Press Release

State College, PA — December 16, 2025 — Minitab, LLC, a global leader in data preparation, predictive analytics, and process performance improvement solutions, today announced that it has received a Notice of Allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office for U.S. Patent Application No. 17/531,206, titled “Correcting Low-Resolution Measurements.”

This patent protects Minitab’s innovative statistical method for correcting and analyzing rounded, truncated, or low-resolution measurements, enabling more accurate distribution testing, particularly for normally-distributed data. The innovation addresses a longstanding manufacturing challenge that goodness-of-fit tests often fail on real-world measurement data due to rounding, limited device precision, or inherent discreteness, leading to false conclusions about product reliability or process capability.

The patented method uses a statistically rigorous perturbation process that reconstructs likely high-resolution values, enabling correct distribution identification and greatly reducing false rejections. This process can improve any scenario in which measurement devices produce rounded, discrete, or low-resolution data.

A Breakthrough for Real-World Data and Quality Systems

Organizations in manufacturing, medical device development, and digital analytics depend on precise distribution modeling. However, data from real processes, such as force gauges, durometers, pin gages, packaging testers, and web analytics tools, often have limited measurement resolution.

“Engineers, analysts, and regulators make critical decisions using data that isn’t always as precise as we’d like it to be. Measurement devices round, truncate, or lack the resolution necessary for classical distribution tests to behave correctly,” said Cheryl Pammer, Senior Advisory Statistician at Minitab and lead inventor on the patent.

“This patented method solves a problem that has frustrated statisticians for decades. By intelligently reintroducing variation removed through rounding, we can recover the true underlying distribution of the data without requiring new instruments or large increases in sample size. This innovation ensures that organizations can rely on their statistical conclusions, protect customers, and meet regulatory requirements with confidence.”

The newly allowed patent protects a newly developed method that:

• Introduces controlled variation to low-resolution measurements through iterative stochastic perturbation.
• Estimates distribution parameters, such as normal mean and standard deviation, until stability criteria are satisfied. 
• Restores the ability of goodness-of-fit tests, such as the Anderson-Darling test, to accurately evaluate normal distributions.
• Facilitates statistically accurate decision-making without needing new measurement tools or expensive re-testing.

Additional Use Cases for the Manufacturing Industry include:

• Durometer hardness testing
• Medical device reliability data
• Dwell time in web analytics
• Bone plate static bend testing
• Catheter packaging seal-strength testing
• Balloon-rated burst pressure testing
• Air quality/velocity measurements
• Pin-gage and dimensional inspection processes

About Minitab, LLC

Minitab is a global leader in data analytics solutions, with over 50 years of experience helping organizations harness the power of their data to deliver high-quality products and services. By combining statistical process analysis, predictive modeling, real-time monitoring, and continuous improvement solutions with embedded AI capabilities, Minitab enables organizations to integrate data, uncover insights, accelerate decision making, and achieve measurable outcomes.

Minitab solutions include Minitab^® Statistical Software, Minitab Solution Center^™, Real-Time SPC^™, Minitab Connect^®, Prolink^™, and Simul8^™, supported by expert services for leveraging advanced analytics to achieve process excellence. The world’s leading companies and institutions rely on Minitab to solve critical challenges and create sustained performance improvements. Minitab serves customers in more than 100 countries. For more information, visit www.minitab.com.

Media Contacts

Albe Zakes
Communications Director
Email: azakes@minitab.com
Phone: +1.267.221.4800