Abstract
Complex systems are composed of many heterogeneous subsystems and components, which contribute to system failure or degradation. Reliability analysis of complex systems has slowly gained attention, yet most research continues to focus on the degradation of components in complex systems, including multiple failure modes, propagation of failure modes, and uncertainty analysis. Achieving and preserving reliable operation of complex systems requires more complete architectural models, which can utilize the information on the components and interactions between subsystems and their components. To address this limitation, this paper presents a method to conduct network reliability analysis of complex systems. The approach employs complex network theory, including several parameters related to network properties. A network reliability analysis method is subsequently defined and a performance index specified. A case study illustrates the proposed method, interpreting results and identifying opportunities for future elaboration of the model. Our results indicate that the proposed method can evaluate the overall reliability and identify the weak modules and links of a complex system that should be targeted for improvement.