Order Shipment Matching via Constrained Linear Optimization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods lack an efficient mechanism to match incoming shipments with product orders, particularly in electronic appliances, and do not effectively account for partial delivery and partial fulfillment situations, leading to suboptimal revenue and customer satisfaction.
Innovation Solution
A system that includes a product shipment handler, a product order handler, a job dispatcher, a modeling tool, and a linear solver to model and solve constrained linear optimization problems, creating delivery plans that match incoming products with orders while maximizing profit or minimizing penalties, and handling partial delivery and fulfillment scenarios.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional methods are used to match incoming shipments with product orders, then the process is simple to implement, but the matching efficiency and accuracy are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the matching process into distinct functional modules: a product shipment handler to receive shipment information, a product order handler to receive order information, a job dispatcher to create optimization jobs, a modeling tool to formulate constrained linear optimization problems, and a linear solver to generate delivery plans. This segmentation improves matching efficiency while managing complexity through modular design.
2Adaptability or versatility
If conventional methods are used to handle product orders, then the system is easy to operate, but the ability to handle partial delivery and partial fulfillment situations is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses constrained linear optimization with adjustable parameters to dynamically adapt to different delivery scenarios. The optimization model incorporates parameters for partial delivery and partial fulfillment, allowing the system to handle these situations effectively while maintaining operational simplicity through automated calculation of optimal delivery plans.
3Reliability
If automated optimization is implemented to maximize profit and minimize penalties, then the revenue optimization is improved, but the computational complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces a modeling tool as an intermediary between the order/shipment data and the linear solver. This intermediary formulates the complex profit maximization and penalty minimization problems as constrained linear optimization problems, enabling automated revenue optimization while managing computational complexity through structured mathematical modeling.
4Measurement precision
If detailed delivery plans are generated over time periods, then the customer satisfaction is improved, but the processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system generates delivery plans periodically over specified time periods rather than calculating continuous detailed plans. This periodic approach provides sufficiently precise delivery information to satisfy customers while reducing processing time by avoiding excessive computational detail for every possible time point.
Data Source
AI summary
The embodiments provide a system for matching orders with incoming shipments. The system may include a product shipment handler configured to receive product shipment information specifying incoming products, a product order handler configured to receive product order information specifying a plurality of product orders and input parameter information associated with each product order, a job dispatcher configured to create a plurality of jobs based on the product shipment information and the product order information, a modeling tool configured to model each job as a separate constrained linear optimization problem, and a linear solver configured to solve each constrained linear optimization problem based on the input parameter information and the product shipment information including generating a delivery plan for each product order within a respective job that matches at least one incoming product with a corresponding product order over a period of time.