On Optimal Strategy of Itinerating a Mobile Unit for Air Pollution Monitoring

Abstract

By virtue of the search theory, a basic strategy has been developed how to itinerate mobile units to supplement or to substitute a routine air monitoring network system. The objective criterion is defined as to minimize the total error variance of monitored values throughout an objective area. An optimum itinerating schedule is decided under this criterion.
The followings are the results derived in this work;
1) itinerary of a mobile unit should be made in a constant interval to minimize total detection error along a given time span,
2) the interval can be decided depending upon a variance of the estimated values at each station in case of plural stations,
3) the evolved strategy was applied to a practical case of the air monitoring system in Osaka Prefecture and an interesting fact has been noted that the suburban stations has become of increasing importance to patrol in recent years.
The strategy above would be readily extended for more sophisticated situation by elaborating mathematical model and introducing more practical objective criteria.