Damage Propagation Assessment - A Causal Model Approach for Design and Operations

Qualtech Systems, Inc. (QSI) in collaboration with Dr. Stephen B. Johnson of Dependable Systems Technologies (DST) proposesnbsp;a novel, causal graph-based model and a systematic modeling methodology for assessing damage propagation due to one or multiple originating faults and how the propagation affects and damages other components. In fault propagation, downstream components from the root-cause fault which rely on its function, may also fail. When the root cause is mitigated, those downstream components resume their normal operating behavior. During damage propagation, the originating faultrsquo;s damage, leads to the failure effects in which physical damage to downstream components is a consequence, such that those components can no longer function nominally. Even if the originating fault recovers or is replaced or bypassed, the downstream damaged components do not recover and continue to remain in a failed state. nbsp;nbsp; This proposal aims to create a new software module for QSIrsquo;s TEAMSreg; tool suite that incorporates component damage as a failure cause and can identify the differences between components in which failure effects lsquo;pass throughrsquo; or cause only functional impairment versus those that can cause physical damage. This new capability will enable the modeler to represent damage induced component failure modes and their interaction with functional failure modes. Distinction between the two, where the functional failure mode can be caused by damage or bad inputs from impairments upstream, will allow TEAMSreg; to generate a more comprehensive and accuratenbsp;assessment of the health of the components of the system and facilitate appropriate mitigation actions.