An optimal replacement policy for a multistate degenerative simple system

In this paper, a degenerative simple system (i.e. a degenerative one-component system with one repairman) with k + 1 states, including k failure states and one working state, is studied. Assume that the system after repair is not “as good as new”, and the degeneration of the system is stochastic. Under these assumptions, we consider a new replacement policy T based on the system age. Our problem is to determine an optimal replacement policy T^∗ such that the average cost rate (i.e. the long-run average cost per unit time) of the system is minimized. The explicit expression of the average cost rate is derived, the corresponding optimal replacement policy can be determined, the explicit expression of the minimum of the average cost rate can be found and under some mild conditions the existence and uniqueness of the optimal policy T^∗ can be proved, too. Further, we can show that the repair model for the multistate system in this paper forms a general monotone process repair model which includes the geometric process repair model as a special case. We can also show that the repair model in the paper is equivalent to a geometric process repair model for a two-state degenerative simple system in the sense that they have the same average cost rate and the same optimal policy. Finally, a numerical example is given to illustrate the theoretical results of this model.     

A deteriorating system with its repairman having multiple vacations

This paper considers a repairable system with a repairman, who can take multiple vacations. If the system fails and the repairman is on vacation, it will wait for repair until the repairman is available. Assume that the system cannot be repaired “as good as new” after failures. Under these assumptions, using the geometric process and the supplementary variable technique, some important reliability indexes are derived, such as the system reliability, availability, rate of occurrence of failures, etc. According to the renewal reward theorem, the explicit expression of the expected profit per unit time is obtained. Finally, a numerical example is given to illustrate that there exists an optimal replacement policy N∗, which maximizes the value of the expected profit rate after a long time run.     

A geometric process maintenance model with preventive repair

In this paper, a geometric process maintenance model with preventive repair is studied. A maintenance policy (T, N) is applied by which the system will be repaired whenever it fails or its operating time reaches T whichever occurs first, and the system will be replaced by a new and identical one following the Nth failure. The long-run average cost per unit time is determined. An optimal policy (T^∗, N^∗) could be determined numerically or analytically for minimizing the average cost. A new class of lifetime distribution which takes into account the effect of preventive repair is studied that is applied to determine the optimal policy (T^∗, N^∗).     

Optimal repair–replacement policies for a system with two types of failures

In this paper, the optimal replacement problem is investigated for a system with two types of failures. One type of failure is repairable, which is conducted by a repairman when it occurs, and the other is unrepairable, which leads to a replacement of the system at once. The repair of the system is not “as good as new”. The consecutive operating times of the system after repair form a decreasing geometric process, while the repair times after failure are assumed to be independent and identically distributed. Replacement policy N is adopted, where N is the number of repairable failures. The system will be replaced at the Nth repairable failure or at the unrepairable failure, whichever occurs first. Two replacement models are considered, one is based on the limiting availability and the other based on the long-run average cost rate of the system. We give the explicit expressions for the limiting availability and the long-run average cost rate of the system under policy N, respectively. By maximizing the limiting availability A(N) and minimizing the long-run average cost rate C(N), we theoretically obtain the optimal replacement policies N^∗ in both cases. Finally, some numerical simulations are presented to verify the theoretical results.     

An optimal repair–replacement policy for a cold standby system with use priority

In this paper, the maintenance problem for a cold standby system consisting of two dissimilar components and one repairman is studied. Assume that both component 1 and component 2 after repair follow geometric process repair and component 1 is given priority in use when both components are workable. Under these assumptions, using geometric process repair model, we consider a replacement policy N under which the system is replaced when the number of failures of component 1 reaches N. Our purpose is to determine an optimal replacement policy N1 such that the average cost rate (i.e. the long-run average cost per unit time) of the system is minimized. The explicit expression for the average cost rate of the system is derived and the corresponding optimal replacement policy N1 can be determined analytically or numerically. Finally, a numerical example is given to illustrate some theoretical results and the model applicability.     

A bivariate optimal replacement policy for a cold standby repairable system with preventive repair

In this paper, the repair-replacement problem for a deteriorating cold standby repairable system is investigated. The system consists of two dissimilar components, in which component 1 is the main component with use priority and component 2 is a supplementary component. In order to extend the working time and economize the running cost of the system, preventive repair for component 1 is performed every time interval T, and the preventive repair is “as good as new”. As a supplementary component, component 2 is only used at the time that component 1 is under preventive repair or failure repair. Assumed that the failure repair of component 1 follows geometric process repair while the repair of component 2 is “as good as new”. A bivariate repair-replacement policy (T, N) is adopted for the system, where T is the interval length between preventive repairs, and N is the number of failures of component 1. The aim is to determine an optimal bivariate policy (T, N)^∗ such that the average cost rate of the system is minimized. The explicit expression of the average cost rate is derived and the corresponding optimal bivariate policy can be determined analytically or numerically. Finally, a Gamma distributed example is given to illustrate the theoretical results for the proposed model.     

