Reliability And Maintenance Of Complex Systems

Complex high-technology devices are in growing use in industry, service sectors, and everyday life. Their reliability and maintenance is of utmost importance in view of their cost and critical functions. This book focuses on this theme and is intended to serve as a graduate-level textbook and reference book for scientists and academics in the field. The chapters are grouped into five complementary parts that cover the most important aspects of reliability and maintenance: stochastic models of reliability and maintenance, decision models involving optimal replacement and repair, stochastic methods in software engineering, computational methods and simulation, and maintenance management systems. This wide range of topics provides the reader with a complete picture in a self-contained volume.

This utterly comprehensive work is thought to be the first to integrate the literature on the physics of the failure of complex systems such as hospitals, banks and transport networks. It has chapters on particular aspects of maintenance written by internationally-renowned researchers and practitioners. This book will interest maintenance engineers and managers in industry as well as researchers and graduate students in maintenance, industrial engineering and applied mathematics.

Simulation Methods for Reliability and Availability of Complex Systems discusses the use of computer simulation-based techniques and algorithms to determine reliability and availability (R and A) levels in complex systems. The book: shares theoretical or applied models and decision support systems that make use of simulation to estimate and to improve system R and A levels, forecasts emerging technologies and trends in the use of computer simulation for R and A and proposes hybrid approaches to the development of efficient methodologies designed to solve R and A-related problems in real-life systems. Dealing with practical issues, Simulation Methods for Reliability and Availability of Complex Systems is designed to support managers and system engineers in the improvement of R and A, as well as providing a thorough exploration of the techniques and algorithms available for researchers, and for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students.

Reliability and Safety of Complex Technical Systems and Processes offers a comprehensive approach to the analysis, identification, evaluation, prediction and optimization of complex technical systems operation, reliability and safety. Its main emphasis is on multistate systems with ageing components, changes to their structure, and their components reliability and safety parameters during the operation processes. Reliability and Safety of Complex Technical Systems and Processes presents integrated models for the reliability, availability and safety of complex non-repairable and repairable multistate technical systems, with reference to their operation processes and their practical applications to real industrial systems. The authors consider variables in different operation states, reliability and safety structures, and the reliability and safety parameters of components, as well as suggesting a cost analysis for complex technical systems. Researchers and industry practitioners will find information on a wide range of complex technical systems in Reliability and Safety of Complex Technical Systems and Processes. It may prove an easy-to-use guide to reliability and safety evaluations of real complex technical systems, both during their operation and at the design stages.

Reliability and Maintenance: Networks and Systems gives an up-to-date presentation of system and network reliability analysis as well as maintenance planning with a focus on applicable models. Balancing theory and practice, it presents state-of-the-art research in key areas of reliability and maintenance theory and includes numerous examples and exercises. Every chapter starts with theoretical foundations and basic models and leads to more sophisticated models and ongoing research. The first part of the book introduces structural reliability theory for binary coherent systems. Within the framework of these systems, the second part covers network reliability analysis. The third part presents simply structured maintenance policies that may help with the cost-optimal scheduling of preventive maintenance. Each part can be read independently of one another. Suitable for researchers, practitioners, and graduate students in engineering, operations research, computer science, and applied mathematics, this book offers a thorough guide to the mathematical modeling of reliability and maintenance. It supplies the necessary theoretical and practical details for readers to perform reliability analyses and apply maintenance policies in their organizations.

Typical contemporary complex system is a multifaceted amalgamation of technical, information, organization, software and human (users, administrators and management) resources. Complexity of such a system comes not only from its involved technical and organizational structure but mainly from complexity of information processes that must be implemented in the operational environment (data processing, monitoring, management, etc.). In such case traditional methods of reliability analysis focused mainly on technical level are usually insufficient in performance evaluation and more innovative methods of dependability analysis must be applied which are based on multidisciplinary approach to theory, technology and maintenance of systems operating in real (and very often unfriendly) environments. This monograph presents selected new developments in such areas of dependability research as system modelling, tools and methodologies for system analysis, data security, secure system design and specific dependability aspects in specialized technical applications. Many practical cases illustrate the universal rule that complexity and multiplicity of system processes, their concurrency and their reliance on embedded intelligence (human and artificial) significantly impedes construction of strict mathematical models and calls for application of intelligent and soft computing methods.

“The Maintenance Management Framework” describes and reviews the concept, process and framework of modern maintenance management of complex systems; concentrating specifically on modern modelling tools (deterministic and empirical) for maintenance planning and scheduling. It will be bought by engineers and professionals involved in maintenance management, maintenance engineering, operations management, quality, etc. as well as graduate students and researchers in this field.

Availability of a system is a crucial factor for planning and optimization. The concept is more challenging for modern systems such as robots and autonomous systems consisting of a complex configuration of components. As complex systems have become global and essential in today’s society, their reliable design and the determination of their availability have turned into a very important task for managers and engineers. Reliability Models of Complex Systems for Robots and Automation offers different models and approaches for reliability evaluation and optimization of a complex autonomous system. Comprehensive fault tree analysis on the critical components of industrial robots and its integration with the reliability block diagram approach is designed in order to investigate the robot system reliability. The cost and hazard decision tree are integrated for the first time in an approach to evaluate the reliability of a complex system. Considers a complex production system composing of several autonomous robots Develops binary state reliability evaluation model for a complex system Introduces new concepts of hazard decision tree Proposes fault tree and reliability block diagram for complex robotic systems Develops stochastic process based reliability evaluation and optimization models Today’s competitive world with increasing customer demands for highly reliable products makes reliability engineering a more challenging task. Reliability analysis is one of the main tools to ensure agreed delivery deadlines which in turn maintains certainty in real tangible factors such as customer goodwill and company reputation.