INTRODUCTION

In

statistics,

numerical

random

variables

represent

counts

and

measurements. They come in two different flavors: discrete and continuous,

depending on the type of outcomes that are possible:

Discrete random variables. If the possible outcomes of a random

variable can be listed out using a finite (or countably infinite) set of single
numbers (for example, {0, 1, 2 . . . , 10}; or {-3, -2.75, 0, 1.5}; or {10,
20, 30, 40, 50} ), then the random variable is discrete.

Continuous random variables. If the possible outcomes of a random

variable can only be described using an interval of real numbers (for
example, all real numbers from zero to ten ), then the random variable
iscontinuous.

Discrete random variables typically represent counts for example, the

number of people who voted yes for a smoking ban out of a random sample
of 100 people (possible values are 0, 1, 2, . . . , 100); or the number of
accidents at a certain intersection over one year's time (possible values are
0, 1, 2, . . .).
Discrete random variables have two classes: finite and countably infinite. A
discrete random variable is finite if its list of possible values has a fixed
(finite) number of elements in it (for example, the number of smoking ban
supporters in a random sample of 100 voters has to be between 0 and 100).
One very common finite random variable is obtained from the binomial
distribution.
A discrete random variable is countably infinite if its possible values can be
specifically listed out but they have no specific end. For example, the
number of accidents occurring at a certain intersection over a 10-year period

can take on possible values: 0, 1, 2, . . . (in theory, the number of accidents

can take on infinitely many values.).
Continuous random variables typically represent measurements, such as
time to complete a task (for example 1 minute 10 seconds, 1 minute 20
seconds, and so on) or the weight of a newborn. What separates continuous
random

variables

from

discrete

ones

is

that

they

are uncountably

infinite; they have too many possible values to list out or to count and/or
they can be measured to a high level of precision (such as the level of smog
in the air in Los Angeles on a given day, measured in parts per million).

CONTROL CHARTS FOR ATTRIBUTE VARIABLES

Like the continuous variable control charts, the control chart for an
attribute variable also takes the form of a sideways, two-way comparison of
a two-sided hypothesis test.

The difference between the continuous and

attribute control charts lie in the underlying distributions. Most continuous

variables are well represented by the Normal Distribution, while the attribute
variables are typically modeled by the Binomial or Poisson Distributions.
Both the Binomial and Poisson are forms of discrete distributions,
which means that the variable takes on non-negative, integer values (such
as defect counts).

Continuous distributions, on the other hand, allow the

variable to take on non-negative, real values, such as length measurements.

For both types of distributions, the probability of observing a particular
outcome was found using the probability density function (the curve) of the
distribution.
With continuous distributions, the probability of observing a range of
values was defined by the area under the curve. This area was computed by
integration (or looking up the value from a table of integral values). For a

discrete distribution, the probability of observing a range of outcomes is

found by summing up the probability of observing each outcome in the range
of values.
Example:
Assume that you have two six-sided dice. The possible outcomes for
the sum of the two die are the discrete values from 2 through 12. If
you tabulated the different ways (rolls of each die) in which you could
reach each of the totals, you would have a histogram that describes
the PDF for your dice (assuming that they are fair).

What is the most frequently occurring sum that you could roll?

What is the probability of obtaining the most likely sum in a single roll
of the dice?

What is the probability of obtaining a sum greater than 2 and less than
11?

There are four types of control charts commonly used with attribute data.
The decision on which to use depends on: (a) whether or not a unit is to be
classified defective (having one or more defects), or if the number of defects
in a unit (or per unit) is of interest; and (b) if the size of the rational sampling
group is fixed or variable.
A unit can be classified as defective (or non-conforming) if it contains one
or more defects. If the number of defective units in a sample of units is of
interest, and if the number of units in the sample is constant, the np-Chart is
used to track the production process. However, if the number of units in the
sample varies, and the interest in the fraction (or percentage) of defective
units in the sample, then the p-Chart is used.
Sometimes just the number of defects per inspection unit is a better
measure of performance. If it is easier to count the number of defects in a
fixed-size inspection unit (defects per 100 solder joints), then the c-Chart is
used. But if the size of the inspection unit could vary (perhaps the current
inspection unit has 350 solder joints this time), then the u-Chart will let us
track the number of defects on a per-unit basis (where the number of
inspection units is 3.5 in this case).
Figure 1 (below) depicts the decision process for choosing the most
appropriate control chart. The following sections describe how the control
limits for these control charts are computed, and how these charts are
interpreted.

