Title: Evolution of reliability engineering discipline over the last six decades: a comprehensive review

Authors: Sunil S. Bhamare, Om Prakash Yadav, Ajay Rathore

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur 302017, India. ' Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58105, USA. ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur 302017, India

Abstract: The field of reliability engineering has undergone evolutionary progress and breakthroughs during the last six decades. This paper provides a historical perspective of significant developments and systematically enumerates contributions in the field of reliability engineering since the beginning. This paper further delves into the relevance and development of various statistical methods for data and reliability analysis, diagram-based models, analytical methods, physics-of-failure and fuzzy logic-based reliability tools and techniques that have shaped the emergence of the reliability engineering discipline. Finally, this paper highlights limitations with existing reliability analysis methods and identifies a few potential opportunities for further research.

Keywords: reliability engineering; reliability analysis; product development; physics-of-failure; fuzzy logic.

DOI: 10.1504/IJRS.2007.016256

International Journal of Reliability and Safety, 2007 Vol.1 No.4, pp.377 - 410

Published online: 13 Dec 2007 *

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