Chia-Huang Wu

Cost-minimization analysis of a working vacation queue with N-policy and server breakdowns

Analysis of the N-policy M/M/1 queue with working vacation and server breakdowns.The equilibrium condition of the system is derived for the steady state.We find the matrix-form expressions for the stationary probability distribution.Some important system performance measures are developed in matrix form.Applying the particle swarm optimization algorithm to find the minimum expected cost. This paper investigates the N-policy M/M/1 queueing system with working vacation and server breakdowns. As soon as the system becomes empty, the server begins a working vacation. The server works at a lower service rate rather than completely stopping service during a vacation period. The server may break down with different breakdown rates during the idle, working vacation, and normal busy periods. It is assumed that service times, vacation times, and repair times are all exponentially distributed. We analyze this queueing model as a quasi-birth-death process. Furthermore, the equilibrium condition of the system is derived for the steady state. Using the matrix-geometric method, we find the matrix-form expressions for the stationary probability distribution of the number of customers in the system and system performance measures. The expected cost function per unit time is constructed to determine the optimal values of the system decision variables, including the threshold N and mean service rates. We employ the particle swarm optimization algorithm to solve the optimization problem. Finally, numerical results are provided, and an application example is given to demonstrate the applicability of the queueing model.

Optimization analysis of an unreliable multi-server queue with a controllable repair policy

Abstract This article deals with an infinite-capacity multi-server queueing system, in which the servers are assumed unreliable and may fail at any time. To conserve energy while delivering reliable service, a controllable repair policy is introduced. With such a policy, the failed servers will be sent to the repair facility only when the number of failed machines in the system arrives at a preset threshold value. A quasi-birth-and-death process is used to model the complex system and the stability condition is examined. The rate matrix is calculated approximately and steady-state stationary distributions are obtained by a matrix-analytic approach. The closed-form expressions of important system characteristics are presented. A cost model is constructed to determine the optimal repair policy, the optimal value of service rate and the optimal value of repair rate. Three heuristic algorithms are employed to deal with the optimization problem. Some numerical results are provided to compare the efficiency of two methods.

A powerful test for two-sided multiple independent characteristics supplier selection problem

In this article, we consider the supplier selection problem for two-sided processes with multiple independent characteristics. We review the existing division method and develop a new exact approach called the subtraction method. For practical applications, a two-phase selection procedure is established based on the subtraction method. The decision powers of two methods are compared. We show that the subtraction method we proposed is indeed more powerful than the existing division method. Several figures are presented to display the required sample sizes with various powers and various values of ). For the convenience of practitioners, the required sample sizes for the two methods with various powers and various values of ) are also tabulated.

Analysis of an infinite multi-server queue with an optional service

This paper deals with an infinite-capacity multi-server queueing system with a second optional service (SOS) channel. The inter-arrival times of arriving customers, the service times of the first essential service (FES) and the SOS channel are all exponentially distributed. A customer may leave the system after the FES channel with a probability (1-@q), or the completion of the FES may immediately require a SOS with a probability @q (0=<@q=<1). The formulae for computing the rate matrix and stationary probabilities are derived by means of a matrix analytical approach. A cost model is developed to simultaneously determine the optimal values of the number of servers and the two service rates at the minimal total expected cost per unit time. Quasi-Newton method and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) method are employed to deal with the optimization problem. Under optimal operating conditions, numerical results are provided from which several system performance measures are calculated based on the assumed numerical values of the system parameters.

Multi-server retrial queue with second optional service: algorithmic computation and optimisation

We consider an infinite-capacity M/M/c retrial queue with second optional service (SOS) channel. An arriving customer finds a free server would enter the service (namely, the first essential service, denoted by FES) immediately; otherwise, the customer enters into an orbit and starts generating requests for service in an exponentially distributed time interval until he finds a free server and begins receiving service. After the completion of FES, only some of them receive SOS. The retrial system is modelled by a quasi-birth-and-death process and some system performance measures are derived. The useful formulae for computing the rate matrix and stationary probabilities are derived by means of a matrix-analytic approach. A cost model is derived to determine the optimal values of the number of servers and the two different service rates simultaneously at the minimal total expected cost per unit time. Illustrative numerical examples demonstrate the optimisation approach as well as the effect of various parameters on system performance measures.

