Optimization of a Dual-Channel Retailing System with Customer Returns

A plethora of retailers have begun to embrace a dual-channel retailing strategy wherein items are provided to consumers through both an online store and a physical store. As a result of standards and competitive measures, many retailers provide buyers who are unhappy with their purchases with the ability to achieve a full refund. In a dualchannel retailing system, full reimbursements can be done through what is called a crosschannel return, when a buyer purchases a product from an online store and returns it to a physical store. They can also be done through what is called a same-channel return, when a buyer purchases a product from a physical store and returns it back to the physical store, or purchases a product from an online store and returns it back to the online store. No existing research has examined all common types of customer returns in the context of a dual-channel retailing system. Be notified that the practice of cross-returning an item purchased from the physical store back to the online store is not common. Thus, it is not considered in this dissertation. We first study the optimal pricing policies for a centralized and decentralized dual-channel retailer (DCR) with same- and cross-channel returns. We consider two factors: the dual-channel retailer’s performance under centralization with unified and differential pricing schemes, and the dual-channel retailer’s performance under decentralization with the Stackelberg and Nash games. How dual-channel pricing behaviour is impacted by customer preference and rates of customer returns is discussed. In this study, a channel’s sales requests is a linear function of a channel’s own pricing strategy and a cross-channel’s pricing strategy. The second problem is an extension of the first problem. The optimal pricing policies and online channel’s responsiveness level for a centralized and decentralized dual-channel retailer with same- and cross-channel returns are studied. Indeed, the online store is normally the distribution centre of the enterprise and is not limited to the customers in its neighbourhood. Also, the online store experiences a much higher return rate compared to the physical store. Thus, it has the capability and the need to optimize its responsiveness to customer returns along with its pricing strategy. A channel’s sales requests, in the second problem, is a linear function of a channel’s own price, a crosschannel’s price, and the online store’s responsiveness level. The third problem studies the dilemma of whether or not to allow unsatisfactory online purchases to be cross-returned to the physical store. If not properly considered, those returns may create havoc to the system and a retailer might overestimate or underestimate a channel’s order quantity. Therefore, we study and compare between four vi different strategies, and propose models to determine optimal order quantities for each strategy when a dual-channel retailer offers both same and cross-channel returns. Several decision making insights on choosing between the different cross-channel return strategies and some properties of the optimal solutions are presented. From the retailer’s perspective of outsourcing the e-channel’s management to a third party logistics and service provider, we finally study three different inventory strategies, namely transaction-based fee, flat-based fee, and gain sharing. For each strategy, we find both channels’ optimal inventory policies and expected profits. The performances of the different strategies are compared and the managerial insights are given using analytical and numerical analysis. Methodologies, insights, comparative analysis, and computational results are delivered in this dissertation for the above aforementioned problems

Pricing Policies for a Dual-Channel Retailer with Cross-Channel Returns

Many retailers are adopting a dual-channel retailing strategy (DCRS) in which products are offered through two channels: physical stores and online stores. Due to regulations or competitive measures, such a strategy allows customers who find a purchase unsatisfactory to obtain a full refund through a same-channel return or a cross-channel return. No papers have collectively studied the aforementioned types of customer returns in a dual-channel context. This paper studies optimal pricing policies for a centralized and decentralized dual-channel retailer (DCR) with same- and cross-channel returns. How dual-channel pricing behavior is impacted by customer preference and rates of customer returns is discussed. It is found, through sensitivity analysis, that when a channel with significant customer preference faces a high rate of returns, decentralized channels generate a greater system profit for retailers than coordinated channels that have a unified pricing strategy. A DCR with a Stackelberg scheme has the proclivity to be more profitable when under the leadership of a channel with a high rate of returns and significant customer preference

Face Recognition Based on Intelligent System

Face recognition is one of the most attractive and challenging topics in the fields of pattern recognition used in many biometric security applications. In this research, we use Two Dimensional Discrete Wavelet Transform (2D-DWT) to decompose face image for extracting features and Principle Component Analysis (PCA) for dimensional reduction of these features. For classification, we use ANFIS technique which is a combination between Fuzzy Inference System and Neural Network, Furthermore, we implemented Back Propagation Neural Network for the extracted features to compare its efficiency with ANFIS. Implementing proposed work get a best recognition rate and less computation where the recognition rate increases until it reaches maximum value (96%)

Asymmetric Encryption for Wiretap Channels

Since the definition of the wiretap channel by Wyner in 1975, there has been much research to investigate the communication security of this channel. This thesis presents some further investigations into the wiretap channel which improve the reliability of the communication security. The main results include the construction of best known equivocation codes which leads to an increase in the ambiguity of the wiretap channel by using different techniques based on syndrome coding. Best known codes (BKC) have been investigated, and two new design models which includes an inner code and outer code have been implemented. It is shown that best results are obtained when the outer code employs a syndrome coding scheme based on the (23; 12; 7) binary Golay code and the inner code employs the McEliece cryptosystem technique based on BKC0s. Three techniques of construction of best known equivocation codes (BEqC) for syndrome coding scheme are presented. Firstly, a code design technique to produce new (BEqC) codes which have better secrecy than the best error correcting codes is presented. Code examples (some 50 codes) are given for the case where the number of parity bits of the code is equal to 15. Secondly, a new code design technique is presented, which is based on the production of a new (BEqC) by adding two best columns to the parity check matrix(H) of a good (BEqC), [n; k] code. The highest minimum Hamming distance of a linear code is an important parameter which indicates the capability of detecting and correcting errors by the code. In general, (BEqC) have a respectable minimum Hamming distance, but are sometimes not as good as the best known codes with the same code parameters. This interesting point led to the production of a new code design technique which produces a (BEqC) code with the highest minimum Hamming distance for syndrome coding which has better secrecy than the corresponding (BKC). As many as 207 new best known equivocation codes which have the highest minimum distance have been found so far using this design technique.Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Kurdistan Regional Government, Erbil-Ira