P-Charts

P-Charts are derived from the Binomial Distribution, and are used to track the
proportion (p) that are defective within a variable sample size. If D is the
number of defective units in a random sample of size n, then our sample
proportion defective will be:

D
n

Since these samples come from a binomial distribution, and assuming that
we knew the true proportion defective in all the product was p, then the
probability that the number of defectives (D) in a sample of size n is exactly
x units is given by:
n
P{D x} p x (1 p) n x
x

where

x = 0, 1, 2,

If we took a large enough number of samples, we would find that the mean
proportion defective in the distribution () would be very close to p, and that
the population variance would be given by:

 p2

p(1 p)
n

If we wanted to do a two-sided hypothesis test to see if the proportion

defective from one sample was different from the proportion defective found
in another sample, we could use an approximate normal distribution and the
test statistic:

z0

p1 p 2
1
1
p(1 p)

n1 n 2

where

n1p 1 n 2 p 2
n1 n 2

This hypothesis test lends itself to the creation of a control chart for the
proportion defective if we are taking random samples from an industrial
process. Like we did with the continuous variable control

Figure1.

Use X-bar and R-Chart

Use X-bar and S-Chart

Is the size of the inspection sample fixed?
Is the size of the inspection unit fixed?

What is the inspection basis?

Yes, constant
Discrete
Defective Units

Attribute

Continuous

(possibly with multiple defects)

Binomial Distribution
Range

Variable
Which spread method preferred?
Standard Deviation

No, varies

Kind of inspection variable?

Individual Def

Poisson Distrib

charts, well turn the hypothesis test on its side, and estimate a centerline
and the upper and lower control limits.
The best guess for the unknown population proportion defective would be to
find the mean proportion defective over a large number of samples, and let
this become our centerline:
m

pi

i1

i1

mn

where

m is the number of samples, each of size

n
As before, when we do not yet have an idea of the process performance, we
would estimate the control limits from a large number (20-25) of
independent and random samples.

Using plus and minus three standard

deviations from the centerline (Shewhart style), the trial control limits for the
proportion defective in any particular sample are:

UCL p 3

p(1 p)
n

CL p
LCL p 3

p(1 p)
n

These trial control limits would be plotted along with the individual, timeordered sample data, and then checked to be sure that all samples were
within the control limits.

If not, we would investigate the out-of-control

points, remove the special cause (if found) and recalculate the trial limits
without any out-of-control samples in the data. Then we would use those
control limits for production monitoring purposes.

If the control limits were to be calculated from a standard value (prior

history) for the proportion defective, the formulation is similar (we replace
the sample parameters with the standard population values):

UCL p 3

p(1 p)
n

CL p
LCL p 3

p(1 p)
n

If we desired control limits at a different point (either further out from, or

closer into the mean) we could replace the constant 3 with a different value
(2 for 2 limits, 6 for 6 limits). Note also that we should pick our sample
size so that there is a high probability of finding at least one defect in a
sample otherwise, we would effectively accept a zero-defects sample
(rendering our lower control limit useless in detecting important shifts in our
process).
In practice, however, the sample size for a p-chart does not have to be held
constant.

Usually, we would estimate the mean sample size ( n ) and

substitute it for the fixed sample size (n) in the above equations.

