System and method for defining a maintenance program

• US 6,742,000 B1
• Filed: 05/03/2000
• Issued: 05/25/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honeywell (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Hover, Forest, Fantasia, Lynne, Idehara, Richard, Lombardi, Mario
• Primary Examiner(s): Homere, Jean R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHAM, KHANH B
• Application Number:
  US09/565,034
• Time in Patent Office: 1,483 Days
• Field of Search: 707/100, 707/101, 707/102, 707/6, 707/104.1, 714/1, 714/25, 714/26, 703/13, 703/17, 702/182, 702/184, 701/29
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 5/60 Testing or inspecting aircraft components or systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2257 using expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A system and method for performing RCM analysis is disclosed. The system is an automated system for performing RCM analysis/maintenance program development requirements. The invention adheres to MSG-3 standards and guidelines. The system provides a user interface which is broken down in a hierarchical fashion which easily allows a user to enter data in accordance with MSG-3 procedures. A database includes one or more systems. Systems can be further refined to include one or more subsystems, sub-subsystems and parts. RCM analysis is performed at a Maintenance Significant Item (MSI) level which includes defining reliability data for the MSI. A part, by definition is an MSI. However, a subsystem or a system can also be an MSI. A system includes functions. A function can have one or more failures associated with it. There can be one or more effects associated with a failure. There can be one or more causes for an effect. A functional failure/failure effect is classified as: (1) evident safety; (2) evident operational; (3) evident economic; (4) hidden safety; or (5) hidden non-safety. Depending on the category of failure, a list of task types which may be applicable and effective is provided. Maintenance intervals are specified for those tasks which are applicable and effective. The information is provided to the user using various forms.

Claims

1. A method for developing a maintenance program for a system, comprising:

a. initially defining a definition of said system, wherein said definition is hierarchical in nature and defined in terms of aircraft systems, aircraft subsystems and aircraft components, said aircraft systems, aircraft subsystems and aircraft components identified according to said aircraft systems'"'"', aircraft subsystems'"'"' and aircraft components'"'"' function, functional failure, failure effect and failure cause, where said definition is stored as data within at least one database;

b. identifying potential failures of said system according to said definition by allowing a user to select portions of data from said at least one database;

c. categorizing said failure effect through a predefined logic progression according to at least one category selected from a group consisting essentially of Evident Safety, Evident Operation, Evident Economic, Hidden Safety, and Hidden Non-Safety;

d. identifying maintainability and reliability data for said aircraft components, said data including predicted mean time between failure (MTBF), predicted mean time between unscheduled removals (MTBUR), historical MTBF and historical MTBUR;

e. identifying tasks which may eliminate or reduce the possibility of said potential failure occurring and detecting hidden failures that have occurred;

f. selecting said tasks based on applicability and effectiveness;

g. automatically updating said system in response to at least one user request, said at least one user request comprising at least one of a system operation, a subsystem operation, and a parts operation;

h. iteratively refining said tasks in response to said at least one user request and automatically updating said system; and

i. providing a maintenance program comprised of said tasks to at least one users;

wherein said maintenance program is used to eliminate or reduce the occurrence of failures by determining said tasks for scheduled maintenance or intervals related to standards set by regulatory authorities, equipment operators, or manufacturers and wherein said updates are performed in real-time and said updates are immediately available for system or user purposes, thereby a group of users can meet to discuss a proposed change to said maintenance program to update said proposed change, run an analysis on said proposed change, review an output of said analysis, and finalize said proposed change to said maintenance program during a single meeting.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said system is further comprised of at least one subsystem, sub-subsystem, or part.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said system comprises at least one part, wherein said at least one part is associated with said system directly or indirectly via an association with one of said subsystems or one of said sub-systems.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said database is initially created by importing information from an existing database.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said database is initially defined by importing at least a portion of a plurality of existing databases.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said system operation comprises at least one of:

a. a selection operation;

b. an add operation;

c. an edit operation;

d. a delete operation;

e. a description and operation operation; and

f. a reliability data operation.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said subsystem operation comprises at least one of:

a. a selection operation;

b. an add subsystem operation;

c. an add sub-subsystem operation;

d. an edit operation;

e. a delete operation;

f. a description and operation operation; and

g. a reliability data operation.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said parts operation comprises at least one of:

a. a selection operation;

b. an add operation;

c. an edit operation;

d. a delete operation.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said system is further defined by at least one function.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein said function is further defined by at least one failure.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said failure is further defined by at least one effect.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said effect is further defined by at least one cause.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

a. formatting said definition to provide a formatted definition;

b. making said formatted definition available to a user.

