Qualification by Similarity and Qualification by Analysis: An Argument for a Standard Process

摘要

Formal environmental testing is a critical component of many product developments. A typical qualification program will rigorously subject the product to extreme cases of temperature, vibration, shock, humidity, and other such conditions. Although testing is the best approach for qualifying a product (rather, next best after field deployment), there often arises the desire to verify environmental requirements through some alternative, less-expensive means. Qualification by Similarity (QBS) is used to verify requirements when a product is similar to a prior tested item. Qualification by Analysis (QBA) is employed when a requirement is verified through a qualitative or quantitative analysis. Although pitfalls exist for both approaches, they can be powerful tools for reducing product cost and time-to-deployment. This presentation will discuss some of the challenges associated with QBS and QBA and will argue for the development of an IEST Recommended Practice to standardize the process.