Kendall's notation
Kendall's notation is a compact symbolic system used in queueing theory to classify and describe the essential characteristics of queueing models, such as arrival processes, service mechanisms, and system capacities. Introduced by British mathematician David G. Kendall in his 1953 paper on stochastic processes in queues, the notation provides a standardized shorthand that facilitates analysis and comparison of diverse queueing systems across operations research and applied mathematics.[1] In its basic form, Kendall's notation is expressed as A/B/c, where A represents the probability distribution of interarrival times (e.g., M for Markovian or Poisson arrivals with exponential interarrivals, D for deterministic constant intervals, or G for general distributions), B denotes the service time distribution (similarly, M for exponential, D for deterministic, or G for general), and c indicates the number of parallel servers (an integer, often 1 for single-server models).[2] This trio captures the core stochastic behavior of a queue, enabling precise modeling of phenomena like waiting lines in telecommunications, manufacturing, and service industries.[3] The notation has been extended over time to A/B/c/K/N/D for more complex systems, where K specifies the system's capacity (maximum queue length plus servers, defaulting to infinity if omitted), N denotes the finite population size from which arrivals draw (defaulting to infinity), and D describes the queue discipline (e.g., FCFS for first-come, first-served, defaulting to FCFS if unspecified).[4] These extensions, building on Kendall's foundational work, accommodate variations like bounded queues or limited caller populations, enhancing applicability to real-world scenarios such as emergency departments or computer networks. Common examples include the M/M/1 queue for a single-server system with Poisson arrivals and exponential service times, and M/M/c for multi-server variants, both of which assume infinite capacity and population.[5]Introduction
Definition and Purpose
Queueing theory is a branch of operations research and applied probability that models systems where customers or jobs arrive randomly, may need to wait due to limited service capacity, and then receive service before departing. These systems are prevalent in everyday scenarios, such as bank teller lines or computer networks, where the goal is to analyze waiting times, queue lengths, and resource utilization to optimize performance.[6] Kendall's notation provides a standardized symbolic framework for describing queueing systems, typically represented as A/B/c/K/N/D, where each component denotes a particular characteristic of the model. Introduced by mathematician David G. Kendall in 1953, this notation captures essential elements like the nature of arrivals, service mechanisms, and system constraints in a compact form.[1][7] The primary purpose of Kendall's notation is to enable precise and concise specification of stochastic processes in queueing models, allowing researchers and practitioners to communicate complex system behaviors without extensive prose. This standardization simplifies the comparison of different queue configurations, supports mathematical analysis for deriving performance metrics like average wait times, and aids in simulation studies for system design.[7][3] Since its establishment in 1953, Kendall's notation has become a foundational tool in operations research, computer science, and telecommunications, where it facilitates modeling of diverse applications from manufacturing lines to network traffic management. Its widespread adoption promotes consistency in literature and practice, enhancing collaboration across disciplines.[7]Historical Development
Kendall's notation for describing queueing systems was first proposed by British mathematician David G. Kendall in his seminal 1953 paper, where he introduced the compact form A/B/c to classify models based on arrival process (A), service time distribution (B), and number of servers (c).[1] This notation emerged as a standardized shorthand amid growing interest in stochastic processes for analyzing waiting lines, providing a clear way to denote system characteristics without lengthy descriptions.[1] The development of Kendall's notation occurred during the post-World War II surge in operations research and stochastic modeling, a period marked by expanded applications of probability theory to real-world problems like telecommunications and logistics.[5] It built directly on the foundational work of Danish engineer Agner Krarup Erlang, whose early 20th-century models for telephone traffic engineering laid the groundwork for queueing analysis by introducing concepts like the Erlang distribution for call arrivals and holding times.[5] Kendall's contribution advanced this legacy by formalizing a general framework for more complex, non-deterministic systems. Over the following decade, the notation evolved from its initial A/B/c structure to incorporate additional parameters for system capacity (K), population size (N), and queue discipline (D), forming the extended A/B/c/K/N/D form by the mid-1960s.[8] This expansion, often referred to as the Kendall-Lee notation, was facilitated by works like Alec M. Lee's 1966 text on applied queueing theory, which integrated these elements to handle finite resources and varied service rules.[8] Kendall himself further influenced this progression through his research on birth-death processes, which modeled queue length changes as continuous-time Markov chains and became central to analyzing multi-server systems.[1] By the 1970s, Kendall's notation had become the de facto standard in queueing literature, as evidenced by its prominent use in Leonard Kleinrock's influential 1975 textbook Queueing Systems Volume I: Theory, which refined and popularized the framework for computer and communication networks. As of 2025, the notation remains a cornerstone of queueing theory, with only minor extensions in areas like simulation software for handling hybrid or adaptive disciplines, ensuring its enduring utility without fundamental changes.[9]Core Parameters
Arrival Process (A)
In Kendall's notation, the first parameter, A, describes the stochastic process governing customer arrivals, typically specifying the distribution of inter-arrival times between consecutive customers entering the queueing system.[1] Common symbols for A include M for Markovian (or memoryless) arrivals, which model a Poisson process with exponentially distributed inter-arrival times at rate λ; D for deterministic arrivals at fixed intervals; G for a general arbitrary distribution; Ek for the Erlang-k distribution, representing the sum of k independent exponential inter-arrival times; and PH for phase-type distributions, which approximate more complex distributions through a finite number of exponential phases.[10][11] For the M case, the number of arrivals in a time interval t follows a Poisson distribution, with probability mass function P(N(t) = n) = \frac{(\lambda t)^n e^{-\lambda t}}{n!}, \quad n = 0, 1, 2, \dots where λ is the mean arrival rate.[10] The arrival process is generally assumed to consist of independent and identically distributed inter-arrival times, forming a stationary renewal process, with an infinite population of potential customers by default unless the population size N is explicitly finite in the notation.[10] This parameter directly influences the system's traffic intensity, defined as ρ = λ / (c μ), where c is the number of servers and μ is the service rate per server, providing a key measure of utilization and stability when combined with the service time distribution.[10]Service Time Distribution (S)
In Kendall's notation, the second parameter, denoted as S, specifies the probability distribution governing the time required to serve each customer at a server. This distribution characterizes the stochastic nature of service completion times in the queueing system.[12] Service times are typically assumed to be independent of arrival times and identically distributed across all customers and servers, unless the model specifies otherwise. Common notations for S include M for the exponential (Markovian) distribution with mean service rate \mu, where the probability density function is given byf(t) = \mu e^{-\mu t}, \quad t \geq 0;
D for deterministic service times that are constant and non-random; G for a general arbitrary distribution without further specification; H for the hyperexponential distribution, which models highly variable service times as a mixture of exponentials; and E_k for the Erlang-k distribution, a gamma distribution with shape parameter k representing k phased exponential services.[13][2] The choice of S significantly influences key performance measures, such as the server utilization \rho = \lambda / (c \mu) in systems with exponential service (where \lambda is the arrival rate and c is the number of servers), and it impacts waiting times—for instance, in single-server queues with general service, via the Pollaczek-Khinchine formula relating mean queue length to the service time variance.[13][10]