Many engineers have heard of the Taguchi Method, but almost none of them know how to use it in a practical sense. This presentation presents the topic

1. Introduction to Taguchi Methods By Ramon Balisnomo September 5, 2008

3. Robust Design A B C Control Factors Productor Process LSL USL defects defects Input Output

4. Robust Design Noise factor(s) A B C Control Factors Product or Process LSL USL defects defects Input Output

5. Robust Design Noise factor(s) A B C Control Factors Product or Process LSL USL Input Output

11. Select a Taguchi Orthogonal Arrays Based on DOF Orthogonal Array No. Runs Max. Factors Max. of columns at these levels 2-level 3-level 4-level 5-level L4 4 3 3 L8 8 7 7 L9 9 4 4 L12 12 11 11 L16 16 15 15 L'16 16 5 5 L18 18 8 1 7 L25 25 6 6 L27 27 13 13 L32 32 31 31 L'32 32 10 1 9 L36 36 23 11 12 L'36 36 16 3 13 L50 50 12 1 11 L54 54 26 1 25 L64 64 63 63 L'64 64 21 21 L81 81 40 40

15. What is the Signal-to-Noise Ratio? = mean or average = standard deviation or natural variation = signal to noise ratio S/N 1 > S/N 2 > S/N 3

16. What is the Signal-to-Noise Ratio? Input Variable X Mean Signal-to-Noise (S/N) Ratio – Output Variable

19. In the rubber industry an extruder is used to mold the raw rubber compound into the desired shapes. Variation in output from the extruder directly affects the dimensions of the weather strip as the flow of rubber increases or decreases. Find the right settings for a consistent rubber extruder output (number of units produced per minute).

28. The Outer Array are Controlled Noise Variables Response Variable Temp. & Humidity Y1 50 ° @ 15% Y2 50 ° @ 50% Y3 60 ° @ 15% Y4 60 ° @ 50% Y5 70 ° @ 15% Y6 70 ° @ 50% Y7 80 ° @ 15% Y8 80 ° @ 50% Y9 90 ° @ 15% Y10 90 ° @ 50%

30. 5. Perform the experiment. Open & paste the results from the Excel file named: Inner Array Outer Array

48. Class Exercise: Seal Strength You are evaluating the factors that affect the seal strength of plastic bags used to ship your products. You’ve identified three controllable factors ( Temperature , Pressure , and Thickness ) and two noise conditions ( Noise1 and Noise2 ) that may affect seal strength. Open the Minitab Project: You want to ensure that seal strength meets specifications. If seal strength is too weak, it may break, contaminating the product. If seal strength is too strong, customers may have difficulty opening the bag. The specification is 18 ± 2 lbs.

50. Which one of the three control factors influence the robustness of the product (S/N ratio) the most?

51. What are the optimal settings for the most consistent seal strength? Temperature = 60 Pressure = 36 Thickness = 1.25

52. What do you predict are the values for S/N ratio, mean, standard deviation at the optimal settings?

53. Appendix: Taguchi’s Orthogonal Arrays L4, L8, L9, L12, L16, & L18