SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR MANAGING MECHANICAL SYSTEMS AND COMPONENTS

• US 20140095133A1
• Filed: 09/28/2012
• Published: 04/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Silva, Francisco Bautista, Reyes, Luis Alberto, Lira, Noe Aguirre, Diener, Walther, Granados, Monica Pelayo, Garcia, Victor, Almeida, Oscar Ulises, Saavedra, Oscar
• Application Number:
  US13/631,698
• Publication Number:
  US 20140095133A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 703/7
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0283 Predictive maintenance, e.g. involving the monitoring of a system and, based on the monitoring results, taking decisions on the maintenance schedule of the monitored system; Estimating remaining useful life [RUL] preventive maintenance, i.e. planning maintenance according to the available resources without monitoring the system G06Q10/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2119/04 Ageing analysis or optimisation against ageing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/04 Manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30164 Workpiece; Machine component
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0004 Industrial image inspection
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/30 Computing systems specially adapted for manufacturing

Abstract

A system includes an interface configured to receive one or more images from an inspection of a component of a mechanical system. Each of the one or more images includes corresponding annotations that at least define one or more dimensions of the component or damages observed in the component. The system also includes a processor configured to construct a degradation model for the component based, at least in part, on the one or more images and their corresponding annotations received by the interface. The processor is further configured to determine one or more maintenance recommendations for the component based, at least in part, on the degradation model constructed for the component.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

an interface configured to receive one or more images from an inspection of a component of a mechanical system, wherein each of the one or more images include corresponding annotations that at least define one or more dimensions of the component;

a processor configured to;

construct a degradation model for the component based, at least in part, on the one or more images and their corresponding annotations received by the interface; and

determine one or more maintenance recommendations for the component based, at least in part, on the degradation model constructed for the component.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the interface comprises one or more local input devices or a network interface coupled to a remote system.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the degradation model generates one or more graphs comprising an estimated component degradation rate, an estimated unreliability of the component, or any combination thereof.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the one or more graphs comprise the one or more images from the inspection of the component, annotations corresponding to the one or more images, or any combination thereof.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more maintenance recommendations comprise recommending replacing the component, recommending repairing the component, recommending inspecting the component at a specified time, or any combination thereof.

6. A method, comprising:

receiving and storing in a memory of an electronic device one or more event details for a part event, wherein the part event comprises an inspection or maintenance of a part of a mechanical system;

receiving and storing in the memory of the electronic device one or more event images of the part event;

constructing, via a processor of the electronic device, a degradation model for the part based, at least in part, on the one or more event details and the one or more event images; and

determining, via the processor of the electronic device, maintenance recommendations for the part based, at least in part, on the degradation model for the part.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising receiving and storing in the memory of the electronic device a part identifier for the part experiencing the part event.

8. The method of claim 7, comprising determining, via the processor of the electronic device, information for other parts substantially similar to the part of the mechanical system based, at least in part, on the received part identifier, and wherein the degradation model is based, at least in part, on the information for the other parts substantially similar to the part.

9. The method of claim 6, comprising providing a user interface to receive the one or more event details and the one or more event images, wherein the user interface to receive the one or more event details comprises a plurality of instructions executed by the processor of the electronic device.

10. The method of claim 6, comprising quantifying damage to the part based, at least in part, on the one or more images of the part event, wherein quantifying damage to the part comprises receiving and storing one or more annotations for the one or more event images, wherein the one or more annotations define dimensions of features of the part in the one or more images.

11. The method of claim 10, comprising providing a user interface to receive the one or more annotations for the one or more event images, wherein the user interface to receive the one or more annotations comprises a plurality of instructions executed by the processor of the electronic device.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein the degradation model is based, at least in part, on previous event details and previous event images from one or more previous part events.

13. The method of claim 6, wherein the degradation model comprises multiple modes of failure for the part.

14. The method of claim 6, wherein the degradation model is constructed based on a Weibull distribution.

15. The method of claim 6, wherein the maintenance recommendations for the part are based, at least in part, on the degradation model and one or more limits operational limits of the part.

16. One or more tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media storing instructions executable by a processor of an electronic device, the instructions comprising:

instructions to receive a part identifier for a part of a mechanical system;

instructions to determine information for the part and other substantially similar parts based on the received part identifier;

instructions to receive one or more annotated inspection images for the part, wherein one or more annotated inspection images indicate one or more dimensions of the part;

instructions to construct a degradation model for the part based, at least in part, on the one or more annotated inspection images and the information for the part and other substantially similar parts; and

instructions to provide maintenance recommendations for the part based, at least in part, on the degradation model for the part and defined operational limits of the part.

17. The media of claim 16, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to receive one or more inspection details for the part.

18. The media of claim 16, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to present a user interface for annotating and receiving the one or more annotated inspection images for the part.

19. The media of claim 16, wherein the operational limits of the part are defined by a manufacturer of the part, an owner of the part, a maintainer of the part, or any combination thereof.

