Sh. Steiner et Go. Wesolowsky, ESTIMATING THE CORRELATION BETWEEN DESTRUCTIVELY MEASURED VARIABLES USING PROOF-LOADING, Technometrics, 37(1), 1995, pp. 94-101
Two simple proof-load testing procedures are suggested to estimate the
correlation between two variables that can individually only be deter
mined destructively. The first procedure assumes that the means and va
riances of the variables are known. The second testing procedure is mo
re flexible and requires no prior information. By assuming that the va
riables have a bivariate normal distribution and considering only the
number of units that fail at each proof-load, we determine the maximum
likelihood estimate for the correlation coefficient. Theoretical and
simulation results compare favorably with previously suggested more co
mplicated procedures and guide the practitioner in appropriate choices
for the proof-load levels.