00:39 vary as long as all the sample groups have at least ten data points.00:35 Also a very significant advantage to the Xbar-S chart is that sample group size can.00:29 of variation than the range because it uses all the data, not just the extremes.00:25 With large sample size in the subgroup, the standard deviation is a better measure.00:23 And by large, I mean more than ten.00:18 The Xbar and S chart are used when subgroups have a large sample size.00:12 The Xbar and standard deviation, or Xbar- S Chart, is also a pair of charts.00:06 let's take a look at the variable data control chart called the Xbar- S Chart.In today’s business world with automation and the Internet of Things, there is plenty of data and processing it is essentially free. But the improved process knowledge was minimal as compared to an Xbar-R chart. When SPC was done manually, collecting the additional data points for an Xbar-S chart often required much more time. The popularity of the Xbar-S chart is growing.Don’t select arbitrary subgroups, they should relate to the physical process or calendar groupings.Be sure to use the subgroup sample size when selecting the A3, B3 and B4 constant values.Remember you are plotting the mean of the data, not the actual data.Take appropriate actions to remove special causes or to center your data within the customer spec limits.Plot the Subgroup mean, Standard Deviation, the calculated Means and the control limits.Now calculate the control limits for the Subgroup Mean data points.If the Standard Deviation plot shows an out of control condition, it must be corrected before proceeding to the Subgroup Mean plot, since that plot relies on the mean of the Standard Deviation in its control limit calculations.Calculate the upper and lower control limits for the standard deviation plot.Calculate the global mean for all the data points and the mean for the standard deviation values.These will be the values that are plotted.

In an adjacent column, calculate the Mean for each subgroup and then calculate the standard deviation for each subgroup.

By doing this, each row in Excel represents a subgroup. Then measure the next item in the subgroup sample and record that in the next column.

Measure the attribute for the first item in the subgroup sample and record the data in a column in Excel.

If they don’t you must use the different column approach. If all the data is in one column you the data subgroups must have the same number of points. If all the data is in one column, you will need to tell Minitab how many data points are in each subgroup. Within Minitab, control charts are created by using the “Stat” pull down menu, then selecting “Control Charts.” Within the Control Charts window, select “Variable Charts for Subgroups” and then finally select “Xbar-S.” In the Minitab Xbar-S Chart panel, you will need to select the data columns with your data. Xbar-S Charts can be created in Microsoft Excel or in Minitab. This is because the constants used in the equations change with changing subgroup sample size. When the subgroup sizes are not equal, the control limit lines will not be straight lines but rather will be stair-stepped. However, they should always be greater than 10 data points. One other advantage of the Xbar-S chart is that it can work with subgroup sizes that vary slightly. The standard deviation is always a positive number. The Standard Deviation chart plots the value of the standard deviation for all the subgroups. The Subgroup Mean chart plots the average value of the data points that were used to sample the subgroup. This aids in the recognition of special cause occurrences. These are normally aligned so that the Subgroup Mean (Xbar) chart is directly above the Standard Deviation chart. The Xbar-S is comprised of a pair of control charts. The standard deviation uses all the data points and is not as easily impacted by an outlier. With high volume and a large number of data points, the standard deviation is a better gauge of the subgroup variation than is the range from max value to min value. Use the Xbar-S Chart when seeking to control a product or process variable parameter with a high volume process. It can be easily created in either Microsoft Excel or Minitab. The Xbar-S chart (Subgroup Mean and Standard Deviation) are the variable data control chart to be used when working with a subgroup sample that has ten or more units.

Xbar control chart