Optimum life test plan for Type-I hybrid censored Weibull distributed products sold under general rebate warranty

Abstract

The selection of an appropriate life test plan is extremely important for any product as it not just improves the quality of the product but also reduces testing costs. In this approach, however, the choice of suitable costs play an important role. In this paper, a decision model is developed to determine the optimal life testing plan (LTP) by minimising the relevant costs involved for non-repairable products sold under the general rebate warranty. LTP are developed in the presence of Type-I hybrid censoring for products having Weibull distributed lifetimes. A constrained optimisation approach is followed considering both producer's and consumer's risk and suitable analysis techniques are employed in obtaining the optimal solution. Monte Carlo simulation is conducted for numerical illustration. In order to study the sensitivity of the optimal solution due to mis-specification of parameter values and cost components, a well-designed sensitivity analysis is incorporated using a real-life Type-I hybrid censored data set.