Abstract
Due to different causes in the product and process variations of new optical module development, the design changes in one part may lead to variations in a series of optical design target values. The uncertainty and variability may possibly be reduced by using robust design method. However, most robust design studies are focused on statistical technique to solve a small range of product or process features. Few studies discuss how to systematically identify variants and product characteristics sensitive to the noises, also less discuss the application of a structured robust design methods in new optical module development activities. This study investigated a Taguchi-based robust design methodology in optical modules development process, and sorted out a structural robust design in product development process. Addressing the uncertainties of markets, products and technologies, this study evaluates the process improvement and develops a robust optical module platform to replace the function of different parts or modules. Via a case study of backlight module design, the module platform was applied in the product and process design to achieve robustness in a diverse product designs. The Taguchi-based robust design method was shown to address different types of variations in the backlight module designs to achieve more robust parameter settings, to gain the benefits of module development performance and to better meet the customer’s requirements.