Modularised binary decision diagrams for fault tree analysis

The use of Binary Decision Diagrams(BDDs)in fault tree analysis provides an exact and efficient means of analysing a system. However, the construction of the BDD first requires the selection of a variable ordering scheme, which has a crtical effect on its resulting size. Previous research has failed to identify any scheme that is capable of producing BDDs for fault trees. This paper proposes a method aimed at increasing the likelihood of obtaining a BDD for any fault tree, through the application ofa series of techniques that ensure the calculations become as efficient as possible.