Exact reliability formula and bounds for general k-out-of-n systems

Abstract The paper deals with reliability of general k -out-of- n systems whose component failures need not be independent and identically distributed. The result is an exact closed form reliability formula which is based on Feller's result. The formula is efficient and easy to use for manual and computer computations. The approximations for the system reliability are given and are useful when dealing with large systems. Two examples illustrate the use of the results.