Built-In Test Selection Methodology for Optimal Reliability Fault Coverage

The need for accurate Built-In Test (BIT) is an essential, data-driven aspect of reliability investigations, failure reporting, logistics planning, maintainability, and diagnostics. Most BIT is completed during the development phase of a project or program; early in the product life-cycle. Issues arise during BIT development prioritization due to its generally low priority nature in comparison to software needed to meet performance specifications. Additionally, diagnostic hardware increases Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) and slows performance. An accurate indication of current BIT capability and the ability to prioritize the planning and execution of software coding is essential to optimal BIT development. Even the dated 1978 "A Design Guide for Built-In-Test" includes a section on BIT optimization. The methodology described herein provides a practical, configurable approach to scoring and prioritizing BIT implementation efforts. The approach further employs continual tracking of BIT execution so that testing capability can be quantified directly and thus decisively improved.