20. The media of claim 16, wherein the instructions to determine information for the part and other substantially similar parts comprise instructions to retrieve previous annotated inspection images for the part and annotated inspection images for substantially similar parts, and wherein the degradation model is based, at least in part, on the previous annotated inspection images for the part and the annotated inspection images for substantially similar parts.

21. A system, comprising:

a memory and a processor configured to;

provide an event details user interface, wherein the event details user interface is configured to collect event details for a mechanical system or a mechanical part;

store the collected event details for the mechanical system or the mechanical part in a database system; and

generate an event report for the mechanical system or mechanical part based, at least in part, on the event details stored in the database system.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein the event details comprise a serial number, an event type, an event location, an event description, hours of operation, downtime, or any combination thereof, for the mechanical system or mechanical part.

23. The system of claim 21, wherein the event details user interface is configured to collect the event details for the mechanical system or mechanical part by gleaning information relating to the mechanical system or mechanical part from inspection reports, maintenance reports, or both.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein the database system is configured to validate the event details for the mechanical system or mechanical part based, at least in part, on event details of other mechanical systems or mechanical parts stored in the database system, expert validation, or a combination thereof.

25. The system of claim 21, wherein the event report comprises a rolling average event rate for the mechanical system or mechanical part.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the event report comprises one or more charts or graphs illustrating the rolling average event rate for the mechanical system or mechanical part.

27. The system of claim 21, wherein the processor is configured to provide an event report user interface, wherein the event report user interface is configured to receive one or more parameters for generating the event report for the mechanical system or mechanical part.

28. The system of claim 27, wherein the one or more parameters comprise an event type, a limit type, a time window, a rolling average event rate time window, a fleet-wide limit value, a system limit value, or any combination thereof.

29. The system of claim 21, wherein the event details user interface is configured to collect event details for a fleet of mechanical systems, mechanical parts, or both.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein the database system is configured to store the collected event details for the fleet of mechanical systems, mechanical parts, or both.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein the processor is configured to determine event trends for the fleet of mechanical systems, mechanical parts, or both, based on the event details for the fleet of mechanical systems, mechanical parts, or both.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the event report comprises the determined event trends for the fleet of mechanical systems, mechanical parts, or both.

33. The system of claim 32, wherein the event report comprises one or more charts or graphs illustrating the determined event trends for the fleet of mechanical systems, mechanical parts, or both.

34. The system of claim 21, wherein the each of the event details are associated with a warning event, a trip event, a failure event, or a planned or unplanned inspection event experienced by the mechanical system or the mechanical part.

35. A method, comprising:

receiving, via a processor of an electronic device, event details for events experienced by a plurality of parts disposed throughout a fleet of mechanical systems;

storing in a database system the received event details for the events experienced by the plurality of parts, wherein the database system is disposed in a memory of the electronic device;

receiving, at the processor of the electronic device, an indication of a selection of a particular part from the plurality of parts disposed throughout the fleet of mechanical systems; and

generating, via the processor of the electronic device, an event report for the particular part based on the event details stored in the database system, wherein the event report comprises an event rate for the particular part.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the event details comprise a serial number, an event type, an event location, an event description, and hours of operation for each of the events experienced by a plurality of parts.

37. The method of claim 35, comprising receiving, at the processor of the electronic device, a selection of a rolling average time window for use in generating the event report for the particular part.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the event rate comprises a rolling average event rate that is determined, via the processor of the electronic device, for the particular part over the received rolling average time window.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein the event report comprises a fleet-wide average event rate, a mechanical system event rate limit, a fleet event rate limit, or a combination thereof, based, at least in part, on the event details stored in the database system.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein the mechanical system event rate limit, fleet event rate limit, or both, are based on company or regulatory policy.

41. The method of claim 35, wherein the events comprise warning events, trip events, failure events, or inspection events experienced by the plurality of parts.

42. One or more tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable media storing instructions executable by a processor of an electronic device, the instructions comprising:

instructions to store, in a database system of the electronic device, event details for events experienced by a fleet of mechanical systems;

instructions to receive a selection of a rolling average time window and to receive a selection of a particular mechanical system from the fleet of mechanical systems;

instructions to use the event details stored in the database system, the selection of the particular mechanical system, and the selection of the rolling average time window to determine a rolling average event rate for the particular mechanical system over time; and

instructions to generate an event report for the particular mechanical system, wherein the event report comprises a plot of the rolling average event rate for the particular mechanical system over time.

43. The media of claim 42, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to receive event details for events experienced by the fleet of mechanical systems, and wherein the event details comprise serial numbers, event types, event locations, event descriptions, hours of operation, downtime, or any combination thereof, for the fleet of mechanical systems.

44. The media of claim 43, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to receive one or more inspection reports, maintenance reports, or both, and to glean the event details from the one or more inspection reports, maintenance reports, or both.