A logic for multiple-source approximation systems with distributed knowledge base

The theory of rough sets starts with the notion of an approximation space, which is a pair (U,R), U being the domain of discourse, and R an equivalence relation on U. R is taken to represent the knowledge base of an agent, and the induced partition reflects a granularity of U that is the result of a lack of complete information about the objects in U. The focus then is on approximations of concepts on the domain, in the context of the granularity. The present article studies the theory in the situation where information is obtained from different sources. The notion of approximation space is extended to define a multiple-source approximation system with distributed knowledge base, which is a tuple (U, R(P))(P subset of fN), where N is a set of sources and P ranges over all finite subsets of N. Each R(P) is an equivalence relation on U satisfying some additional conditions, representing the knowledge base of the group P of sources. Thus each finite group of sources and hence individual source perceives the same domain differently (depending on what information the group/individual source has about the domain), and the same concept may then have approximations that differ with the groups. In order to express the notions and properties related with rough set theory in this multiple-source situation, a quantified modal logic LMSAS(D) is proposed. In LMSAS(D) , quantification ranges over modalities, making it different from modal predicate logic and modal logic with propositional quantifiers. Some fragments of LMSAS(D) are discussed and it is shown that the modal system KTB is embedded in LMSAS(D) . The epistemic logic S5(n)(D) is also embedded in LMSAS(D) , and cannot replace the latter to serve our purpose. The relationship of LMSAS(D) with first and second-order logics is presented. Issues of expressibility, axiomatization and decidability are addressed