An overview of environmental reliability testing

Abstract

This paper provides an overview of how environmental testing can be used (and misused) throughout the various phases of commercial or military product development and manufacture. The characteristics of each test type are examined, including governing philosophy, technical approaches, potential benefits, potential disadvantages, and limitations. A fundamental precept of this paper is the underlying commonality of test techniques, as contrasted with the fundamental differences in how these techniques are applied to satisfy different administrative goals.