Non functorial cylinders in a model category (Q5971233)

In this paper, in the framework of a cofibration category with initial object [\textit{H. J. Baues} Algebraic homotopy. Cambridge Studies in Advanced Mathematics, 15. (Cambridge) etc.: Cambridge University Press. (1989; Zbl 0688.55001)], the authors analyze and study several new properties of the non-functorial construction of cylinders defined just as \textit{D. G. Quillen} did in any model category [``Homotopical algebra'', Berlin-Heidelberg-New York: Springer (1967; Zbl 0168.20903)]. They show two examples of cofibration categories in which the cylinder construction is not functorial and they remark that this construction has new interesting properties which are very similar, in particular, to the axioms of a category with a natural cylinder functor in the sense of Baues [loc. cit.]. Using this cylinder construction, the authors introduce a new reformulation of relative homotopy and prove that it is equivalent to the relative homotopy given in a cofibration category. Finally, using these techniques, they give an alternative description of the relative Baues' homotopy groupoid of a fibrant object.