A Pragmatic Study of Gestural Strategies in English Political TV Interviews

Part of the substance of an utterance could be represented by gestures. There are many different perspectives on how gestures, words, and cognition relate to one another and how they could influence communication. Gestures are inferior to words because they communicate no semantic information beyond the linguistic utterances that accompany them. The current study aims to find the main gestural strategies, used by the interlocutors in English political TV Interviews that represent speech acts. It is based on the hypothesis that there are different strategies of gestures used by interlocutors in political TV interviews that represent speech acts. The selected interviews have been analyzed in the light of an eclectic model based on model Kulkarni (2013) and Searle (1979). The first is used for analyzing the main kinds of body movements and types of gesticulation, and the latter for analyzing Searle's classification of speech acts since it is a pragmatic study. The results of the selected interviews have shown that gestural strategies are highly related to the context of situation. Each gesture performs a specific speech act. The interlocutors use gestural strategies to express a wide range of emotions, attitudes, approval, anxiety, disagreement, and affection. The participants in these interviews are equally conscious of their body language and verbal exchanges

The quality of image encryption techniques by reasoned logic

One form of data is digital images, because of their widespread of frequent exchange over the internet it is necessary to preserve the security and privacy of the images transmitted.There are many image encryption techniques that have different security levels and there are many standards and protocols fortesting the quality of encryption security. The cipher images can be evaluated using various quality measuring criteria, these measures quantify certain features of the image. If there are many methods that can be applied to secure images; the question is what is the most powerful scheme that can be use damong these methods? This research try to answer this question by taking three different encryption methods (rivest cipher 5 (RC5), chaotic and permutation) and measure their quality using the peek signal to noise ratio (PSNR),correlation, entropy, number of pixels changes rate (NPCR) and unified average changing intensity (UACI), the results of these criteria were input to a fuzzy logic system that was used to find the best one among them

The Role of Hyposthenuria in Enuresis among Paediatric Patients with Sickle Cell Disease

Objectives: Enuresis in children with sickle cell disease (SCD) is common. Many risk factors have been postulated but its relation to hyposthenuria is debatable. This study aims to determine the prevalence of enuresis inchildren with SCD in Basrah, Iraq and to examine its relation with hyposthenuria. Methods: A cross-sectional epidemiological study was performed on children with SCD who met the inclusion criteria at the Basrah Center for Hereditary Blood Diseases over the period from the first of December 2020 through May 2021. A questionnaire was used to collect relevant data. Blood samples were tested for hemoglobin genotype, certain blood indices, and serum hemoglobin. Urine was tested for albumin and creatinine, and the specific gravity was measured using urine dipsticks. The relationships between enuresis and various sociodemographic and clinical variables were assessed. Binary logistic regression analysis was done to examine the independent risk factors of enuresis. Results: Out of 200 eligible children, 161 were studied after exclusion of 39 based on the exclusion criteria, yielding an 80.5% response rate, 60.9% of them were males. The mean age of the participants was 10.9 ± 2.9 years. Enuresis was reported in 50 (31.1%) patients. The independent risk factors for enuresis were; family history of enuresis (OR, 5.94; 95% CI, 2.54-13.89; P<0.001), hyposthenuria (OR, 3.76, 95% CI, 1.25-11.30; P= 0.018), and sleep disorders (OR, 2.90; 95% CI, 0.19-7.06; P= 0.019). Conclusion: Enuresis is common among children with SCD. Hyposthenuria was significantly associated with enuresis. Family history of enuresis, and sleep disorders were also found to be significantly related to enuresis. Keywords: Enuresis, sickle cell disease, children, prevalence, hyposthenuri

Solvability of Semilinear Initial Value Perturbed Control Problems with Unbounded Control Operators

In this paper the local existence and uniqueness of the mild solution to some operator semi-linear initial value control problem were studied and developed by using the theory of perturbation, composite, admissibility and "Banach contraction principle", in arbitrary Hilbert space H via perturbation composite semigroup approach

Enhancing smart home energy efficiency through accurate load prediction using deep convolutional neural networks

The method of predicting the electricity load of a home using deep learning techniques is called intelligent home load prediction based on deep convolutional neural networks. This method uses convolutional neural networks to analyze data from various sources such as weather, time of day, and other factors to accurately predict the electricity load of a home. The purpose of this method is to help optimize energy usage and reduce energy costs. The article proposes a deep learning-based approach for nonpermanent residential electrical energy load forecasting that employs temporal convolutional networks (TCN) to model historic load collection with timeseries traits and to study notably dynamic patterns of variants amongst attribute parameters of electrical energy consumption. The method considers the timeseries homes of the information and offers parallelization of large-scale facts processing with magnificent operational efficiency, considering the timeseries aspects of the information and the problematic inherent correlations between variables. The exams have been done using the UCI public dataset, and the experimental findings validate the method's efficacy, which has clear, sensible implications for setting up intelligent strength grid dispatching