On redundant weighted voting systems with components having stochastic arrangement increasing lifetimes

As one generalization of the k-out-of-n structure, the weighted voting system has been paid much attention during the past two decades. This paper has a further study on active redundancies allocation to weighted voting reliability systems of components having LWSAI lifetimes. For redundancies with SAI lifetimes, allocating a more reliable redundancy to a weaker and more heavily weighted component is found to produce a more reliable system in the sense of having higher reliability. Also, in the context of redundancies with identically distributed lifetimes, we show that allocating more redundancies to a weaker and more heavily weighted component produces a more reliable system. Some numerical examples are presented to illustrate the main results as well.     

Reliability stochastic optimization for a series system with interval component reliability via genetic algorithm

This paper deals with chance constraints based reliability stochastic optimization problem in the series system. This problem can be formulated as a nonlinear integer programming problem of maximizing the overall system reliability under chance constraints due to resources. The assumption of traditional reliability optimization problem is that the reliability of a component is known as a fixed quantity which lies in the open interval (0, 1). However, in real life situations, the reliability of an individual component may vary due to some realistic factors and it is sensible to treat this as a positive imprecise number and this imprecise number is represented by an interval valued number. In this work, we have formulated the reliability optimization problem as a chance constraints based reliability stochastic optimization problem with interval valued reliabilities of components. Then, the chance constraints of the problem are converted into the equivalent deterministic form. The transformed problem has been formulated as an unconstrained integer programming problem with interval coefficients by Big-M penalty technique. Then to solve this problem, we have developed a real coded genetic algorithm (GA) for integer variables with tournament selection, uniform crossover and one-neighborhood mutation. To illustrate the model two numerical examples have been solved by our developed GA. Finally to study the stability of our developed GA with respect to the different GA parameters, sensitivity analyses have been done graphically.     

Fast computation of bounds for two-terminal network reliability

In this paper, an algorithm for the fast computation of network reliability bounds is proposed. The evaluation of the network reliability is an intractable problem for very large networks, and hence approximate solutions based on reliability bounds have assumed importance. The proposed bounds computation algorithm is based on an efficient BDD representation of the reliability graph model and a novel search technique to find important minpaths/mincuts to quickly reduce the gap between the reliability upper and lower bounds. Furthermore, our algorithm allows the control of the gap between the two bounds by controlling the overall execution time. Therefore, a trade-off between prediction accuracy and computational resources can be easily made in our approach. The numerical results are presented for large real example reliability graphs to show the efficacy of our approach.     

多源点多汇点网络系统可靠度的解析表示

本文研究了基于最小路径描述的多源点多汇点网络系统可靠性问题。定义了最小路径矩阵的几种运算,利用所定义的运算,将多源点多汇点网络系统转化为等价的单源点单汇点网络系统,并给出了由子系统可靠度精确表示网络系统可靠度的解析表达式。这种解析表达是非常重要的,它是系统可靠性的理论研究与实际应用的一个极为有效的工具。     

Reliability and covariance estimation of weighted k-out-of-n multi-state systems

In the literature of reliability engineering, reliability of the weighted k-out-of-n system can be calculated using component reliability based on the structure function. The calculation usually assumes that the true component reliability is completely known. However, this is not the case in practical applications. Instead, component reliability has to be estimated using empirical sample data. Uncertainty arises during this estimation process and propagates to the system level. This paper studies the propagation mechanism of estimation uncertainty through the universal generating function method. Equations of the complete solution including the unbiased system reliability estimator and the corresponding unbiased covariance estimator are derived. This is a unified approach. It can be applied to weighted k-out-of-n systems with multi-state components, to weighted k-out-of-n systems with binary components, and to simple series and parallel systems. It may also serve as building blocks to derive estimators of system reliability and uncertainty measures for more complicated systems.     

An effective immune based two-phase approach for the optimal reliability-redundancy allocation problem

Highly reliable systems can reduce loss of money and time in practice. System reliability can be enhanced by: (i) increasing component reliabilities and/or (ii) providing redundancy at the component level. A trade-off between these two options is necessary for nonlinear-constrained reliability optimization. The problem of maximizing system reliability through component reliability choices and component redundancy is called as reliability-redundancy allocation problem, and it is a difficult but realistic nonlinear mixed-integer optimization problem. In this paper, under nonlinear constraints of weight, cost, and volume, we propose a new immune based two-phase approach to solve the reliability-redundancy allocation problem. In the first phase, an immune based algorithm (IA) is developed to solve the allocation problem, and in the second phase we present a new procedure to improve the solutions by IA. Numerical results of four benchmark problems are reported and compared. As shown, the solutions by the new proposed approach are all superior to those best solutions by typical approaches in the literature.     

