Analysis of the Failure Behaviour of Components, Assemblies, Systems

This chapter outlines procedures for performing a reliability analysis based on damage data. The damage data refers to components, assemblies or systems and can be used in the context of a prototype test (development phase), during the end-of-line test (production) or on the basis of a product fleet in field use. Sect. 12.1 presents the general approach. Sect. 12.2 shows the exemplary application of data analysis on the basis of a given damage data set. The outlined procedure is based on approximation methods for parameter estimation and their confidence intervals, respectively, in order to ensure simple comprehensibility. In addition, hints are given as to which further—for the most part iterative—estimation methods can be used for data analysis. The focus of Sect. 12.3 is on different methods for candidate prediction in prototype testing and in the field (usage phase). Candidate prediction by correction methods can be understood as an prognosis—explicitly in the case of damage cases in the field—since finally the population (product fleet) is inferred from a sample (known damage cases). The presentation of the RAPP procedure in Sect. 12.4 for the risk analysis of serial damages in the field forms the finish. The procedure includes candidate prognosis, fleet proportions at risk as well as the consideration of a potential saturation behaviour with respect to the failure behaviour.