Title: Reliability optimisation using harmony search algorithm under performance and budget constraints

Authors: Abdelkader Zeblah, Eric Chatelet, Farouk Yalaoui, Mohamed El Samrout, Yamani Massim

Addresses: Institut Charles Delaunay (CNRS FRE 2848), LM2S, University of Technology of Troyes, Troyes, 12 rue Marie Curie, Troyes Cedex, France. ' Institut Charles Delaunay (CNRS FRE 2848), LM2S, University of Technology of Troyes, Troyes, 12 rue Marie Curie, Troyes Cedex, France. ' Institut Charles Delaunay (CNRS FRE 2848), LOSI, University of Technology of Troyes, Troyes, 12 rue Marie Curie, Troyes Cedex, France. ' Institut Charles Delaunay (CNRS FRE 2848), LM2S, University of Technology of Troyes, Troyes, 12 rue Marie Curie, Troyes Cedex, France. ' University of Sidi Bel Abbes, BP 89 Gumbeta, 22000 Sidi Bel Abbes, Algeria

Abstract: The redundancy optimisation problem is a well-known NP hard problem that involves the selection of components (elements) and redundancy levels to maximise system reliability, given different system-level constraints such as cost and performance. This paper presents an efficient algorithm based on the Harmony Search Algorithm (HSA) to solve this optimisation problem. The HSA is a new nature-inspired algorithm which mimics the improvisation process of music players. The problem considered in testing our algorithm is limited to the binary series-parallel system, where the problem consists of a selection of elements and redundancy levels. The proposed approach has the advantage to allow power components with different parameters to be allocated in power systems. To allow fast reliability estimation, a Universal Moment Generating Function (UMGF) method is applied. A computer program has been developed to implement the UMGF and the HSA. An illustrative example is presented.

Keywords: reliability optimisation; HSA; harmony search algorithm; harmony search optimisation; UMGF; universal moment generating function; performance constraints; budget constraints; power systems.

DOI: 10.1504/IJRS.2010.032450

International Journal of Reliability and Safety, 2010 Vol.4 No.2/3, pp.299 - 317

Published online: 02 Apr 2010 *

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