1. Purpose of the gate
A periodic review of field performance, drift, returns, cost and demand decides whether to keep the sensor as it is, change it, start a derivative or plan its end of life.
A sensor in volume changes over time even when nobody intends it: suppliers change materials, equipment is replaced, and the process is improved. Field use reveals mechanisms qualification did not. The lifecycle review brings these together and decides what to do, rather than letting the product drift.
It reviews field performance and returns against the specification and quality targets, checks that every change since the last review was assessed and notified, looks at calibration residual and reliability monitor trends, and reviews compliance against current regulations and customer requirements. It then records the decision: keep, change, derive or phase down.
The change notification policy decision is frozen here and revisited at each review, so customers' expectations on notice are met consistently.
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