Reliability risk evaluation during the conceptual design phase

Mamtani, G. and Green, G. (2006) Reliability risk evaluation during the conceptual design phase. Acta Polytechnica(1),

Abstract

Systematic evaluations of concept designs involve considering a range of criteria. Interaction with industry supports the view that reliability is a major criterion among those considered in product design. Although there are few methods to predict reliability in the initial phases of design, most of them are only applicable to adaptive designs. In this paper, we introduce the concept of relative reliability risk assessment for original designs, where information availability is less, to calculate reliability. We consider the function structures of the product under consideration and apply the analytic hierarchy process using verbal assessments for relative measurements. The weight assigning technique used is the entropy method. A final value of R³I (Relative Reliability Risk Index) is calculated and the idea of concept functionality graphs is presented. This method is applied on the example of seat suspensions for an off highway vehicle and the results are discussed. The findings help to sort out the concepts that are relatively strong in terms of reliability.

• Item Type: Articles
• Keywords: Reliability, concept design.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Green, Dr Graham
• Authors: Mamtani, G., and Green, G.
• Subjects: T Technology > TS Manufactures; T Technology > T Technology (General)
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Systems Power and Energy; University Centres > Glasgow Materials Research Initiative
• Journal Name: Acta Polytechnica
• ISSN: 1210-2709