Structured Replacement Policies for Components with Complex Degradation Processes and Dedicated Sensors

Structured Replacement Policies for Components with Complex Degradation Processes and Dedicated Sensors

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Article ID: iaor20117237
Volume: 59
Issue: 3
Start Page Number: 684
End Page Number: 695
Publication Date: May 2011
Journal: Operations Research
Authors: , ,
Keywords: engineering, programming: markov decision
Abstract:

Failure of many engineering systems usually results from a gradual and irreversible accumulation of damage, a degradation process. Most degradation processes can be monitored using sensor technology. The resulting degradation signals are usually correlated with the degradation process. A system is considered to have failed once its degradation signal reaches a prespecified failure threshold. This paper considers a replacement problem for components whose degradation process can be monitored using dedicated sensors. First, we present a stochastic degradation modeling framework that characterizes, in real time, the path of a component's degradation signal. These signals are used to predict the evolution of the component's degradation state. Next, we formulate a single‐unit replacement problem as a Markov decision process and utilize the real‐time signal observations to determine a replacement policy. We focus on exponentially increasing degradation signals and show that the optimal replacement policy for this class of problems is a monotonically nondecreasing control limit policy. Finally, the model is used to determine an optimal replacement policy by utilizing vibration‐based degradation signals from a rotating machinery application.

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