Optimizing reliability and service parts logistics for a time-varying installed base

Performance based contracting (PBC) emerges as a new after-sales service practice to support the operation and maintenance of capital equipment or systems. Under the PBC framework, the goal of the study is to increase the system operational availability while minimizing the logistics footprint through the design for reliability. We consider the situation where the number of installed systems randomly increases over the planning horizon, resulting in a non-stationary maintenance and repair demand. Renewal equation and Poisson process are used to estimate the aggregate fleet failures. We propose a dynamic stocking policy that adaptively replenishes the inventory to meet the time-varying parts demand. An optimization model is formulated and solved under a multi-phase adaptive inventory control policy. The study provides theoretical insights into the performance-driven service operation in the context of changing system fleet size due to new installations. Trade-offs between reliability design and inventory level are examined and compared in various shipment scenarios. Numerical examples drawn from semiconductor equipment industry are used to demonstrate the applicability and the performance of the proposed method.     

Reliability and cost analysis of series system models using fuzzy parametric geometric programming

In this paper, we have discussed series system models with system reliability and cost. We have considered two types of the model; the former focuses on a problem of optimal reliability for series system with cost constraint and the latter is a center system cost model with reliability goal. It is necessary to improve the reliability of the system under limited available cost of system and also to minimize the systems cost subject to target goal of the reliability. Practically, cost of components has always been imprecise with vague in nature. So they are taken as fuzzy in nature and the reliability models are formulated as a fuzzy parametric geometric programming problem. Numerical examples are given to illustrate the model through fuzzy parametric geometric programming technique.     

公平性与数学化（Ⅱ）权力指数

对一个加权选举系统引入权力指数概念,并用具体例子计算一些政府组织的有关指数。     

An Inverse Reliability-based Approach for Designing under Uncertainty with Application to Robust Piston Design

In this work, we propose an optimization framework for designing under uncertainty that considers both robustness and reliability issues. This approach is generic enough to be applicable to engineering design problems involving nonconvex objective and constraint functions defined in terms of random variables that follow any distribution. The problem formulation employs an Inverse Reliability Strategy that uses percentile performance to address both robustness objectives and reliability constraints. Robustness is achieved through a design objective that evaluates performance variation as a percentile difference between the right and left trails of the specified goals. Reliability requirements are formulated as Inverse Reliability constraints that are based on equivalent percentile performance levels. The general proposed approach first approximates the formulated problem via a Gaussian Kriging model. This is then used to evaluate the percentile performance characteristics of the different measures inherent in the problem formulation for various design variable settings via a Most Probable Point of Inverse Reliability search algorithm. By using these percentile evaluations in concert with the response surface methodology, a polynomial programming approximation is generated. The resulting problem formulation is finally solved to global optimality using the Reformulation–Linearization Technique (RLT) approach. We demonstrate this overall proposed approach by applying it to solve the problem of reducing piston slap, an undesirable engine noise due to the secondary motion of a piston within a cylinder.     

A new approach for parameter estimation of finite Weibull mixture distributions for reliability modeling

The aim of this paper is to model lifetime data for systems that have failure modes by using the finite mixture of Weibull distributions. It involves estimating of the unknown parameters which is an important task in statistics, especially in life testing and reliability analysis. The proposed approach depends on different methods that will be used to develop the estimates such as MLE through the EM algorithm. In addition, Bayesian estimations will be investigated and some other extensions such as Graphic, Non-Linear Median Rank Regression and Monte Carlo simulation methods can be used to model the system under consideration. A numerical application will be used through the proposed approach. This paper also presents a comparison of the fitted probability density functions, reliability functions and hazard functions of the 3-parameter Weibull and Weibull mixture distributions using the proposed approach and other conventional methods which characterize the distribution of failure times for the system components. GOF is used to determine the best distribution for modeling lifetime data, the priority will be for the proposed approach which has more accurate parameter estimates.     

有容量限制的可靠性固定费用选址问题

设施网络可能面临各种失灵风险,而设施选址属于战略决策问题,短期内难以改变,因而在选址设计时需要充分考虑设施的非完全可靠性。本文针对无容量限制的可靠性固定费用选址问题进行扩展,进一步考虑设施的容量约束,基于非线性混合整数规划方法建立了一个有容量限制的可靠性固定费用选址问题优化模型。针对该模型的特点,应用线性化技术进行模型转化,并设计了一种拉格朗日松弛算法予以求解。通过多组算例分析,验证了算法的性能。算例分析结果表明设施失灵风险和设施容量对于选址决策有显著影响,因而在实际的选址决策过程中有必要充分考虑设施的失灵风险及容量约束。     

A GA based penalty function technique for solving constrained redundancy allocation problem of series system with interval valued reliability of components

In this paper, we have considered the problem of constrained redundancy allocation of series system with interval valued reliability of components. For maximizing the overall system reliability under limited resource constraints, the problem is formulated as an unconstrained integer programming problem with interval coefficients by penalty function technique and solved by an advanced GA for integer variables with interval fitness function, tournament selection, uniform crossover, uniform mutation and elitism. As a special case, considering the lower and upper bounds of the interval valued reliabilities of the components to be the same, the corresponding problem has been solved. The model has been illustrated with some numerical examples and the results of the series redundancy allocation problem with fixed value of reliability of the components have been compared with the existing results available in the literature. Finally, sensitivity analyses have been shown graphically to study the stability of our developed GA with respect to the different GA parameters.     

