Sequential Procedure For Fixed Accuracy Estimation of the Population Size in Recapture Sampling

A sequential procedure is constructed to provide a fixed-accuracy estimator for the number of faults in a system. This paper focuses on the case when faults are homogeneous. However, the method can be adapted to other models by choosing a more robust estimator. The accuracy of the estimator depends on the failure intensity, the length of testing period and the total number of faults in the system. Simulations illustrate the performance of the proposed procedure. The method is applied to an information system failure dataset. Copyright 2003 Australian Statistical Publishing Association Inc..