A Statistical Process Approach to Equipment Readiness Enhancement

The underlying theme of the proposed research is that artificial intelligence and corollary methods can aid in the collection of more complete statistical data and models that can be applied using statistical process control techniques to improve equipment readiness. This is to be accomplished through the identification of variations within the process that can aid in the adjustment of test limits and other parameters to more closely reflect actual operational system performance over time. We deem this approach to be more effective in the large-scale testing of electronic equpment than adhering to original test requirements based upon design criteria that may or may not reflect actual system performance.The approach cited in this proposal promotes the design of an integrated system for the detection of trends in equipment performance based upon test parameter data. This is accomplished based upon the fusion of two independent system modules representing supplementary investigative techniques.