AIRCRAFT SAFETY AND CONFIGURATION MONITORING SYSTEM AND METHOD

• US 20120044092A1
• Filed: 08/18/2010
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Coop, William P., Hoang, Thanh D., Ung, Kevin Yong, Kettering, Christopher B., Shore, Rebecca, Kopecki, Steve, Li, Winfeng, Yourkowski, Swanee, Zheng, Yucheng, Avery, Robert Lee
• Granted Patent: US 9,162,776 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/945
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2045/0085 Devices for aircraft health monitoring, e.g. monitoring flutter or vibration
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 5/00 Designing, manufacturing, assembling, cleaning, maintaining or repairing aircraft, not otherwise provided for; Handling, transporting, testing or inspecting aircraft components, not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/006 Indicating maintenance

Abstract

An aircraft safety and configuration monitoring system includes a plurality of RFID equipped items, a plurality of RFID interrogators communicating with the plurality of RFID equipped items, a processor communicating with the plurality of RFID interrogators and adapted to determine an issue with respect to any of the plurality of RFID equipped items and an indicating mechanism communicating with the processor and adapted to indicate the issue.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a plurality of RFID equipped items;

a plurality of RFID interrogators communicating with said plurality of RFID equipped items;

a processor communicating with said plurality of RFID interrogators and adapted to determine an issue with respect to any of said plurality of RFID equipped items; and

an indicating mechanism communicating with said processor and adapted to indicate said issue.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of RFID equipped oxygen generators.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of RFID equipped placards.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of RFID equipped security seals.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a flight deck library checklist.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said indicating mechanism comprises an electronic logbook of an aircraft.

7. The system of claim 1 further comprising a maintenance operating system communicating with said indicating mechanism.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of items and a plurality off RFID tags on said plurality of items.

9. A system, comprising:

an aircraft;

a plurality of RFID equipped items on said aircraft;

a plurality of RFID interrogators communicating with said plurality of RFID equipped items;

a processor communicating with said plurality of RFID interrogators and adapted to determine an issue with respect to any of said plurality of RFID equipped items; and

an indicating mechanism communicating with said processor and adapted to indicate said issue.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of RFID equipped oxygen generators.

11. The system of claim 9 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of RFID equipped placards.

12. The system of claim 9 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of RFID equipped security seals.

13. The system of claim 9 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a flight deck library checklist.

14. The system of claim 9 further comprising a flight deck communicating with said processor and wherein said indicating mechanism comprises an electronic logbook of said aircraft communicating with said flight deck.

15. The system of claim 14 further comprising an airline maintenance operating system communicating with said flight deck.

16. The system of claim 9 wherein said plurality of RFID equipped items comprises a plurality of items and a plurality off RFID tags on said plurality of items.

17. A method, comprising:

identifying a plurality of items to be monitored on an aircraft;

placing a plurality of RFID tags on said plurality of items, respectively;

monitoring said plurality of RFID tags for issues involving said plurality of items; and

reporting any of said issues in the event that any of said issues materializes.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein said placing a plurality of RFID tags on said plurality of items, respectively, comprises placing a plurality of RFID tags on a plurality of oxygen generators, a plurality of placards, a plurality of security seals, a plurality of life vests, emergency equipment and a flight deck library checklist.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein said reporting any of said issues in the event that any of said issues materializes comprises reporting any of said issues to an airline maintenance operation control system in the event that any of said issues materializes.

20. The method of claim 19 further comprising correcting said any of said issues.