Mean Time Between Failure
Way to quantify the performance of a machine or part.
MTBF = (Total Time of all Parts run) / (Total number of failures)
Good if all parts fail.
Bad if very few of the parts fail. It is very deceptive in this case.
A hypothetical machine generally runs between 60 and 100 hours before failing.

If you run 3 of them for a total of 240 hours, and all 3 fail, you have a MTBF of 80 hours per failure. Makes sense.

If you run 100 of them in an application where the job is complete after 50 hours, at which point you don't run it again, it is possible that only 10 or so will fail. MTBF could be about (90*50 + 10*25) / (10) = 475 hours per failure. This is insane, since you would be lucky if a single tool made it to 200 hours or continuous operation.
by guided fox July 8, 2006
Get the MTBF mug.
Mean Time Between Fucks (cfr. Mean Time Between Failure in IT)
How is your MTBF lately ?
by Pat___ December 24, 2007
Get the MTBF mug.
1. In machines, the amount of time, when operating a bank of machines, between any one of them failing. Not lifetime, as hard drive manufacturers want you to think. It is the average amount of time between failures of indivdual parts when talking about a system.

2. In biology, the average lifespan of each individual organism which has a particular set of genes or "environment of luck". An "environment of luck" can be something like all people who fly on a plane, living around individuals who want you dead in the worst way,all people who smoke, or some other demographic.
1. When punching laced cards on a bank of keypunch punched-card makers, the average MTBF is about three cards.
1. In an average house, it is normal to burn out 3 incandescent light bulbs in a month. Therfore the MTBF is 10 days.
2. Teacher:"King tut only lived to be 19."
Mocking Student:"Wow, his MTBF is in the toilet!"
2. "The MTBF of John Benet Ramsey is quite short."
Get the MTBF mug.
Meantime between Fornications
Hmmm... I wonder what that chick's MTBF is....
by hudsonsculler@hotmail.com January 16, 2005
Get the MTBF mug.
mean time between failures. it is used to measure the reliability of machines or systems. It is the result of dividing the total work time planned by the number of stoppages due to equipment failure.
In the american automobile plants mtbf has been found to be just 30% of that at the japanese makers, even in the US, like honda and toyota
by Enrique Mora February 20, 2004
Get the mtbf mug.