有优先维修权和优先使用权的冷储备系统的几何过程模型

本文研究了一个由两个部件和一个维修工组成的可修型冷储备系统.假设两个部件的工作时间和维修时间都服从指数分布,对部件2的维修是修旧如新而对部件1则是几何维修,且对部件1给予优先使用和优先维修的权利,在这些假定下,我们运用几何过程理论和补充变量方法,得到了一些重要的可靠性指标如系统可靠度、可用度、系统首次故障前平均工作时间和系统瞬时故障率等.最后还给出了维修工空闲的概率.     

有两种故障状态的两部件串联系统的预防维修策略

本文研究的是由两个部件串联组成且有两种故障状态的系统的预防维修策略, 当系统的工作时间达到T时进行预防维修, 预防维修使部件恢复到上一次故障维修后的状态。每个部件发生故障都有两种状态, 可维修和不可维修。当部件的故障为可维修故障时, 修理工对其进行故障维修, 且每次故障维修后的工作时间形成随机递减的几何过程, 每次故障后的维修时间形成随机递增的几何过程。当部件发生N次可维修故障或一次不可维修故障时进行更换。以部件进行预防维修的间隔和更换前的可维修故障次数N组成的二维策略(T, N) 为策略, 利用更新过程和几何过程理论求出了系统经长期运行单位时间内期望费用的表达式, 并给出了具体例子和数值分析。     

Optimizing replacement policy for a cold-standby system with waiting repair times

This paper presents the formulas of the expected long-run cost per unit time for a cold-standby system composed of two identical components with perfect switching. When a component fails, a repairman will be called in to bring the component back to a certain working state. The time to repair is composed of two different time periods: waiting time and real repair time. The waiting time starts from the failure of a component to the start of repair, and the real repair time is the time between the start to repair and the completion of the repair. We also assume that the time to repair can either include only real repair time with a probability p, or include both waiting and real repair times with a probability 1 − p. Special cases are discussed when both working times and real repair times are assumed to be geometric processes, and the waiting time is assumed to be a renewal process. The expected long-run cost per unit time is derived and a numerical example is given to demonstrate the usefulness of the derived expression.     

A bivariate mixed policy for a simple repairable system based on preventive repair and failure repair

In this paper, a simple repairable system (i.e. a one-component repairable system with one repairman) with preventive repair and failure repair is studied. Assume that the preventive repair is adopted before the system fails, when the system reliability drops to an undetermined constant R  , the work will be interrupted and the preventive repair is executed at once. And assume that the preventive repair of the system is “as good as new” while the failure repair of the system is not, and the deterioration of the system is stochastic. Under these assumptions, by using geometric process, we present a bivariate mixed policy (R,N)$(R\text{,}N)$, respectively based on a scale of the system reliability and the failure-number of the system. Our aim is to determine an optimal mixed policy (R,N)^∗$(R\text{,}N{)}^{\ast }$ such that the long-run average cost per unit time (i.e. the average cost rate) is minimized. The explicit expression of the average cost rate is derived, and the corresponding optimal mixed policy can be determined analytically or numerically. Finally, a numerical example is given where the working time of the system yields a Weibull distribution. Some comparisons with a certain existing policy are also discussed by numerical methods.     

一个可修系统的最优更换模型

本文考虑了单部件、一个修理工组成的可修系统，在故障系统不能“修复如新”的前提下，我们利用几何过程，以系统年龄Ｔ为策略，选择最优的Ｔ使得系统经长期运行单位时间的期望效益达到最大．本文还在一定的条件下证明了最优更换策略Ｔ的唯一存在，且求出了系统经长期运行单位时间的最大期望效益的明显表达式．     

修理工可单重休假的预防维修更换策略

本文研究了一个修理工带有单重休假的单部件可修系统.为了延长系统的使用寿命,在系统故障前考虑了预防维修,且假定预防维修能够“修复如新”,而故障维修为“修复非新”时,以系统的故障次数N为更换策略.通过更新过程和几何过程理论,得出系统经长期运行单位时间内期望费用的明显表达式,并对预防维修的定长间隔时间T及更换策略N进行了讨论,最后,通过实例分析,求出最优策略N’,使得目标函数取得最优值.     

