Optimal pricing and quantity of products with two offerings

This paper analyzes the decision of a firm offering two versions of a product, a deluxe and a regular. While both products satisfy the same market, the deluxe version is sold at a high price relative to its cost and is aimed at the high end of the demand curve. The regular version is sold at a low price relative to its cost and is targeted to customers at the low end of the demand curve. This two-offering strategy is especially popular with book publishers where a paperback book is introduced some time after the hardbound version is introduced. The time between the introduction of the two versions of the product is accompanied by a downward shift in the demand curve due to customers losing interest in the product or satisfying their demand from a secondary used market. We solve a profit maximization model for a firm using a two-offering strategy. The model is solved for linear and exponential deterioration in demand, which is assumed to be deterministic. Also, a model with linear deterioration in demand, which is assumed to be stochastic, is solved. The results indicate that substantial improvements in profit can be obtained by using the two-offering strategy. Numerical sensitivity analysis and examples are used to illustrate the results.     

Subspaces and quotients of Banach spaces with shrinking unconditional bases

The main result is that a separable Banach space with the weak* unconditional tree property is isomorphic to a subspace as well as a quotient of a Banach space with a shrinking unconditional basis. A consequence of this is that a Banach space is isomorphic to a subspace of a space with a shrinking unconditional basis if and only if it is isomorphic to a quotient of a space with a shrinking unconditional basis, which solves a problem dating to the 1970s. The proof of the main result also yields that a uniformly convex space with the unconditional tree property is isomorphic to a subspace as well as a quotient of a uniformly convex space with an unconditional finite dimensional decomposition.     

An estimate of the attraction domain with a specified exponential stability index in a wheeled robot control problem

The problem of synthesizing a law for the control of the plane motion of a wheeled robot is investigated. The rear wheels are the drive wheels and the front wheels are responsible for the turning of the platform. The aim of the control is to steer a target point to a specified trajectory and to stabilize the motion along it. The trajectory is assumed to be specified by a smooth curve. The actual curvature of the trajectory of the target point, which is related to the angle of rotation of the front wheels by a simple algebraic relation, is considered as the control. The control is subjected to bilateral constraints by virtue of the fact that the angle of rotation of the front wheels is limited. The attraction domain in the distance to trajectory - orientation space, is investigated for the proposed control law. Arrival at a trajectory with a specified exponential stability index is guaranteed in the case of initial conditions belonging to the given domain. An estimate of the attraction domain in the form of an ellipse is given.     

Deriving weights from pairwise comparison ratio matrices: An axiomatic approach

This paper examines the problem of extracting object or attribute weights from a pairwise comparison ratio matrix. This problem is approached from the point of view of a distance measure on the space of all such matrices. A set of axioms is presented which such a distance measure should satisfy, and the uniqueness of the measure is proven. The problem of weight derivation is then shown to be equivalent to that of finding a totally transitive matrix which is a minimum distance from the given matrix. This problem reduces to a goal programming model. Finally, it is shown that the problem of weight derivation is related to that of ranking players in a round robin tournament. The space of all binary tournament matrices is proven to be isometric to a subset of the space of ratio matrices.     

A Chart for Evaluating Product Research and Development Projects

A method of evaluating research and development projects is described. The method is based on the use of an evaluation chart. The main purpose of the chart is to calculate a project score which is a measure of a selected evaluation criterion. A method of constructing a chart is illustrated using a project index as the evaluation criterion. The chart contains a list of twelve questions, the answers to which are assumed to be the main determinants of the variables in the formula of the index. Each question is followed by a set of answers from which a choice is to be made, and underneath each answer is a numerical score. The numerical scores are logarithmic functions of the answers to which they relate, and when added together give a project score which is a logarithmic function of the index. Various methods of using the chart, and a suggested evaluation procedure, are also described.     

