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by Fred Schenkelberg 5 Comments

Field Data Analysis First Look

What Can Field Failure Data Reveal?

Field data analysis starts with the collection of data.

In a previous article, we used a Nevada chart to gather the counts per month of field failure data. The chart also provides the necessary data to account for how many units have not failed as of yet.

The Nevada chart on its own is just a table of numbers and does not reveal patterns of the changing nature of failure rates over time. Are we experiencing early life failures or wear out related failures?

We need to conduct some data analysis to learn what message the data contains. [Read more…]

by Fred Schenkelberg 1 Comment

Electronics Failure Analysis Done the Right Way

“Failures are gold”

Early in my career the engineering manager relished discovering equipment failure.

It didn’t matter if it was human, electronic, mechanical or software in nature, the glint in his eye soon gave way to a flood of possibilities. He enjoyed the process of investigating the fundamental reasons a failure occurred. [Read more…]

by Kirk Gray Leave a Comment

Why the Drain in the Bathtub Curve Matters

Most reliability engineers are familiar with the life cycle bathtub curve, the shape of the hazard rate or risks of failure of a electronic product over time. A typical electronic’s life cycle bathtub curve is shown in figure 1. [Read more…]