Optimal strategy policy in batch arrival queue with server breakdowns and multiple vacations

This paper considers a like-queue production system in which server vacations and breakdowns are possible. The decision-maker can turn a single server on at any arrival epoch or off at any service completion. We model the system by an M^[x]/M/1 queueing system with N policy. The server can be turned off and takes a vacation with exponential random length whenever the system is empty. If the number of units waiting in the system at any vacation completion is less than N, the server will take another vacation. If the server returns from a vacation and finds at least N units in the system, he immediately starts to serve the waiting units. It is assumed that the server breaks down according to a Poisson process and the repair time has an exponential distribution. We derive the distribution of the system size through the probability generating function. We further study the steady-state behavior of the system size distribution at random (stationary) point of time as well as the queue size distribution at departure point of time. Other system characteristics are obtained by means of the grand process and the renewal process. Finally, the expected cost per unit time is considered to determine the optimal operating policy at a minimum cost. The sensitivity analysis is also presented through numerical experiments.     

Optimality of a Threshold Policy in theM/M/ queue with repeated vacations

Consider anM/M/1 queueing system with server vacations where the server is turned off as soon as the queue gets empty. We assume that the vacation durations form a sequence of i.i.d. random variables with exponential distribution. At the end of a vacation period, the server may either be turned on if the queue is non empty or take another vacation. The following costs are incurred: a holding cost ofh per unit of time and per customer in the system and a fixed cost of each time the server is turned on. We show that there exists a threshold policy that minimizes the long-run average cost criterion. The approach we use was first proposed in Blanc et al. (1990) and enables us to determine explicitly the optimal threshold and the optimal long-run average cost in terms of the model parameters.     

Operating characteristics of MX/G/1 queue with N-policy

We consider aM ^X/G/1 queueing system withN-policy. The server is turned off as soon as the system empties. When the queue length reaches or exceeds a predetermined valueN (threshold), the server is turned on and begins to serve the customers. We place our emphasis on understanding the operational characteristics of the queueing system. One of our findings is that the system size is the sum of two independent random variables: one has thePGF of the stationary system size of theM ^X/G/1 queueing system withoutN-policy and the other one has the probability generating function _j=0 ^N=1 _j z ^j/ _j=0 ^N=1 _j , in which _j is the probability that the system state stays atj before reaching or exceedingN during an idle period. Using this interpretation of the system size distribution, we determine the optimal thresholdN under a linear cost structure.     

Two thresholds of a batch arrival queueing system under modified T vacation policy with startup and closedown

This paper studies the operating characteristics of the variant of an M^[x]/G/1 vacation queue with startup and closedown times. After all the customers are served in the system exhaustively, the server shuts down (deactivates) by a closedown time, and then takes at most J vacations of constant time length T repeatedly until at least one customer is found waiting in the queue upon returning from a vacation. If at least one customer is present in the system when the server returns from a vacation, then the server reactivates and requires a startup time before providing the service. On the other hand, if no customers arrive by the end of the J th vacation, the server remains dormant in the system until at least one customer arrives. We will call the vacation policy modified T vacation policy. We derive the steady‐state probability distribution of the system size and the queue waiting time. Other system characteristics are also investigated. The long‐run average cost function per unit time is developed to determine the suitable thresholds of T and J that yield a minimum cost. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A single supplier–single retailer system with an order-up-to level inventory policy

We consider a two-level vendor-managed system in which external demand occurs only at a retailer and a supplier replenishes the retailer employing an order-up-to S policy over T periods. We present an O(T³) algorithm to coordinate the system when S is known. We also show that S can be optimized in O(aT³) time for an input parameter a.     

Optimality of D-Policies for an M/G/1 Queue with a Removable Server

We consider an M/G/1 queue with a removable server. When a customer arrives, the workload becomes known. The cost structure consists of switching costs, running costs, and holding costs per unit time which is a nonnegative nondecreasing right-continuous function of a current workload in the system. We prove an old conjecture that D-policies are optimal for the average cost per unit time criterion. It means that for this criterion there is an optimal policy that either runs the server all the time or switches the server off when the system becomes empty and switches it on when the workload reaches or exceeds some threshold D.     