The

computation for the mean sample size from m samples of differing sizes is
found by:
m

i1

A more exact alternative would be to compute variable width control limits

that change with the individual sample size. If we started with m samples

(20 m 25) of individual size ni, then we would estimate the centerline
(once) at p from:
m

i 1
m

i1

And then we could have the control limits vary in width about this centerline
as the sample size changed, using the limits:

UCL p 3

p(1 p)
ni

CL p
LCL p 3

p(1 p)
ni

NOTE: When using variable width control limits, it is not possible to utilize
rules for detecting runs. In general, run rules are never used with p-charts.
The lack of a strong statistical basis for these run rules is one of the reasons
that continuous variable control charts are preferred to attributes charts
there is simply more information available from the continuous variable than
from the discrete variable.

NP-Charts

The np-Chart is used to track the number of defective units in a sample of

units (rather than the proportion of defective units). Like the p-chart, this
chart is derived from the Binomial Distribution.
always requires a fixed sample size.

However, the np-Chart

Calculating the control limits from

sample data leads to:

UCL np 3 np(1 p)
CL np
LCL np 3 np(1 p)

And if there was a historical standard for estimating np, then the control
limits become:

UCL np 3 np(1 p)
CL np
LCL np 3 np(1 p)

For an np-Chart, the control limits are constant (until we improve the process
and recalculate tighter control limits).

In this case, as long as we have a

sample of inspection units that has a high probability of having at least one
defective unit in each sample, we can utilize the run rules without violating
assumptions too much. This gives us a slightly more powerful control chart
than the p-chart, at the cost of inspecting a slightly larger sample of the
units.
C-Charts

Sometimes the presence of a defect does not ruin the product, even if
defects are undesirable. For example, a farmer might still buy a tractor even
with a few scratches in the paint on one fender, or a computer programmer
might still accept an LCD monitor with one or two defective pixels. However,
a good manufacturer would still wish to track the number of defects
occurring in each product in order to improve and continue to compete. Cand u-Charts work to track the number of defects that occur as a product is
created.
The c-chart is derived from the Poisson Distribution, which assumes that the
opportunities for defects to occur is essentially infinite (ex.: small defects

occurring within a large area). If x is a given number of defects, then the

probability of observing x defects in an inspection unit is:

p( x )

e c c x
x!

where

c is the true mean count of the number of

occurrences per unit

For the Poisson distribution, the mean and the variance are the same, and
both are equal to c. This information can be used to set up an approximate
Normal hypothesis test (but it is quicker to just cut to the derivation of the
control charts limits!).
The mean count of defects occurring per inspection unit is best estimated by
counting the total number of defects occurring over a large number of
inspection units:

c total

number of defects

total inspection units

This parameter will represent our center line, but we will also need upper and
lower control limits. If we are working to establish control limits from sample
data, the formulation would be:
UCL c 3 c
CL c
LCL c 3 c

or 0 if LCL is negative

Alternatively, if we are continuing to use an existing and stable process, the

standard value of c could be used for the control limits by:

UCL c 3 c
CL c
LCL c 3 c

or 0 if LCL is negative

In all cases of the c-Chart, the inspection unit is a constant size. Provided
that the LCL is greater than zero, then we will have constant control limits
and we can apply the rules for detecting runs in addition to the out-of-control
point criteria to determine if our process is stable and in-control.

U-Charts

These charts are used when the size of the inspection unit may vary. (In fact,
the size might not even be an integer multiple of the inspection units!)

Assuming that we have to generate the control limits from a pool of 20-25
samples, our best estimate for the center line for the u-chart is:

u total

number of defects

total units inspected

One option for the u-chart is to use the mean sample size in computing the
upper and lower control limits. The mean sample size and the control limits
are computed from:
m

i1

UCL u 3

u
n

CL u
LCL u 3

u
n

Another, more exact alternative is to use variable control limits. Similar to

the variable limit p-chart, we would compute our centerline once from our
sample data, and then use it to change the limits with each sample. From
this point, we can compute our control limits for each individual sample size
(ni) by:

UCL u 3

u
ni

CL u
LCL u 3

u
ni

As with the other variable limit control chart, the ability to use run tests is
forfeited. Additionally, if the defects occur in clusters (ie. the presence of
one defect makes it more likely for another defect to occur), then the defects
do not follow a Poisson Distribution and the control limits will not be very
precise. In some instances, mixtures of defect types can sometimes cause
clustering.
In some cases, when the defect rates are in the low parts-per-million range,
the size of the inspection unit will grow very large.

