Redundancy allocation problem of a system with increasing failure rates of components based on Weibull distribution: A simulation-based optimization approach

Besides inherent failures under normal conditions studied by classical reliability engineering, systems may also be subject to abnormal external failures, whose probabilities are hard, if not impossible, to predict, such as failures caused by natural disasters (e.g. earthquakes, floods, and tornados) and malicious attacks. Thus, abnormal external failures need to be considered when designing a system, as in reliability redundancy allocation problem. To deal with the uncertainty of abnormal external failures and based on robust optimization, this research proposes a multi-objective optimization approach that can simultaneously maximize system reliability under both normal and the worst cases of abnormal external failures for redundancy allocation problem. Since the amount of abnormal external failures is usually unknown, the worst case for each possible amount of abnormal external failures needs to be identified first. For this purpose, a new importance measure that can quantify the importance of a subset of system components with arbitrary cardinality is proposed. We also revise a widely used multi-objective evolutionary algorithm, multi-objective probabilistic solution discovery algorithm, to deal with the complexity of redundancy allocation problem. The merits of the revised algorithm are demonstrated by extensive experiments.

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A simulation-based optimization approach for free distributed repairable multi-state availability-redundancy allocation problems

Reliability Engineering & System Safety ◽

10.1016/j.ress.2016.09.006 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 157 ◽

pp. 177-191 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Ahmad Attar ◽

Sadigh Raissi ◽

Kaveh Khalili-Damghani

Keyword(s):

Optimization Approach ◽

Redundancy Allocation ◽

Simulation Based ◽

Allocation Problems ◽

Simulation Based Optimization

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A Simulation-Based Optimization Approach for Integrated Port Resource Allocation Problem

PROMET - Traffic&Transportation ◽

10.7307/ptt.v26i3.1337 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 26 (3) ◽

pp. 243-255 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Gholamreza Ilati ◽

Abdorreza Sheikholeslami ◽

Erfan Hassannayebi

Keyword(s):

Objective Function Value ◽

Operating Cost ◽

Allocation Problem ◽

Container Terminals ◽

Optimization Approach ◽

Berth Allocation ◽

Arrival Times ◽

Simulation Based ◽

Simulation Based Optimization ◽

Tidal Variations

Todays, due to the rapid increase in shipping volumes, the container terminals are faced with the challenge to cope with these increasing demands. To handle this challenge, it is crucial to use flexible and efficient optimization approach in order to decrease operating cost. In this paper, a simulation-based optimization approach is proposed to construct a near-optimal berth allocation plan integrated with a plan for tug assignment and for resolution of the quay crane re-allocation problem. The research challenges involve dealing with the uncertainty in arrival times of vessels as well as tidal variations. The effectiveness of the proposed evolutionary algorithm is tested on RAJAEE Port as a real case. According to the simulation result, it can be concluded that the objective function value is affected significantly by the arrival disruptions. The result also demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed simulation-based optimization approach.

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