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Mitigating long queues and waiting times with service resetting
Ofek Lauber Bonomo1,2,3, Arnab Pal1,2,4,5, Shlomi Reuveni1,2,3
1School of Chemistry, Raymond and Beverly Sackler Faculty of Exact Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel.
PNAS Nexus
|February 6, 2023
Summary
A simple service resetting mechanism can significantly reduce queue lengths and waiting times by mitigating fluctuations in service times. This strategy is effective even when service time variance or mean diverges, preventing queue "blow-ups".
Area of Science:
- Operations Research
- Applied Probability
- Systems Science
Background:
- Queueing systems are prevalent in various natural and man-made systems.
- Stochastic fluctuations in service and arrival times significantly contribute to queue backlogs and delays.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of service resetting mechanisms on queueing systems.
- To demonstrate how service resetting can mitigate delays caused by service time fluctuations.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of the M/G/1 queue model with general service times and Markovian arrivals.
- Mathematical modeling and simulation to evaluate queue length and waiting time performance.
Main Results:
- A simple service resetting mechanism can reverse the negative effects of large fluctuations in service times.
- Service resetting dramatically reduces average queue lengths and waiting times when fluctuations are intrinsic to the server.
- The strategy effectively prevents queues from diverging even when service time variance or mean is extremely large.
Conclusions:
- Service resetting is a powerful strategy for optimizing queueing systems, particularly those with high service time variability.
- The findings are applicable to diverse queueing systems, including telecommunications, computing, and biological processes.
- This approach offers a method to manage and improve system efficiency in the face of unpredictable service times.
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