A nonlinear programming approach to the parameter design problem

The problem of determining an optimal set of values for the parameters of a manufactured product (and/or a manufacturing process), from the point of view of its robustness against various sources of noise, is commonly referred to as the the parameter design problem. The paper proposes an algorithmic strategy for solving the parameter design problem, and presents a specific implementation of this strategy which is referred to as the Successive Quadratic Variance Approximation Method (SQVAM). SQVAM is based on conventional optimization techniques, and assumes that the functional relationship between the input parameters and the performance characteristic of interest is either known or could be well approximated. An illustrative numerical example, discussing the design of a Wheatstone bridge, is then presented. This is the same example used by Taguchi to illustrate the orthogonal array method.