An algorithm for automated cause-consequence diagram construction

The cause-consequence diagram (CCD) method is a system safety technique which determines the logical combinations of causes of events, by the use of fault trees, and identifies all possible consequences of the events. Traditionally cause-consequence analysis is based on the manual construction of the CCD which is very time consuming, expensive and also a source of human errors. A way of overcoming these drawbacks is to have an automated method of constructing the diagram. Hence in this paper the development of an automated CCD construction algorithm is presented. The algorithm created is based on methods previously developed for reliability techniques. Using a model for each component in the system a set of rules are developed which automatically construct the CCD in an efficient manner. The procedure has been validated by testing it on a variety of industrial systems.