Abstract
In this article, we elaborate on a design methodology and the detailed realization of hierarchically structured granular models by engaging the fundamental principles and concepts of granular computing. The existing models are elevated to a more abstract (general) level by allocating a certain level of information granularity throughout the parameter space. In a concise way, the essence of the overall architecture of the proposed modeling mechanism could be generalized as follows: Numeric model (granular model of type-0)→granular model of type-1→granular model of type-2→...→granular model of higher type. The results of the granular models come in the form of type-0, type-1, or higher type information granules, which are decided by the overall level of hierarchy of the corresponding granular model. The specificity of granular outputs becomes a more comprehensive and sound quantification of the prediction accuracy and precision of the model and the quality of the specific prediction outputs. The proposed method facilitates effective communication with humans, who could get actively involved in the modeling process and determine the suitable level of abstraction depending upon the requirements of the problem. The determination of a suitable level of information granularity is realized with the guidance of the principle of justifiable granularity. A number of experimental studies concerning publicly available datasets are presented to illustrate the development methodology and show the effectiveness of the approach to form hierarchically structured solutions (reflecting different levels of abstraction) to the problem.