A comparison of two sourcing tactics for a new component

We compare two sourcing tactics for a manufacturer to purchase a new component to be used in a one-time production run of a new product with uncertain and price-elastic demand. One alternative is to issue a request-for-quote (RFQ), which is where the manufacturer requests a price-quantity schedule from suppliers. The manufacturer uses this information to determine a production quantity and the number of components to purchase from each supplier. The other alternative is to post a bid specifying how the manufacturer’s purchase quantity will depend on the supplier’s component price. The suppliers use this information to compete on quantity.We find that relative to RFQ, which is more challenging for the manufacturer to characterize the supplier response due to the possibility of supplier interaction, the benefit to the manufacturer from posting a bid increases with the number of suppliers due to increased intensity of competition. If the new component is from an emerging industry where there is little mutual awareness among candidate suppliers, then regardless of number of suppliers, expected manufacturer profit is higher under RFQ. Posting a bid is more likely to benefit the manufacturer when the new component is from a more established industry with a high degree of awareness among candidate suppliers.     

Optimal detection of a recurring tuple of reference fragments in a quasiperiodic sequence

An a posteriori (off-line) approach to solving the problem of maximum-likelihood detection of a recurring tuple containing reference fragments in a numerical quasiperiodic sequence is studied. The case is analyzed where (1) the total number of fragments in a sequence is unknown; (2) the index of a sequence term corresponding to the beginning of a fragment is a deterministic (not random) value; (3) a sequence distorted by additive uncorrelated Gaussian noise is available for observation. It is shown that the problem under consideration is reduced to testing a set of simple hypotheses about the mean of a random Gaussian vector. The cardinality of this totality grows exponentially as the vector dimension (i.e., the length of the sequence under study) increases. It is established that searching for a maximum-likelihood hypothesis is equivalent to finding arguments that yield a maximum for an auxiliary objective function. It is shown that maximizing the objective function reduces to solving a special optimization problem, which is proved to be solvable in polynomial time. An exact algorithm for solving this problem, which underlies the optimal (maximum-likelihood) detection algorithm for a recurring tuple, is substantiated. The kernel of the exact algorithm is an algorithm for solving a special (basic) optimization problem. Results of numerical simulations are presented.     

A Study on Abnormality in Variational and Optimal Control Problems

In this paper, a variational problem is considered with differential equality constraints over a variable interval. It is stressed that the abnormality is a local character of the admissible set; consequently, a definition of regularity related to the constraints characterizing the admissible set is given. Then, for the local minimum necessary conditions, a compact form equivalent to the well-known Euler equation and transversality condition is given. By exploiting this result and the previous definition of regularity, it is proved that nonregularity is a necessary and sufficient condition for an admissible solution to be an abnormal extremal. Then, a necessary and sufficient condition is given for an abnormal extremal to be weakly abnormal. The analysis of the abnormality is completed by considering the particular case of affine constraints over a fixed interval: in this case, the abnormality turns out to have a global character, so that it is possible to define an abnormal problem or a normal problem. The last section is devoted to the study of an optimal control problem characterized by differential constraints corresponding to the dynamics of a controlled process. The above general results are particularized to this problem, yielding a necessary and sufficient condition for an admissible solution to be an abnormal extremal. From this, a previously known result is recovered concerning the linearized system controllability as a sufficient condition to exclude the abnormality.     

A population model with nonlinear diffusion

A model is presented for a single species population moving in a limited one-dimensional environment. The birth-death process is specialized by assuming a constant death modulus and a birth modulus which is an exponential in the age. The diffusion mechanism is nonlinear and results in a problem for the space population density which has a degenerate parabolic form and is similarly to the porous media equation. It is shown that the effect of the nonlinearity in the diffusion is to produce an approach to steady state even when the process is birth dominant. The interaction of the birth-death and diffusion processes is studied and is shown to yield a modified birth-death mechanism which is both time and space dependent.     

Higher order numerical differentiation on the Infinity Computer

There exist many applications where it is necessary to approximate numerically derivatives of a function which is given by a computer procedure. In particular, all the fields of optimization have a special interest in such a kind of information. In this paper, a new way to do this is presented for a new kind of a computer—the Infinity Computer—able to work numerically with finite, infinite, and infinitesimal numbers. It is proved that the Infinity Computer is able to calculate values of derivatives of a higher order for a wide class of functions represented by computer procedures. It is shown that the ability to compute derivatives of arbitrary order automatically and accurate to working precision is an intrinsic property of the Infinity Computer related to its way of functioning. Numerical examples illustrating the new concepts and numerical tools are given.     

