A neural network approach to fatigue life prediction

In this work, a novel approach to fatigue life prediction under step-stress conditions is introduced, where the cumulative distribution function for the failure of components was implemented by means of a neural network. The model was fit to experimental data on the fatigue life of steel under step-stress conditions. For comparison, a standard approach based on the lognormal distribution function was also implemented and fit to the same experimental data. Both models were optimized by evolutionary computation, using a maximum likelihood estimator. The Kolmogorov–Smirnov test was applied to compare the results of the new approach to those obtained with the lognormal distribution function.