Replacement and minimal repair policies for a cumulative damage model with maintenance (Q597369)

This paper investigates a system subject to shocks which occur according to a nonhomogeneous Poisson process. Each shock generates an amount \(x\) of damage which follows a specific probability distribution. If the cumulative damage does not exceed the level \(K\) a maintenance action at cost \(c_1+c_0(x)\) is performed after each shock. If the level \(K\) is reached, a minimal repair of the system is performed at cost \(c_2+c_0(K)\). The system is replaced at periodic time \(T\) or after the \(N\)th shock followed by a minimal repair, whichever occurs first. The mean cost per time unit in the long is derived and a few properties of the optimal policy \((T^*,N^*)\) are obtained. For illustration, the policy is applied to control a computer backup system.