On Bayesian estimation of step stress accelerated life testing for exponentiated Lomax distribution based on censored samples

Abstract

In reliability analysis and life-testing experiments, the researcher is often interested in the effects of changing stress factors such as “temperature”, “voltage” and “load” on the lifetimes of the units. Step-stress (SS) test, which is a special class from the well-known accelerated life-tests, allows the experimenter to increase the stress levels at some constant times to obtain information on the unknown parameters of the life models more speedily than under usual operating conditions. In this paper, a simple SS model from the exponentiated Lomax (ExpLx) distribution when there is time limitation on the duration of the experiment is considered. Bayesian estimates of the parameters assuming a cumulative exposure model with lifetimes being ExpLx distribution are resultant using Markov chain Monte Carlo (M.C.M.C) procedures. Also, the credible intervals and predicted values of the scale parameter, reliability and hazard are derived. Finally, the numerical study and real data are presented to illustrate the proposed study