Geometric processes and replacement problem

In this paper, we introduce and study the geometric process which is a sequence of independent non-negative random variablesX ₁,X ₂,... such that the distribution function ofX _n isF (a ^n–1 x), wherea is a positive constant. Ifa>1, then it is a decreasing geometric process, ifa<1, it is an increasing geometric process. Then, we consider a replacement model as follows: the successive survival times of the system after repair form a decreasing geometric process or a renewal process while the consecutive repair times of the system constitute an increasing geometric process or a renewal process. Besides the replacement policy based on the working age of the system, a new kind of replacement policy which is determined by the number of failures is considered. The explicit expressions of the long-run average costs per unit time under each replacement policy are then calculated, and therefore the corresponding optimal replacement policies can be found analytically or numerically.     

A modified vacation model M[x]/G/1 system

This paper studies the operating characteristics of an M^[x]/G/1 queueing system under a modified vacation policy, where the server leaves for a vacation as soon as the system is empty. The server takes at most J vacations repeatedly until at least one customer is found waiting in the queue when the server returns from a vacation. We derive the system size distribution at different points in time, as well as the waiting time distribution in the queue. Further, we derive some important characteristics including the expected length of the busy period and idle period. This shows that the results generalize those of the multiple vacation policy and the single vacation policy M^[x]/G/1 queueing system. Finally, a cost model is developed to determine the optimum of J at a minimum cost. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optimization of the T policy M/G/1 queue with server breakdowns and general startup times

This paper investigates the T$T$ policy M/G/1 queue with server breakdowns, and startup times. Customers arrive at the system according to a Poisson process. Service times, repair times, and startup times are assumed to be generally distributed. The server is turned on after a fixed length of time T$T$ repeatedly until at least one customer is present in the waiting line. The server needs a startup time before starting the service. We analyze various system performance measures and develop the total expected cost function per unit time in which T$T$ is a decision variable. We determine the optimum threshold T^∗$T^{\ast }$ and derive analytical results for sensitivity investigations. The sensitivity analysis is particularly valuable to the system analyst when evaluating future conditions. We also present extensive numerical computation for illustration purpose.     

An MX/G/1 queueing system with a setup period and a vacation period

This paper deals with an M^X/G/1 queueing system with a vacation period which comprises an idle period and a random setup period. The server is turned off each time when the system becomes empty. At this point of time the idle period starts. As soon as a customer or a batch of customers arrive, the setup of the service facility begins which is needed before starting each busy period. In this paper we study the steady state behaviour of the queue size distributions at stationary (random) point of time and at departure point of time. One of our findings is that the departure point queue size distribution is the convolution of the distributions of three independent random variables. Also, we drive analytically explicit expressions for the system state probabilities and some performance measures of this queueing system. Finally, we derive the probability generating function of the additional queue size distribution due to the vacation period as the limiting behaviour of the M^X/M/1 type queueing system. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Optimal control of the N policy M/G/1 queueing system with server breakdowns and general startup times

This paper deals with an N policy M/G/1 queueing system with a single removable and unreliable server whose arrivals form a Poisson process. Service times, repair times, and startup times are assumed to be generally distributed. When the queue length reaches N(N ? 1), the server is immediately turned on but is temporarily unavailable to serve the waiting customers. The server needs a startup time before providing service until there are no customers in the system. We analyze various system performance measures and investigate some designated known expected cost function per unit time to determine the optimal threshold N at a minimum cost. Sensitivity analysis is also studied.     

A single server queue with random arrivals and balking: Confidence interval estimation

This paper investigates a queueing system, which consists of Poisson input of customers, some of whom are lost to balking, and a single server working a shift of lengthL and providing a service whose duration can vary from customer to customer. If a service is in progress at the end of a shift, the server works overtime to complete the service. This process was motivated by the behavior of fishermen interviewed in the NY Great Lakes Creel Survey.We derive the distributions of the number of services (X), overtime and total server idle time (T), both unconditionally (for Poisson arrivals) and conditionally on the number (n) of arrivals per shift, assuming that the arrival times are not recorded in the data. These distributions provide the basis for estimation of the parameters from asingle realization of the queueing process during [0,L]. The conditional distributions also can be used to estimate common service time,w, when (n, X) or (n, T) are observed. Confidence intervals based onT are of shorter length, for all confidence coefficients, than the corresponding intervals based onX.This paper is Technical Report #BU-1019-M in the Biometrics Unit Series. The authors are grateful to N.U. Prabhu for suggestions on streamlining the distributional derivations and to D.R. Cox and C.E. McCulloch for helpful comments.     