U-Charts can also be

used if the plotted variable is changed to be the time-betweensuccessive-defects, with much lower inspection frequency/cost.

Control chart for variables

Variables are the measurable characteristics of a product or service.
Measurement data is taken and arrayed on charts. The types of charts are
often classified according to the type of quality characteristic that they are
supposed to monitor: there are quality control charts for variables and
control charts for attributes. Specifically, the following charts are commonly
constructed for controlling variables
1) X-bar chart
In this chart the sample means are plotted in order to control the mean
value of a variable (e.g., size of piston rings, strength of materials, etc.). The
charts' x-axes are time based, so that the charts show a history of the
process. For this reason, data should be time-ordered; that is, entered in the
sequence from which it was generated. If this is not the case, then trends or
shifts in the process may not be detected, but instead attributed to random
(common cause) variation. For subgroup sizes greater than ten, use X-bar /

Sigma charts, since the range statistic is a poor estimator of process sigma
for large subgroups
2) R chart
In this chart, the sample ranges are plotted in order to control the variability
of a variable.
3) S chart
In this chart, the sample standard deviations are plotted in order to
control the variability of a variable. For sample size (n>10), the S-chart is
more efficient than R-chart. For situations where sample size exceeds 10, the
X-bar chart and the S-chart should be used.
4) S2 chart
In this chart, the sample variances are plotted in order to control the
variability of a variable
5) X-bar and R charts
An Xbar-R chart plots the process mean (Xbar chart) and process range
(R chart) over time for variables data in subgroups. This combination control
chart is widely used to examine the stability of processes in many industries.
For example, Xbar-R

can be use to monitor the process mean and

variation for subgroups of part lengths, call times, or hospital patients' blood
pressure over time.
The Xbar chart and the R chart are displayed together because both
charts can determine whether your process is stable. Examine the R chart
first because the process variation must be in control to correctly interpret

the Xbar chart. The control limits of the Xbar chart are calculated considering
both process spread and center. If the R chart is out of control, then the
control limits on the Xbar chart may be inaccurate and may falsely indicate
an out-of-control condition or fail to detect one.

6) X-bar and S charts

An Xbar-S chart plots the process mean (Xbar chart) and process
standard deviation (S chart) over time for variables data in subgroups.
This combination control chart is widely used to examine the stability of
processes in many industries.

The X-s chart is very similar to the X-R chart. The major difference
is that the subgroup standard deviation is plotted when using the X-s
chart, while the subgroup range is plotted when using the X-R chart. One
advantage of using the standard deviation instead of the range is that
the standard deviation takes into account all the data, not just the
maximum and the minimum.
The figure below is the X chart. The X values are plotted on this
chart. Three lines are plotted on the chart. The middle line is the overall
process averag; the upper line is the upper control limit; and the lower
line is the lower control limit.

CONCLUSIONS
In general, continuous variable control charts will detect smaller changes
earlier than an attribute control charts can. The Central Limit Theorem can
be used to justify an approximation of attribute data with control charts

based on the Normal Distribution. Finally, continuous variable control charts

normally require much smaller sample sizes as well.
However, attribute control charts can cover several defect types on one
chart, where two charts (x-bar and R- or -Charts are required for each single
characteristic to be measured. And continuous variables generally require
more refined equipment and time to complete the measurement, leading to
a higher inspection cost.

REFERENCES
1)

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/statistics-discrete-and-

continuous-randomvariable.html
2)

http://stattrek.com/probability-distributions/discrete-continuous.aspx?

Tutorial=Stat
3)
http://www.henry.k12.ga.us/ugh/apstat/chapternotes/7supplement.html
4)

http://www.statisticshowto.com/discrete-vs-continuous-variables/