Multi-response robust design by principal component analysis

Most previous Taguchi method applications have only addressed a single-response problem. However, more than one correlated response normally occurs in a manufactured product. The multi-response problem has received only limited attention. In this work, we propose an effective procedure on the basis of principal component analysis (PCA) to optimize the multi-response problems in the Taguchi method. With the PCA, a set of original responses can be transformed into a set of uncorrelated components. Therefore, the conflict for determining the optimal settings of the design parameters for the multi-response problems can be reduced. Two case studies are evaluated, indicating that the proposed procedure yields a satisfactory result.