ABSTRACT
The objective of the concept phase is to take an idea and expand on it to develop both a business model and a high-level device architecture. During this phase, business and technical risks are evaluated to determine if a viable product exists. Reliability activity begins during this phase to assist in the business model and device architecture. Reliability assists in evaluating business and technical risks. Reliability activities include:
• Establishing preliminary system reliability requirements • Developing a device prole at the system level • Reviewing eld failure information on preceding and comparable company
products • Reviewing eld failure information on competitor’s products • Participating in design and phase reviews
At the completion of the concept phase, certain documented deliverables should be completed before moving on to the next phase of the development process. The management reviews the deliverables and decides whether the project has done sufcient work to merit moving on to the next phase. The deliverables include:
• Preliminary system reliability requirements • Device prole at the system level • Review of eld failure information • Participation in design and phase reviews • Customer needs • Marketing requirements • Preliminary risk analysis of the design • Minutes of design reviews • Results of the phase review
This document contains the reliability requirements for the new design, including MTBF goal, warranty goal, and availability goals based on the technology used, the complexity of the design, and marketing requirements, service records on previous devices, complaint data on previous devices, failure data on competitive products, and recall information on similar products, which are analyzed for reliability information.
