Hello,
I would like to know the MTBF of Beaglebone Black Industrial.
I saw on the forum that the MTBF has been asked for often, but that it is not shared data. Could you tell me if the MTBF has not yet been calculated and the reasons for this?
If I wanted to quickly calculate the MTBF of the board, what should I consider?
Thank you and best regards,
Silvia
and the reasons for this?
Cost and liability to name but two, I’m guessing. They managed to produce an all in one, pocket sized Linux computer that still works at -40 degrees Cand +80 degrees C, for just over £60.
The MTBF is still worth asking for by all means, especially given the product’s name. Maybe someone can provide a special build, and even a warranty. But still:
BeagleBone Black Industrial is a low-cost, community-supported
development platform for developers and hobbyists.
Do Raspberry Pis or any other similar boards for developers and hobbyists, come with MTBF numbers?
If BBB-Industrial(s) will be used regardless, then for a single prototype installation, I think the cost of testing actual entire devices under accelerated ageing (in a cooker), to calculate a definitive MTBF, will be vastly more expensive than running several devices in parallel. And the final mean number will inevitably still be accompanied by large error bars (a big variance/s.d. ).
If I wanted to quickly calculate the MTBF of the board, what should I consider?
What’s riding on the number? How accurate does it need to be? For a quick calculation, I would do a bit of googling, especially into common failure modes, and take an educated guess at which are the 5 -10 component parts most likely to fail first in the relevant conditions, e.g. the SD card. Consider the typical operating temperature, gas, pressure, chemical exposures, dirt, and electrical background. Then look for the technical data sheets for those parts, that their manufacturers supply to OEMs. Then pick the lowest MTBF from all of them, and apply a safety factor.