Failure data and system reliability analysis

MATSUOKA Takeshi

Mechanical Systems Engineering, Department of Engineering, Utsunomiya University, 7-1-2 Yoto, Utsunomiya City, 321-8585 Japan (mats@cc.utsunomiya-u.ac.jp)

Abstract: Discussions are given for the meanings of risk and safety assessment. Handling of data is important in the quest to perform probabilistic safety assessments (PSAs). Distribution functions of failure data and related statistical quantities are explained in details. Some topics regarding reliability analysis are also introduced in this lecture note. They include maintenance activity, matrix expressions of maintained systems, Boolean expression of a system reliability and analysis method for loop structures. Finally, dependent failure and common cause failure are discussed, paying much attention to the models of common cause failure (CCF).
Keyword: risk; safety assessment; failure data; probability distribution function; common cause failure