\section{The Symptom Extraction Process}

% TO DO: separate these two:

\paragraph{Symptom Extraction Described}

The objective of `symptom extraction' is to analyse the functional~group and find 
how it can fail
when specified components within it fail.
Once we know how functional~group can fail, we can treat it as a component or sub-system
with its own set of failure modes.

\paragraph{FMEA applied to the Functional Group}
As the functional~group is a set of components, the failure~modes
that we have to consider are all the failure modes of its components.
Each failure mode (or combination of) investigated is termed a `test case'.
Each `test case' is analysed.
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The component failure modes in each test case 
are examined with respect to their effect on the functional~group.
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The aim of this analysis is to find out how the functional~group reacts
to each of the test case conditions.
The goal of the process is to produce a set of failure modes from the perspective of the functional~group.




\paragraph{Symptom Identification}
When all `test~cases' have been analysed, a second phase is applied.
%
This looks at the results of the `test~cases' as symptoms 
of the sub-system. 
Single component failures (or combinations) within the functional~group may cause unique symptoms. 
However, many failures, when looked at from the perspective of the functional group, will have the same symptoms.
These can be collected as `common symptoms'.
To go back to the CD~player example, a failed
output stage, and a failed internal audio amplifier, 
will both cause the same failure; $no\_sound$ !




\paragraph{Collection of Symptoms}
The common symptoms of failure and lone~component failure~modes are identified and collected.
We can now consider the functional~group as a component and the common symptoms as its failure modes.
Note  that here because the process is bottom up, we can ensure that all failure modes
associated with a functional~group have been handled.
Were failure~modes missed, any failure mode model could be dangerously incomplete. 
It is possible here for an automated system to flag unhandled failure modes.
\ref{requirement at the start}