14. A method for performing a hierarchical failure analysis, said method comprising.

a. creating at least one database containing information regarding systems, subsystems and components and said systems'"'"', subsystems'"'"' and components'"'"' function, functional failure, failure effect or failure cause related to an actual failure, said information derived from at least one source selected from a group consisting essentially of:

initial data input;

an existing database; and

selected portions of multiple existing databases, wherein data in said at least one database may be re-used repeatedly without re-entry of said data, thereby new databases or derivative databases may be created from said at least one database and said new or derivative databases may be edited or updated;

b. displaying a user interface, wherein said user interface provides a hierarchical display for updating said database;

c. accepting at least one operation from a user which allows said user to copy selected portions of data residing within said at least one database;

d. processing at least one input request and automatically adding information regarding said at least one input to said database, said at least one input request comprising at least one of a system operation, a subsystem operation, and a parts operation;

e. categorizing, through a predefined logic progression, the failure effect from said at least one database according to at least one category selected from a group consisting essentially of Evident Safety, Evident Operation, Evident Economic, Hidden Safety, and Hidden Non-Safety;

f. defining at least one maintenance significant item for said system by defining reliability data and completing maintenance significant item selection for said at least one maintenance item, wherein said at least one maintenance significant item further comprises at least one characteristic selected from a group consisting essentially of (1) failure of said at least one maintenance significant item could affect safety on ground or in flight;

(2) failure of said at least one maintenance significant item could be undetectable;

(3) failure of said at least one maintenance significant item would not likely to be detected during an operation;

(4) failure of said at least one maintenance significant item could have significant operational impact; and

(5) failure of said at least one maintenance significant item could have significant economic impact;

g. creating a set of tasks utilizing information from said at least one database, each task in said set of tasks selected from a group consisting essentially of lubrication;

servicing;

operational checks;

visual checks;

inspections;

functional checks;

restoration; and

discard operations;

h. accepting at least one operation from said user;

i. iteratively processing, said at least one input request and adding information regarding said at least one input to said at least one database; and

j. iteratively refining said set of tasks.

15. A method for developing a maintenance program for a system, comprising:

a. initially defining a definition of said system, wherein said definition is hierarchical in nature and defined in terms of systems, subsystems and components, said systems, subsystems and components identified according to said systems'"'"', subsystems'"'"', and components'"'"' function, functional failure, failure effect and failure cause related to an actual failure, said system is further defined by at least one function, where said definition is stored as data in at least one database;

b identifying potential failures of said system according to said definition by allowing a user to select portions of data from said at least one database;

c. categorizing said failure effect as one of Evident Safety, Evident Operational, Evident Economic, Hidden Safety, and Hidden Non-Safety;

d. identifying maintainability and reliability data for said components, said data including predicted mean time between failure (MTBF), predicted mean time between unscheduled removals (MTBUR), historical MTBF and historical MTBUR;

e. identifying tasks which may eliminate or reduce the possibility of said potential failure occurring and detecting hidden failures that have occurred;

f. selecting said tasks based on applicability and effectiveness;

g. automatically updating said system in response to at least one user request, said at least one user request comprising at least one of a system operation, a subsystem operation, and a parts operation, wherein said system operation comprises at least one of a selection operation, an add operation, an edit operation, a delete operation, a description and an operation operation, and a reliability data operation, said subsystem operation comprises at least one of a selection operation, an add subsystem operation, an add sub-subsystem operation, an edit operation, a delete operation, a description and an operation operation, and a reliability data operation and said parts operation comprises at least one of a selection operation, an add operation, an edit operation and a delete operation and permitting said at least one user request and said automatic updates to be performed in parallel;

h. iteratively refining said tasks in response to said at least one user request and automatically updating said system; and

i. providing a maintenance program comprised of said tasks to at least one user,

wherein said maintenance program is used to eliminate or reduce the occurrence of failures by determining said tasks for scheduled maintenance or intervals related to standards set by regulatory authorities, equipment operators, or manufacturers and said method may be performed concurrently by multiple users;

wherein multiple users may concurrently access and change various data of the database and may then update said database with said changed data.

16. The method for developing a maintenance program for a system according to claim 15, wherein said function is further defined by at least one failure.

17. The method for developing a maintenance program for a system according to claim 16, wherein said failure is further defined by at least one effect.

18. The method for developing a maintenance program for a system according to claim 17, wherein said effect is further defined by at least one cause.