u-chart

u-chart
Originally proposed by Walter A. Shewhart
Process observations
Rational subgroup size n > 1
Measurement type Number of nonconformances per unit
Quality characteristic type Attributes data
Underlying distribution Poisson distribution
Performance
Size of shift to detect ≥ 1.5σ
Process variation chart
Not applicable
Process mean chart
Center line \bar u = \frac {\sum_{i=1}^m \sum_{j=1}^n \mbox{no. of defects for } x_{ij}}{mn}
Control limits \bar u \pm 3\sqrt{\frac {\bar u}{n}}
Plotted statistic \bar u_i = \frac {\sum_{j=1}^n \mbox{no. of defects for } x_{ij}}{n}

In statistical quality control, the u-chart is a type of control chart used to monitor "count"-type data where the sample size is greater than one, typically the average number of nonconformities per unit.

The u-chart differs from the c-chart in that it accounts for the possibility that the number or size of inspection units for which nonconformities are to be counted may vary. Larger samples may be an economic necessity or may be necessary to increase the area of opportunity in order to track very low nonconformity levels.[1]

Examples of processes suitable for monitoring with a u-chart include:

As with the c-chart, the Poisson distribution is the basis for the chart and requires the same assumptions.

The control limits for this chart type are \bar u \pm 3\sqrt{\frac{\bar u}{n}} where \bar u is the estimate of the long-term process mean established during control-chart setup. The observations u_i = \frac{x_i}{n_i} are plotted against these control limits, where xi is the number of nonconformities for the ith subgroup and ni is the number of inspection units in the ith subgroup.

See also

References

  1. ^ Montgomery, Douglas (2005). Introduction to Statistical Quality Control. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.. pp. 294. ISBN 9780471656319. OCLC 56729567. http://www.eas.asu.edu/~masmlab/montgomery/.