A new statistical inference method for multi-stress accelerated life testing based on random variable transformation

The limited sample size in multi-stress accelerated life testing makes the conventional large-sample-based inference methods inefficient. To overcome this problem, this paper develops a new statistical inference method based on random variable transformation for multi-stress accelerated life testing with Weibull distribution and progressive Type-II censoring. Firstly, a chi(2) statistic is constructed using the random variable transformation method, and the exact point estimates of model parameters are derived based on the chi(2) statistic. Subsequently, based on the chi(2) statistic, the exact confidence interval of shape parameter is provided, while the generalized confidence intervals of the accelerated model parameters are calculated by constructing the new multivariate generalized pivotal quantities. Furthermore, the generalized confidence intervals of some commonly used reliability indexes are provided for better reliability management and decision making. Finally, a simulation study and a real case study are conducted to illustrate the implementation and effectiveness of the proposed method. (C) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.