有延迟修理的两部件串联系统的预防维修策略

研究由两个部件串联组成的系统的预防维修策略, 当系统的工作时间达到T时进行预防维修, 预防维修使部件恢复到上一次故障维修后的状态. 当部件发生故障后进行故障维修, 因为各种原因可能会延迟修理. 部件在每次故障维修后的工作时间形成随机递减的几何过程, 且每次故障后的维修时间形成随机递增的几何过程. 以部件进行预防维修的间隔T和更换前的故障次数N组成的二维策略(T,N)为策略, 利用更新过程和几何过程理论求出了系统经长期运行单位时间内期望费用的表达式, 并给出了具体例子和数值分析.     

An extended replacement policy for a deteriorating system with multi-failure modes

In this paper, the maintenance problem for a deteriorating system with k + 1 failure modes, including an unrepairable failure (catastrophic failure) mode and k repairable failure (non-catastrophic failure) modes, is studied. Assume that the system after repair is not “as good as new” and its deterioration is stochastic. Under these assumptions, an extended replacement policy N is considered: the system will be replaced whenever the number of repairable failures reaches N or the unrepairable failure occurs, whichever occurs first. Our purpose is to determine an optimal extended policy N^∗ such that the average cost rate (i.e. the long-run average cost per unit time) of the system is minimized. The explicit expression of the average cost rate is derived, and the corresponding optimal extended policy N^∗ can be determined analytically or numerically. Finally, a numerical example is given to illustrate some theoretical results of the repair model proposed in this paper.     

两部件冷备系统的可靠性分析及其最优更换策略

本文研究了两个不同部件、一个修理工组成的冷贮备可修系统,假定它们的寿命分布和维修分布均匀为指数分布,但故障后均不能修复如新时,我们利用几何过程和补充变量法求得了一些可靠性指标,并以故障次数为策略,以长期运行单位时间内的期望效益为目标函数,确定了最优的故障次数,便得目标函数达到最大值,从而保证了系统的可用度。     

修理工单重定期休假可修系统更换模型研究

针对修理工带有单重休假的单部件可修系统,提出了一种新的维修更换模型.假定系统是可修的,逐次故障后的维修时间构成随机递增的几何过程,系统工作时间构成随机递增的几何过程,在修理工休假时间为定长的情况下,分别选取系统的总工作时间T和故障维修次数N为更换策略,以长期运行单位时间内的期望效益为目标函数,通过更新过程和几何过程理论建立数学模型,导出了目标函数的解析表达式,通过最大化目标函数来获取系统最优的更换策略T*和N*.并在一定条件下给出了策略N比策略T优的充分条件.最后,通过数值例子验证了方法的有效性.     

Optimal replacement policy for a deteriorating system with increasing repair times

This paper considers an optimal maintenance policy for a practical and reparable deteriorating system subject to random shocks. Modeling the repair time by a geometric process and the failure mechanism by a generalized δ-shock process, we develop an explicit expression of the long-term average cost per time unit for the system under a threshold-type replacement policy. Based on this average cost function, we propose a finite search algorithm to locate the optimal replacement policy N^∗ to minimize the average cost rate. We further prove that the optimal policy N^∗ is unique and present some numerical examples. Many practical systems fit the model developed in this paper.     

Modelling of a deteriorating system with repair satisfying general distribution

In this paper, we model a deteriorating system that cannot be repaired “as good as new” after failures, the model comes from [19, Applied Mathematics and Computation, 217(2011), 4980-4989]. Suppose that the system has one repairman who can have multiple vacations, and if the system fails when the repairman is on vacation, it will wait for repair until the repairman is available. Herein the repair time is taken into account and supposes that the repair satisfies the general distribution. Under these assumptions, by means of the geometric process and the supplementary variable techniques, we derive a complete model of the partial differential equations, which will correct an error of mathematical model in [19]. Moreover, we deduce some important reliability indices of the system such as the availability of system, the probability of the repairman working and the rate of occurrence of failures. In particular, we prove that the rate of occurrence of failures m_f is not equal to zero.     

具有单重休假和修复不如新的两部件并联系统

为了解决由"修复非新"部件组成的具有休假的可修型系统,运用几何过程理论、补充变量法和拉普拉斯变换工具,研究了由两个不同型部件和一个修理工组成的可修型并联系统.假设两个部件的工作寿命和修理时间均服从不同的指数分布,修理工可休假,对部件1的修理是几何修理而对部件2的修理则是修复如新,得到了系统的可用度、可靠度和系统首次故障前平均时间等可靠性指标.成果具有一定的理论和实际意义.