ReliaSoft.com > Reliability Software Tools > ALTA > Product Features

ALTA Features - Accelerated Life Testing Data Analysis

The first, and still the only, commercially available software package designed expressly for quantitative accelerated life testing data analysis, ReliaSoft's ALTA software provides an intuitive and user-friendly way to utilize tremendously complex and powerful mathematical models. The software provides the life-stress relationships required to analyze accelerated life test data with up to 8 simultaneous stress types where stress is constant or varies with time!

ALTA's powerful quantitative accelerated life testing data analysis capabilities can help your organization to Reduce Test Times, Speed Time-to-Market and Lower Development and Warranty Costs.

Quantitative Accelerated Life Testing (QALT)

In quantitative accelerated life testing (QALT), the stresses that cause product failure are accelerated under controlled conditions to cause the product to fail in a shorter period of time without introducing additional failure mechanisms that would not occur under normal use conditions. Unlike qualitative accelerated tests (such as HALT/HAST), which precipitate failures in order to identify failure modes, QALT produces time-to-failure information that can be used to estimate the expected life of the product under normal use conditions.

When such tests are performed correctly, you can use mathematical models to extrapolate a use-level cumulative distribution function (cdf) for the product from the life data obtained under accelerated conditions. You can use this analysis to determine reliability, probability of failure, warranty time, mean life, B(X) life and other information about the expected life of the product.

ReliaSoft’s ALTA Software

ReliaSoft’s ALTA software provides full support for analysis of data obtained from quantitative accelerated life tests. The software is available in two versions: Standard and PRO. The Standard edition is intended as an entry-level tool for the reliability professional interested in basic quantitative accelerated life testing data analysis applications. ALTA 7 PRO provides advanced capabilities made possible by extensive research and development in complex quantitative accelerated life testing data analysis techniques. [See Comparison]

Features include:

Enhanced in Version 7!
• Data Types: ALTA's data entry spreadsheets support Complete, Right Censored (Suspended) and, new in Version 7, Interval or Left Censored data, entered individually and in groups, with up to eight stress types (depending on the life-stress model). In addition, the Monte Carlo utility provides randomly generated data sets based on a specified model, distribution and parameters.
  Enhanced in Version 7!
• Distributions and Life-Stress Relationships: ALTA supports data analysis with the Weibull, lognormal and exponential distributions combined with the following life-stress relationships: Arrhenius, Eyring, Inverse Power Law, Temperature-Humidity and Temperature-NonThermal. ALTA PRO supports additional multi-stress and time-varying stress models, including Proportional Hazards, General Log-Linear (with user-defined transformations), Cumulative Damage and, new in Version 7, Generalized Eyring.
  Enhanced in Version 7!
• Time-Varying Stress Profiles: In ALTA PRO, you can define stress profiles that vary with time, such as step-stress, ramp-stress, etc. Enhanced in Version 7, the Cumulative Damage model now supports analysis of multiple time-varying stresses!
• Parameter Estimation and Calculated Results: ALTA uses Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) for parameter estimation. The QCP and Function Wizard quickly return calculated reliability results (such as reliability given time, mean life, acceleration factor, BX life, etc.) based on the data analysis and your inputs. Confidence bounds are available for all calculated results and parameters.
• Unparalleled Plotting Capabilities: ALTA automatically generates a complete array of reliability plots, with customizable plot settings. This includes Probability, Reliability vs. Time, pdf, Life vs. Stress, Acceleration Factor vs. Stress, etc. Plots are metafile graphics (*.wmf) that can be annotated and used in your reports and presentations.
  New in Version 7!
• Accelerated Test Planning Utility: This utility implements the complex mathematical models required to design an effective accelerated life testing plan, which accounts for the type of stress, method of applying stress, stress levels, number of units to be tested at each stress level and an applicable life-stress model.

• Utilities for Related Analyses: Degradation Analysis, Tests of Comparison, Likelihood Ratio Analysis and flexible spreadsheets for your own custom analyses.
  Enhanced in Version 7!
• Integration with Weibull++ and Other Software: In Version 7, ReliaSoft's ALTA 7 and Weibull++ 7 are now more closely linked than ever before. Now a single project file (*.rs07) can contain both ALTA and Weibull++ analysis folios and you can easily switch back and forth between the two products with the click of a button! It's now easier than ever to transfer data from ALTA to Weibull++ for additional analysis, keep your Weibull++ analysis of field data together with the original QALT estimates, and much more. ReliaSoft also makes it easy to access ALTA analysis results from within BlockSim, RENO, Xfmea and RCM++.