comparable with the reference methods in terms of classification accuracy. For the dynamic mode, the system developed achieves the highest classification accuracy, demonstrating the potential of the MCS for practical applications when feedback information is available.