Warranty Analysis Folio Setup

 

To add a warranty analysis folio to a project, choose Home > Insert > Warranty, or right-click the Warranty folder in the current project explorer and choose Add Warranty on the shortcut menu.

In the setup window, select a format to use with the folio. You must select the format that is appropriate for the type of warranty claims data you have available. If you select the Nevada chart format, click Next to go to the next step to configure your analysis; otherwise, click OK to immediately create the folio.

Converting Formats

You can convert the format of an existing warranty analysis folio to a another format. To do so, open the existing folio and choose Warranty > Tools > Convert Data, and then choose the format to convert to. (The data in the existing folio must already be analyzed in order for the command to become available.)

Converting formats creates a new folio and does not overwrite the contents of the existing folio. It is an automatic process, except when converting from the dates of failure format to the Nevada chart format, and vice versa. In that case, you will be prompted to define the time unit of each period (e.g., dates, month or years) in order to proceed with the conversion.

Below is a summary of the data conversion options:

From

Convert To

Nevada Chart Format

Dates of Failure Format

Times-to-Failure Format

Dates of Failure Format

Nevada Chart Format

Times-to-Failure Format

Times-to-Failure Format

N/A

Usage Format

Times-to-Failure Format

Control Panel Settings

This section focuses on the warranty folio control panel, which contains most of the tools you need to perform a warranty analysis. For more information about control panels in general, see Control Panels.

The warranty control panel consists of the following pages:

Control Panel Main Page

Folio Tools

The folio tools are arranged on the left side of the Main page of the control panel. Use these tools to manage data and experiment with the results of your analysis.

  Calculate converts the warranty claims data to failure/suspension times and then estimates the parameters of the chosen life distribution based on the converted data. If you select the Use Subsets option on the Main page of the control panel, the parameters of the distribution of each subset ID will be calculated. This tool is also available by choosing Warranty > Analysis > Calculate.

  Plot creates a new sheet in the folio that provides a choice of applicable plot types. In warranty analysis folios, this includes plots such as expected failures vs. period, reliability vs. time, probability plot, etc. You can plot the data in the warranty analysis folio either with or without generating a forecast. This tool is also available by choosing Warranty > Analysis > Plot.

  Distribution Wizard opens the Distribution Wizard, which helps you select the distribution that best fits your data based on the selected parameter estimation method (i.e., RRX, RRY or MLE). In warranty analysis folios, the ranking in the Distribution Wizard is based on the converted failure/suspension times. This tool is also available by choosing Warranty > Analysis > Distribution Wizard.

  QCP opens the Quick Calculation Pad, which allows you to calculate life data analysis metrics. It uses the same calculations that you can perform in a Weibull++ life data folio QCP. This tool is also available by choosing Warranty > Analysis > Quick Calculation Pad.

  Forecast opens the Forecast Setup window, which allows you to specify the time periods at which you wish to estimate the number of expected warranty returns. Clicking Forecast before the parameters have been calculated will automatically calculate the parameters and open the Forecast Setup window. This tool is also available by choosing Warranty > Tools > Forecast.

  Folio Setup is available only for the Nevada chart format. It opens the Nevada Chart Setup window, which allows you to change the time periods of the warranty claims data in the current data sheet.

  Change Units opens the Change Units window, which allows you to select the units to use in the data sheet. This tool is not available in the dates of failure format. The units that are available in the drop-down list are defined at the database level. Note that:

    • In the Nevada chart format, this tool is available only when you choose to label the sales and returns periods in terms of numbers during the setup process. See Nevada Chart Setup.

    • In the usage format, only the units that are related to usage (e.g., cycles, miles, etc.) are available in the drop-down list.

    • In the times-to-failure format, all the time units that were defined at the database level are available in the drop-down list.

Related Topics and Links