Inspection in process control

Consistent with the precepts of total quality control and total quality management, there has been a resource shift from incoming and outgoing inspection processes to statistical quality control of processes. Furthermore, process control operators are responsible for their own quality, necessitating the in-process inspection of components. This study treated the statistical process control task of "searching" control charts for out-of-control conditions as an inspection task and applied the Theory of Signal Detection to better understand this behavior and improve performance. Twelve subjects participated in a research study to examine how the portrayal of control chart information affected signal detection theory measures. The type of display did not have a significant effect on the sensitivity and response criterion of subjects. These results are discussed in terms of the applicability of Signal Detection Theory in control chart decision making as well as implications on display design.