A Simple Approximation for Bivariate Normal Probabilities

Abstract

The bivariate normal distribution function may be expressed as the product of a marginal normal distribution times a conditional distribution. By approximating this conditional distribution, we obtain a simple method for approximating bivariate normal probabilities. When the correlation falls in the interval (-5, .5), the maximum absolute error in our approximation is always less than .0008. The conditional distribution that we approximate is referred to as a 'normal conditioned on a truncated normal' distribution and is related to screening and selection problems.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1982
Accession Number
ADA125033

Entities

People

  • D. B. Owen
  • Robert W. Mee

Organizations

  • Southern Methodist University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Distribution Functions
  • Errors
  • Mathematical Analysis
  • Measurement
  • Military Research
  • Normal Distribution
  • Probability
  • Random Variables
  • Rocket Engines
  • Rockets
  • Skewness
  • Standards
  • Statistics
  • United States
  • United States Government
  • X Rays

Fields of Study

  • Mathematics

Readers

  • Regression Analysis.