Scheduling policies using marked/phantom slot algorithms

We address the problem of schedulingM customer classes in a single-server system, with customers arriving in one ofN arrival streams, as it arises in scheduling transmissions in packet radio networks. In general,NM and a customer from some stream may join one of several classes. We consider a slotted time model where at each scheduling epoch the server (channel) is assigned to a particular class (transmission set) and can serve multiple customers (packets) simultaneously, one from every arrival stream (network node) that can belong to this class. The assignment is based on arandom polling policy: the current time slot is allocated to theith class with probability _i. Our objective is to determine the optimal probabilities by adjusting them on line so as to optimize some overall performance measure. We present an approach based on perturbation analysis techniques, where all customer arrival processes can be arbitrary, and no information about them is required. The basis of this approach is the development of two sensitivity estimators leading to amarked slot and aphantom slot algorithm. The algorithms determine the effect of removing/ adding service slots to an existing schedule on the mean customer waiting times by directly observing the system. The optimal slot assignment probabilities are then used to design adeterministic scheduling policy based on the Golden Ratio policy. Finally, several numerical results based on a simple optimization algorithm are included.This work was supported by the Naval Research Laboratory under contracts N000014-91-J-2025 and N000014-92-J-2017, by the National Science Foundation under grant EID-9212122, and by the Rome Laboratory under contract F30602-94-C-0109.     

An optimal age maintenance for an M/G/1 queueing system

This paper discusses an optimal age maintenance scheme for a queueing system. Customers arrive at the system according to a Poisson process. They form a single queue and are served by a server with general service distribution. The system fails after a random time and corrective maintenance is performed at the failure. A preventive maintenance is also performed if the system is empty at age T where ‘age’ refers to the elapsed time since the previous maintenance was completed. If the system is not empty at age T, the system is used until it fails. At the failure, the customers in the system are lost and the arriving customers during the maintenance are also lost. By renewal theory, we study the optimal value of T which minimizes the average number of lost customers over an infinite time horizon.     

An M/G/1 queue with cyclic service times

In this paper we consider a single server queue with Poisson arrivals and general service distributions in which the service distributions are changed cyclically according to customer sequence number. This model extends a previous study that used cyclic exponential service times to the treatment of general service distributions. First, the stationary probability generating function and the average number of customers in the system are found. Then, a single vacation queueing system with aN-limited service policy, in which the server goes on vacation after servingN consecutive customers is analyzed as a particular case of our model. Also, to increase the flexibility of using theM/G/1 model with cyclic service times in optimization problems, an approximation approach is introduced in order to obtain the average number of customers in the system. Finally, using this approximation, the optimalN-limited service policy for a single vacation queueing system is obtained.On leave from the Department of Industrial Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology, Narmak, Tehran 16844, Iran.     

Notes of M/G/1 system under the {\langle p, T \rangle} policy with second optional service

We optimize the operating cost of the ${\langle p, T \rangle}We optimize the operating cost of the áp, T ?{\langle p, T \rangle} policy for an M/G/1 queueing system with second optional service, where the customer may depart from the system either after the first essential service with probability 1 − r or at the end of the first service may immediately go for a second service with probability r. Moreover, the server takes a vacation of fixed length T if the system becomes empty. If customers are found in the queue after T time units have elapsed since the end of the busy period, the server reactivates with probability p or leaves for a vacation of the same length T with probability 1 − p. Alternatively, if no customers present in the queue upon returning from the vacation, the server leaves for another a vacation of the same length. We call this áp, T ?{\langle p, T \rangle} policy. The total expected cost function per unit time is developed to determine the optimal thresholds of p and T at a minimum cost. Based on the optimal cost the explicit form for joint optimum values of p and T are obtained.     

An M/G/1 unreliable retrial queue with two phases of service and Bernoulli admission mechanism

This paper deals with the steady state behaviour of an M^X/G/1 retrial queue with an additional second phase of optional service and unreliable server where breakdowns occur randomly at any instant while serving the customers. Further concept of Bernoulli admission mechanism is also introduced in the model. This model generalizes both the classical M^X/G/1 retrial queue subject to random breakdown and Bernoulli admission mechanism as well as M^X/G/1 queue with second optional service and unreliable server. We carry out an extensive analysis of this model.     

Asymptotically optimal idling in the GI/GI/N+GI queue

We formulate a control problem for a GI/GI/N+GI queue, whose objective is to trade off the long-run average operational costs with server utilization costs. To solve the control problem, we consider an asymptotic regime in which the arrival rate and the number of servers grow large. The solution to an associated fluid control problem motivates that non-idling service disciplines are not in general optimal, unless some arrivals are turned away. We propose an admission control policy designed to ensure that servers have sufficient idle time, which we show is asymptotically optimal.