FAULT TREE ANALYSIS APPLIED TO VEHICLE DESIGN.

With world–wide competition so strong it is essential that motor vehicles have high reliability. One of the ways to reach this goal is the use of fault tree analysis (FTA) in vehicle design. FTA enables a motor vehicle designer to detect critical points in the construction and to undertake corrective measures towards reducing or eliminating the risk of an identified fault. FTA is a major contribution to modern motor vehicle design methods, it enables increased reliability levels for motor vehicles and their components, and increased safety in traffic and fewer faults in operation. In the paper a motor vehicle fault analysis is performed by the FTA method with top and basic faults indicated. Particular attention was paid to FTA use in universal joint design.