Bidding under price uncertainty in multi-unit pay-as-bid procurement auctions for power systems reserve

In this paper a methodology for profit maximized bidding under price uncertainty in a day-ahead, multi-unit and pay-as-bid procurement auction for power systems reserve is proposed. Within this novel methodology a bidder is considered to follow a Bayes-strategy. Thereby, one bidder is assumed to behave strategically and the behavior of the remaining is summarized in a probability distribution of the market price and a reaction function to price dumping by the strategic bidder. With this approach two problems arise: First, as a pay-as-bid auction is considered, no uniform price and therefore no single probability distribution of the market price is readily available. Second, if historic bidding data of all participants are used to estimate such a distribution and market power is a relevant factor, the bid of the strategically behaving bidder is likely to influence the distribution. Within this paper for both of the problems solutions are presented. It is shown that by estimating a probability of acceptance the optimal bidding price with respect to a given capacity can be calculated by maximizing a stochastic non-linear objective function of expected profit. Taking the characteristics of recently established markets in Germany into account, the methodology is applied using exemplary data. It is shown that the methodology helps to manage existing price uncertainties and hence supports the trading decisions of a bidder. It is inferred that the developed methodology may also be used for bidding on other auction markets with a similar market design.     

The stress state of an elastic composite cone with centre of rotation at the apex

The torsion of a composite cone that has a centre of rotation at its apex is investigated in a spherical system of coordinates. A composite cone is a cone with one shear modulus, inserted into a conical funnel having another shear modulus and with ideal mechanical contact between its surface and the inner surface of the conical funnel. The auxiliary problem of a composite cone with its apex truncated by a spherical surface is considered first. The outer surface of such a conical body is not loaded, but a load that reduces to a torque is applied to its spherical surface. The auxiliary problem is reduced to a one-dimensional discontinuous boundary-value problem using a specially constructed integral transformation. The exact solution of this boundary-value problem is constructed. The limit is then taken in the solution obtained as the radius of the spherical surface tends to zero for the purpose of obtaining an exact solution of the problem of the torsion of a composite cone that has a centre of rotation at the apex.     

Power-series approximations for the optimal feedback control of noisy nonlinear systems

Power-series methods are developed for designing approximately optimal state regulators for a nonlinear system subject to white Gaussian random disturbances. The performance index of the control is an ensemble average of a quadratic form. A perfect observation of the system state is assumed. When the system nonlinearity is small and it is characterized by a polynomial function of the state, a definite method is presented to construct a suboptimal feedback control of a power-series form in a small nonlinearity parameter. If the variance of noise is small, an alternative method is also applicable which yields a suboptimal control in a power series with respect to a variance parameter. A simple one-dimensional problem is examined to make comparison between controls of the two different forms.     

Periodical replacement problem without assuming minimal repair

In this paper, a periodical replacement problem with a general repair is considered where a system is replaced at only scheduled times kT (k = 0,1,…) and is repaired whenever it fails. By general repair, we mean that repair brings the state of the system to a certain better state. A stochastic model to describe the operation in time of a repairable system which is maintained by a general repair is developed. The model contains the minimal repair case in which repair restores a system to its functioning condition just prior to failure. The sensitivity of replacement policies under a general repair to derivation from the minimal repair assumption is numerically examined. It will be seen that the policies are insensitive when the deterioration of the system is not fast and the replacement cost is high relative to the repair cost. The minimal repair assumption is then justified for such situations.     

Minimizing the weighted number of tardy jobs and maximum tardiness in relocation problem with due date constraints

The relocation problem addressed in this paper is to determine a reconstruction sequence for a set of old buildings, under a limited budget, such that there is adequate temporary space to house the residents decanted during rehabilitation. It can be regarded as a resource-constrained scheduling problem where there is a set of jobs to be processed on a single machine. Each job demands a number of resources for processing and returns probably a different number of resources on its completion. Given a number of initial resources, the problem seeks to determine if there is a feasible sequence for the successful processing of all the jobs. Two generalizations of the relocation problem in the context of single machine scheduling with due date constraints are studied in this paper. The first problem is to minimize the weighted number of tardy jobs under a common due date. We show that it is NP-hard even when all the jobs have the same tardy weight and the same resource requirement. A dynamic programming algorithm with pseudo-polynomial computational time is proposed for the general case. In the second problem, the objective is to minimize the maximum tardiness when each job is associated with an individual due date. We prove that it is strongly NP-hard. We also propose a pseudo-polynomial time dynamic programming algorithm for the case where the number of possible due dates is predetermined.     