Determining an optimum location for an undesirable facility in a workroom environment

This paper deals with the problem of placing an undesirable but necessary piece of equipment, process or facility into a working environment. Locating a piece of equipment that produces contaminants or creates stresses for nearby workers, placing a storage facility for flammable materials or locating hazardous waste in the workroom environment, are all typical examples of the undesirable facility location problem. The degree of undesirability between an existing facility or worker and the new undesirable entity is reflected through a weighting factor. The problem is formally defined to be the selection of a location within the convex region that maximizes the minimum weighted Euclidean distance with respect to all existing facilities. A ‘Maximin’ model is formulated and two solution procedures introduced. A geometrical approach and an algorithmic approach are described in detail. An example is provided for each solution procedure and the computational efficiency of the algorithm is discussed and illustrated.     

Nonparametric predictive reliability of series of voting systems

Nonparametric Predictive Inference (NPI) for system reliability reflects the dependence of reliabilities of similar components due to limited knowledge from testing. NPI has recently been presented for reliability of a single voting system consisting of multiple types of components. The components are all assumed to play the same role within the system, but with regard to their reliability components of different types are assumed to be independent. The information from tests is available per type of component. This paper presents NPI for systems with subsystems in a series structure, where all subsystems are voting systems and components of the same type can be in different subsystems. As NPI uses only few modelling assumptions, system reliability is quantified by lower and upper probabilities, reflecting the limited information in the test data. The results are illustrated by examples, which also illustrate important aspects of redundancy and diversity for system reliability.     

Modelling redundancy allocation for a fuzzy random parallel-series system

Due to subjective judgment, imprecise human knowledge and perception in capturing statistical data, the real data of lifetimes in many systems are both random and fuzzy in nature. Based on the fuzzy random variables that are used to characterize the lifetimes, this paper studies the redundancy allocation problems to a fuzzy random parallel-series system.Two fuzzy random redundancy allocation models (FR-RAM) are developed through reliability maximization and cost minimization, respectively. Some properties of the FR-RAM are obtained, in which an analytical formula of reliability with convex lifetimes is derived and the sensitivity of the reliability is discussed. To solve the FR-RAMs, we first address the computation of reliability. A random simulation method based on the derived analytical formula is proposed to compute the reliability with convex lifetimes. As for the reliability with nonconvex lifetimes, the technique of fuzzy random simulation together with the discretization method of fuzzy random variable is employed to compute the reliability, and a convergence theorem of the fuzzy random simulation is proved. Subsequently, we integrate the computation approaches of the reliability and genetic algorithm (GA) to search for the approximately optimal redundancy allocation of the models. Finally, some numerical examples are provided to illustrate the feasibility of the solution algorithm and quantify its effectiveness.     

On minimum sum representations for weighted voting games

A proposal in a weighted voting game is accepted if the sum of the (non-negative) weights of the ??yea?? voters is at least as large as a given quota. Several authors have considered representations of weighted voting games with minimum sum, where the weights and the quota are restricted to be integers. In Freixas and Molinero (Ann. Oper. Res. 166:243?C260, 2009) the authors have classified all weighted voting games without a unique minimum sum representation for up to 8 voters. Here we exhaustively classify all weighted voting games consisting of 9?voters which do not admit a unique minimum sum integer weight representation.     

A simple “market value” bargaining model for weighted voting games: characterization and limit theorems

We offer a bargaining model for weighted voting games that is a close relative of the nucleolus and the kernel. We look for a set of weights that preserves winning coalitions that has the property of minimizing the difference between the weight of the smallest and the weight of the largest Minimum Winning Coalition. We claim that such a set of weights provides an a priori measure of a weighted voter’s bribeworthiness or market value. After introducing our model, we provide a characterization result for this model and show its links to other bargaining model approaches in the literature. Then we offer some limit results showing that, with certain reasonable conditions on the distributions of weights, as the size of the voting body increases, the values of bribeworthiness we calculate will approach both the weights themselves and the Banzhaf scores for the weighted voting game. We also show that, even for relatively small groups using weighted voting, such as the membership of the European Council of Ministers (and its predecessors) 1958–2003, similarities among the usual a priori power scores, bribeworthiness/market value, and the weights themselves, will be quite strong.     

无失效数据情形可靠性参数的估计和调整

本文在无失效取样情形下,提出了产品可靠性参数的一种估计和调整的方法———加权多层Bayes估计法.在无失效数据情形下失效率的多层Bayes估计和引进失效信息后失效率的多层Bayes估计的基础上,对可靠性参数进行了估计和调整———给出了失效率和可靠度的加权多层Bayes估计.最后,结合发动机的实际问题进行了计算,结果表明本文提出的方法可行且便于应用.     

Weighted lattice polynomials of independent random variables

We give the cumulative distribution functions, the expected values, and the moments of weighted lattice polynomials when regarded as real functions of independent random variables. Since weighted lattice polynomial functions include ordinary lattice polynomial functions and, particularly, order statistics, our results encompass the corresponding formulas for these particular functions. We also provide an application to the reliability analysis of coherent systems.