Reliability design and analysis method under digital development environment

Most modern products need be designed to operate without failure for years, decades, or longer. The traditional approach to reliability design and analysis is based on commercial reliability models or the knowledge from the company's designer. Because the traditional reliability design and analysis method is not relevant to product design parameters, it has inherent limitations. So it does not solve the problem about higher reliable product. In order to achieve higher reliable product, a new reliability design and analysis method need be investigated during the product development lifecycle. At the same time, in today's context of global competition, manufacturers are facing greater challenges than ever before. Customers demand more complex and reliable products to be developed with shorter lead times and more cost effectiveness; Environmental and regulatory constraints as well as market expectations demand more efficient product behavior. In order to provide the customer with equipment that works when needed and continues operating for a defined period of time, manufacturers need to better understand materials and process conditions, and their effects on product reliability. Finding new reliability design and analysis method to address the challenges that we face during the product development lifecycle is needed. In this paper, first, using the geometric data, material data and structure data provided by the geometric digital prototype of the product, we analyses the component reliability of the product by structure simulation based on physics of failure theory. Then taking the results of structure simulation as inputs to the functional digital prototype and digital performance prototype, we analyze the product reliability by functional simulation. It is shown that this new reliability design and analysis method can enhance the product reliability by addressing the root cause mechanisms and driving forces responsible for product failures.