Intermittent Failure Dynamics Characterization

Diagnosis of intermittent failures is relevant for productive processes which sustain a high level of maintenance caused by failures. Systems including electrical contacts suffer a considerable amount of intermittent failures which are usually not diagnosed. A characterization of the failure dynamics may save unnecessary repairs, and enable a better planning component substitution. This paper presents a new concept in failure diagnosis, the modeling of intermittent failure dynamics. It develops two methodologies for modeling intermittent failure dynamics, and generating information for maintenance scheduling.