Meantime between failures (MTBF) is a reliability metric that quantifies the average elapsed time between successive failures of a repairable system. It is calculated as total operational time divided by the number of failures over a given period. MTBF serves as a predictive measure of system reliability — higher MTBF indicates greater dependability. The metric assumes a constant failure rate and exponential failure distribution, making it most applicable to systems with random (non-degrading) failures. Maintenance and repair actions reset the clock but do not restore the system to a like-new state. [formal: inter valium | substrate: mind | horizon: hours | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]
Accepted ontology entry
meantime-between-failures
Meantime between failures (MTBF) is a reliability metric that quantifies the average elapsed time between successive failures of a repairable system. It is calculated as total operational time divided by the number of failures over a given…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A human-made reliability metric that quantifies the average elapsed time between successive failures of a repairable system. Calculated as total operational time divided by the number of failures over a defined observation period. Built to persist as a standardized statistical measure in reliability engineering, maintenance planning, and systems safety practice.
Names and aliases
- meantime-between-failuresen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmr9uz3vv00elhcxfruyltnd4INSTANCE_OF →
MTBF is a specific kind of measurement: it quantifies time between successive failures of a repairable system. A competent speaker would call MTBF a measurement/metric. Law 9 INSTANCE_OF, specific→general.
- cms7wyk72004ph6s8d82lhwqlSERVES →
MTBF quantifies average time between failures of repairable systems — it is designed for the sake of reliability analysis, informing maintenance intervals and reliability improvement. Per Law 8d: servant (MTBF) points at master (reliability); the purpose is by sustained engineering practice.
- cmrwiv1rn00a8soacg5vdpiogINSTANCE_OF →
Mean-time-between-failures IS a specific kind of metric — it is a quantitative measure (total operating time / number of failures) used in reliability engineering. A competent speaker would call MTBF 'a metric' or 'a reliability metric'. Specific→general, nearest kind is metric.
Relations to this entry
No accepted relations in this direction.
Record identity
- Created
- Aug 7, 2026, 6:09 PM UTC
- Content hash
- 1b099eebcae3dcb1124b4b0c2b0f23aed8e59a9a3f75771787840b52b1721ca2