Summary Several identical components are available for use in a piece of machinery. The number of components needed to operate the machine is a function of time, probably constant, and the lifetime of each component is described by a probability distribution. After a certain number of component failures, there will not be enough components remaining to operate the machine. The problem is considered of how to use the available components to postpone this occurrence for as long as possible. The Lady's Nylon Stocking Problem of Cox is solved for certain classes of lifetime distribution.
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Glazebrook et al. (1976) studied this question.
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