Basic Fault Tree Analysis for use in protection reliability

Fault tree analysis (FTA) is a tool originally developed in 1962 by Bell Labs for use in studying failure modes in the launch control system of the Minuteman missile project. The tool now finds wide use in numerous applications from accident investigation to design prototyping and is also finding use for protection and control related applications. This paper provides an elementary background to the application of fault tree analysis for use in protection applications. The construction of the fault tree as well as the use of reliability data is considered. A simple example is presented. The intention is to provide a brief introduction to the concept to allow users to at least understand how a fault tree is constructed and what can be done with it.