The multi-server retrial system with Bernoulli feedback and starting failures

In this paper, we present a detailed analysis of a multi-server retrial queue with Bernoulli feedback, where the servers are subject to starting failures. Upon completion of a service, a customer would decide either to leave the system with probability p or to join the retrial orbit again for another service with complementary probability 1−p. We analyse this queueing system as a quasi-birth–death process. Specifically, the equilibrium condition of the system is given for the existence of the steady-state analysis. Applying the matrix-geometric method, the formulae for computing the rate matrix and stationary probabilities are obtained. We further develop the matrix-form expressions for various system performance measures. A cost model is constructed to determine the optimal number of servers, the optimal mean service rate and the optimal mean repair rate subject to the stability condition. Finally, we give a practical example to illustrate the potential applicability of this model.

An optimum approach of profit analysis on the machine repair system with heterogeneous repairmen

We consider a machine repair problem with queue-dependent heterogeneous repairmen. The stationary probability distribution of the number of failed machines in the system is derived. A profit model is developed to determine the optimal values of threshold to assign/add one more repairman for increasing the total service rate where the service rate is assumed adjustable. The probabilistic global search Lausanne (PGSL) method is employed to find an initial trial solution. Based on this initial solution, a direct search method is applied to obtain the optimal values of the threshold and, then, the Quasi-Newton method is implemented to adjust the corresponding service rates. Some numerical experiments are performed to justify the efficiency of the optimum approach.

An Effective Procedure for Supplier Selection Applied to Glass Substrate Processes with Multiple Lines

In this paper, we consider a supplier selection problem, which compares two glass substrate processes with multiple lines and selects the one that has a higher capability. A test statistic obtained by a subtraction method is employed to establish a hypothesis test with two phases. Critical values of the test are obtained to determine the selection decisions. Sample sizes required for various designated selection powers and confidence levels are also investigated. Practitioners can use the proposed method to make reliable decisions. This paper presents a real-world case of a glass substrate process. The selection procedure uses data to reach a decision in supplier selection. We compare the results of the division method to the proposed subtraction method. The results show that the proposed subtraction method is indeed more powerful than the division method.

Box-Cox Transformation Approach for Evaluating Non-Normal Processes Capability Based on theCpkIndex

In manufacturing quality control and operations management, the process yield plays an important role. The capability index Cpk provides a lower bound on the process yield under the assumption that the process characteristic is normally distributed. When the normality assumption is violated, we can transform the non-normal data into normal data by using an appropriate transformation approach. In this paper, we consider the Box-Cox transformation and compare two estimation methods including the maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) and the method of percentiles (MOP). The performance comparison is based on the coverage rate, the precision, and the accuracy of the process non-conformity percentage evaluation. For various sample sizes and various distributions, several figures are presented to compare these two methods.

Multi-threshold policy for a multi-server queue with synchronous single vacation

This paper considers an infinite buffer M / M / c queueing system in which servers follow a multi-threshold vacation policy. With such a policy, at a service completion instant, if the number of customers in the system is less than a prefixed threshold value, part of servers together take a single vacation (or leave for a random amount of time doing other secondary job). At the vacation completion instant, they return to the system for serving the customers. Some practical production and inventory systems or call centers could be modeled as this Markovian queue with a multi-threshold vacation policy. Using the Markovian process model, we obtain the exact closed-form expression of rate matrix and the stationary distribution of the number of customers in the system. A cost model is developed to search the joint optimal values of the thresholds of vacation policy and service rate of each server, which minimizes the long-term average cost. Some numerical results are presented to illustrate the optimization procedures.