Dermoscopy is a technique used to capture the images of skin, and these images are useful to analyze the different types of skin diseases. Malignant melanoma is a kind of skin cancer whose severity even leads to death. Earlier detection of melanoma prevents death and the clinicians can treat the patients to increase the chances of survival. Only few machine learning algorithms are developed to detect the melanoma using its features. This paper proposes a Computer Aided Diagnosis (CAD) system which equips efficient algorithms to classify and predict the melanoma. Enhancement of the images are done using Contrast Limited Adaptive Histogram Equalization technique (CLAHE) and median filter. A new segmentation algorithm called Normalized Otsu's Segmentation (NOS) is implemented to segment the affected skin lesion from the normal skin, which overcomes the problem of variable illumination. Fifteen features are derived and extracted from the segmented images are fed into the proposed classification techniques like Deep Learning based Neural Networks and Hybrid Adaboost-Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithms. The proposed system is tested and validated with nearly 992 images (malignant & benign lesions) and it provides a high classification accuracy of 93 %. The proposed CAD system can assist the dermatologists to confirm the decision of the diagnosis and to avoid excisional biopsies.

The selection of sustainable supplier is an extremely important for sustainable supply chain management (SSCM). The assessment process of sustainable supplier selection is a complicated task for decision experts due to involvement of several qualitative and quantitative criteria. As the uncertainty is commonly occurred in sustainable supplier selection problem and hesitant fuzzy set (HFS), an improvement of Fuzzy Set (FS), has been proved as one of the efficient and superior ways to express the uncertain information arisen in practical problems. The present study proposes a novel framework based on COPRAS (Complex Proportional Assessment) method and SWARA (Step-wise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis) approach to evaluate and select the desirable sustainable supplier within the HFSs context. In the proposed method, an extended SWARA method is employed for determining the criteria weights based on experts’ preferences. Next, to illustrate the efficiency and practicability of the proposed methodology, an empirical case study of sustainable supplier selection problem is taken under Hesitant Fuzzy (HF) environment. Further, sensitivity analysis is performed to check the stability of the presented methodology. At last, a comparison with existing methods is conducted to verify the strength of the obtained result. The final outcomes confirm that the developed framework is more consistent and powerful than other existing approaches.

As an attractive generalization of the intuitionistic fuzzy set (IFS), q-rung orthopair fuzzy set (q-ROFS) provides the decision makers (DMs) with a wide window for preference elicitation. Previous studies on q-ROFS indicate that there is an urge for a decision framework which can make use of the available information in a proper manner for making rational decisions. Motivated by the superiority of q-ROFS, in this paper, a new decision framework is proposed, which provides scientific methods for multi-attribute group decision-making (MAGDM). Initially, a programming model is developed for calculating weights of attributes with the help of partially known information. Later, another programming model is developed for determining the weights of DMs with the help of partially known information. Preferences from different DMs are aggregated rationally by using the weights of DMs and extending generalized Maclaurin symmetric mean (GMSM) operator to q-ROFS, which can properly capture the interrelationship among attributes. Further, complex proportional assessment (COPRAS) method is extended to q-ROFS for prioritization of objects by using attributes' weight vector and aggregated preference matrix. The applicability of the proposed framework is demonstrated by using a renewable energy source prioritization problem from an Indian perspective. Finally, the superiorities and weaknesses of the framework are discussed in comparison with state-of-the-art methods.Sustainability 2019, 11, 4202 2 of 21 inferred from their analysis that India has a high scope for renewable energy sources and it can effectively manage energy crisis by proper planning and management. Recently, Mardani et al. [4] conducted a detailed analysis on the use of multi-attribute group decision-making (MAGDM) methods for solving energy management problems, and it can be inferred from the analysis that energy source evaluation and selection can be effectively solved by using MAGDM perspectives. Furthermore, there is uncertainty in the process of selection, which can be effectively managed by using fuzzy sets and its variants [5]. Baek and Lee et al. [6] proposed a new design strategy for optimal selection of renewable energy system (RES) in buildings. Gonzalez et al. [7] presented a conceptual model to understand the relationship among different factors that correspond to the sustainability and acceptance of RES projects. Cavallaro et al. [8,9] presented decision frameworks under intuitionistic fuzzy context to rationally select solar-hybrid power plants.Motivated by these claims, in this paper, we propose a new decision framework for rational prioritization of renewable energy sources. The preference information used here is q-rung orthopair fuzzy set (q-ROFS) [10], which is a powerful generalization of the intuitionistic fuzzy set (IFS) [11] and Pythagorean fuzzy set [12]. q-ROFS provides a wider window to decision makers (DMs) for preference elicitation by relaxing the constraint (sum of the degree of membership and non-membership less than or equal to...

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A hybrid segmentation algorithm is proposed is this paper to extract the blood vesselsfrom the fundus image of retina. Fundus camera captures the posterior surface of the eye and thecaptured images are used to diagnose diseases, like Diabetic Retinopathy, Retinoblastoma, Retinalhaemorrhage, etc. Segmentation or extraction of blood vessels is highly required, since the analysisof vessels is crucial for diagnosis, treatment planning, and execution of clinical outcomes in the fieldof ophthalmology. It is derived from the literature review that no unique segmentation algorithm issuitable for images of different eye-related diseases and the degradation of the vessels differ frompatient to patient. If the blood vessels are extracted from the fundus images, it will make thediagnosis process easier. Hence, this paper aims to frame a hybrid segmentation algorithmexclusively for the extraction of blood vessels from the fundus image. The proposed algorithm ishybridized with morphological operations, bottom hat transform, multi-scale vessel enhancement(MSVE) algorithm, and image fusion. After execution of the proposed segmentation algorithm, thearea-based morphological operator is applied to highlight the blood vessels. To validate theproposed algorithm, the results are compared with the ground truth of the High-Resolution Fundus(HRF) images dataset. Upon comparison, it is inferred that the proposed algorithm segments theblood vessels with more accuracy than the existing algorithms.