Optimizing queues with deadlines under infrequent monitoring

In this paper, we aim to improve the percentage of packets meeting their deadline in discrete-time M/M/1 queues with infrequent monitoring. More specifically, we look into policies that only monitor the system (and subsequently take actions) after a packet arrival. We model the system as an MDP and provide the optimal policy for some special cases. Furthermore, we introduce a heuristic algorithm called "AB-n" for general deadlines. Finally, we provide numerical results demonstrating the desirable performance of "AB-n" policies.