Electronic Reliability Estimation: How Reliable Are the Results?

Abstract

The development of Safety Critical Systems requires the compliance to several safety standards and regulations. Since, most of the times, human life is at stake, it is crucial to fully understand the behaviour of the system being developed in order to predict and avoid any potential deadly failures. The system shall be therefore resilient and reliable.

The understanding of such systems is not an easy task. Safety Critical Systems are, nowadays, large-scale and complex systems that require a methodological approach in order to fully comprehend all its functionalities and interactions. Several reliability analyses are performed in the development of such systems. The reliability analysis of all electronic equipment is one of them. The ability to predict the failure profile of electronic components is essential to design the system and plan maintenance activities.

This paper presents the preliminary reliability estimation activities of an electronic system designed for a large-scale and complex safety critical system. The standards and methodologies followed are described as well as the tools used to support the activities. Finally, the estimation results and a list of considerations regarding the activities performed are presented.