A numerical integration method for computing structural system reliability

A numerical integration method for computing structural system reliability is discussed. The concept of the main domain of failure coverage is presented and the failure probability corresponding to a single failure mode or a structural system can be obtained approximately by integrating the joint probability density function of design random variables over the main domains of failure coverage; therefore, the run time of the computer is greatly decreased. The Gaussian numerical integration method is used in order to increase the computational accuracy. The theory and examples illustrate that the method presented can be used to determine the failure probability of a structure with linear or nonlinear equations for the safety margin.