Optimal policies for the sizing and timing of software maintenance projects

We present a model to determine the optimal point for maintaining a software application. We also address the question: given that a maintenance project has been initiated, should maintenance effort continue till the project is completed? Most previous literature has implicitly assumed that it is optimal to complete a maintenance project once it has been initiated. We analyze two policies: a work-based policy and a time-based policy. In the work-based policy, a fixed amount of work needs to be completed, and the time taken to accomplish the work is random. In the time-based policy, a fixed amount of time is allocated to maintenance, but a random amount of work is completed. We examine similarities and differences between the above two policies and provide insights into the management of software maintenance projects. A key insight of this study is that under a variety of situations, partial maintenance is suboptimal.     

A New Definition of A Priori Knowledge: In Search of a Modal Basis

In this paper I will offer a novel understanding of a priori knowledge. My claim is that the sharp distinction that is usually made between a priori and a posteriori knowledge is groundless. It will be argued that a plausible understanding of a priori and a posteriori knowledge has to acknowledge that they are in a constant bootstrapping relationship. It is also crucial that we distinguish between a priori propositions that hold in the actual world and merely possible, non-actual a priori propositions, as we will see when considering cases like Euclidean geometry. Furthermore, contrary to what Kripke seems to suggest, a priori knowledge is intimately connected with metaphysical modality, indeed, grounded in it. The task of a priori reasoning, according to this account, is to delimit the space of metaphysically possible worlds in order for us to be able to determine what is actual.     

A possible way of estimating options with stable distributed underlying asset prices

Option pricing theory is considered when the underlying asset price satisfies a stochastic differential equation which is driven by random motions generated by stable distributions. The properties of the stable distributions are discussed and their connection with the theory of fractional Brownian motion is noted. This approach attempts to generalize the classical Black–Scholes formulation, to allow for the presence of fat tails in the distribution of log prices which leads to a diffusion equation involving fractional Brownian motion. The resulting option pricing via a hedging strategy approach is independently derived by constructing a backward Kolmogorov equation for a simple trinomial model where the probabilities are assumed to satisfy a particular fractional Taylor series due to Dzherbashyan and Nersesyan. To effect this development, some knowledge of fractional integration and differentiation is required so this is briefly reviewed. Consideration is also given to a different hedging strategy approach leading to a fractional Black–Scholes equation involving the market price of risk. Modification to the model is also considered such as the impact of transaction costs. A simple example of American options is also considered.     

A necessary and sufficient condition for Pareto-optimal security strategies in multicriteria matrix games

In this paper, a scalar game is derived from a zero-sum multicriteria matrix game, and it is proved that the solution of the new game with strictly positive scalarization is a necessary and sufficient condition for a strategy to be a Pareto-optimal security strategy (POSS) for one of the players in the original game. This is done by proving that a certain set, which is the extension of the set of security level vectors in the criterion function space, is convex and polyhedral. It is also established that only a finite number of scalarizations are necessary to obtain all the POSS for a player. An example is included to illustrate the main steps in the proof.This work was done while the author was a Research Associate in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the Indian Institute of Science and was financially supported by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Delhi, India.The author wishes to express his gratefulness to Professor U. R. Prasad for helpful discussions and to two anonymous referees for suggestions which led to an improved presentation.     

Economic production quantity with the presence of imperfect quality and random machine breakdown and repair based on the artificial bee colony heuristic

This article considers a production-inventory system consisting of a single imperfect unreliable machine. The items manufactured by the system are either perfect items or imperfect items, which require a rework to be restored to perfect quality. The rework rate is permitted to be different from the production rate if the rework process is different from the main manufacturing process. The fraction of the number of imperfect items is random following a general distribution function. The time to failure of the machine is random, following a general distribution function. If the machine fails before the lot is completed, the production is interrupted and the machine repair is started immediately. A random machine repair time is assumed, with a general distribution function. Unlike a common assumption in the literature, after the repair of the machine is completed, the production resumes. During the machine repair, a shortage can occur. A single-variable expected average cost function is derived to find the optimal lot size. Because of the complexity in the model, the ABC heuristic is proposed and implemented to find a near optimal value for the lot size. The article also provides a sensitivity analysis of the model's key parameters. It has been observed that the lot interruption-resumption policy leads to smaller lot sizes.