SICAM RTUs MTBF ENG
SICAM RTUs MTBF ENG
SICAM RTUs MTBF ENG
SICAM RTUs
General Information on the Reliability of
Electronic Boards 1
SICAM A8000 Series
Reliability Calculation according MIL 217E 2
MTBF Values and Power Consumption 3
Definition of Terms A
MTBF Values and
Power Consumption of
the Modules
DC0-082-2.07
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for conformity with the hardware and software described, we cannot The reproduction, transmission or use of this document or its
guarantee complete conformity since errors cannot be excluded. contents is not permitted without express written authority.
The information provided in this manual is checked at regular Offenders will be liable for damages. All rights, including rights
intervals and any corrections that might become necessary are created by patent grant or registration of a utility model or design,
included in the next releases. Any suggestions for improvement are are reserved.
welcome.
Subject to change without prior notice.
Document Label:
SICRTUs-HBMTBF-ENG_V2.07
Release date:
2017-08-22
· SICAM RTUs
· SICAM A8000 Series
This document provides the theoretical foundations for calculating MTBF of electronic boards.
Target Group
The document you are reading right now is addressed to users, who are in charge of the
following engineering tasks:
· Conceptual activities, as for example design and configuration
A Definition of Terms...................................................................................................... 17
The reliability of an electronic device is of great importance to the user. As it is very commonly
argued with slogans and with non-comparable numbers, we attempt in this document to give
also the background information necessary for comprehension. (See also the explanations of
terms, as well as information on literature, in the appendix).
· the failure rates of the boards - Mean Time Between Failure - (MTBF)
· the design of the automation system (where redundancy is built in)
This document defines the failure rates of the boards. A declaration about an entire system is,
of course, only possible on a project-specific basis, and is very costly. However, the board
failure rate is a good basis for an objective comparison between individual manufacturers.
The failure rates of a board are calculated from the failure rates of the components. Serving
as a basis for this is
Not included in the failure rates for the MTBF are early failures (extensively eliminated by
burn-in and in-house tests) and systematic errors (batch errors), as they would distort the
figures.
· For reasons of generalisation, the worst data are taken for different types which are
combined under one term.
· Failures and drifting out of the specified range are considered jointly.
It is additionally to be noted that the effects of failure are not taken into account. According to
a study [3], 50% - 90% of all component errors (in accordance with MIL217E, deviations from
specific ranges are also evaluated as component errors) do not lead to an influencing of the
output signal.
As, for the calculation, no LED components but all support capacitors and other components
which do not influence the function in a non-elementary way were taken into account, the
MTBF's given in the tables can be multiplied by a factor of 2 to 10.
In order to make the calculation comprehensible and easily comparable with information given
by other manufacturers, we have decided to give all the parameters for the determination of
the MTBF values exactly.
For the determination of the reliability of a board, the MTBF values of the components are
needed, which were determined from the tables in Part 2 of the MIL217E (parts-count
method).
The formula for the calculation of the component failure rate lP is:
l PP = l G * P Q
The l G value (generic failure rate) was determined for the GB class - dependent on
Environment Factor P E - from the MIL tables.
Our calculations are based on class GB (ground, benign). This class defines that the
components are accommodated in stationary, installed apparatus, the surrounding areas
are heated, drops below freezing point do not occur, and the apparatus is maintained by
specialist personnel. These conditions apply, for example, to measuring, controlling,
regulating and computing apparatus in the electronics areas of industrial plants [3].
─ Vibration: 0 Hz/0g
─ Humidity: 20%...70%
─ Noise: 40…70 dB
─ Mechanical shock 0 ms/0g
─ Dust: Low
─ Temperature: 25° C
· The P Q factor:
Takes into account the influence of the production quality and the preparatory treatment.
Used for calculation here were values meeting the quality classes for typical market
components of good quality, i.e. values of the class B2 (not fully compliant) of MIL-STD-
883 were used.
Note
The MTBF values of the modules from the SICAM A8000 Series are no longer maintained in this
document. As of 2018, these tables are listed in the following manuals:
· Probability figures:
In contrast to other measurements, probabilities do not give absolute amounts but
distribution curves.
This means that, assuming an exponential distribution for the working life, after 8000 h of
operation 63% of the employed devices fail. The remainder can, in part, considerably
exceed the average working life [3].
· Reliability (R):
The reliability is a measure that states that an automation system carries out its intended
function, under defined conditions, over a determined period of time. It is a probability
figure which is dependent on error rates and duration of operation. It is given as Mean
Time Between Failure (MTBF) in hours (years), and is calculated from the board failure
rates [1].
· Availability (A):
The availability of an automation system is the capability to execute the required function
at a desired point in time [1].
uptime
A = 100 %
uptime + downtime
or stated more simply
MTBF
A= 100%
MTBF + MTTR
whereby MTTR represents that downtime in which the system is switched off for
maintenance or repair reasons, and MTBF is the time to the first failure.