System and method for performing reliability analysis

• US 7,149,659 B1
• Filed: 08/03/2005
• Issued: 12/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Standard Aero Limited (StandardAero Business Aviation Services LLC)
• Original Assignee: Standard Aero Limited (StandardAero Business Aviation Services LLC)
• Inventors: Lesmerises, Alan L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bui, Bryan
• Application Number:
  US11/196,200
• Time in Patent Office: 496 Days
• Field of Search: 702/181, 702/182, 702/183, 702/185, 702/187, 703/6, 703/7, 714 1- 2, 714/25, 714/30, 714/37, 714/47
• US Class Current: 702/185
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/008 Reliability or availability analysis

Abstract

The disclosure is directed to a method of performing reliability analysis for a population of units. The method includes generating suspension population data based on a suspension representation, accessing failure data associated with the population of units, and performing reliability analysis for the population of units based at least in part on the generated suspension population data and the failure data.

Claims

1. A method of performing reliability analysis for a population of units, the method comprising:

determining a number of units in operation;

generating suspension population data based on a suspension representation, wherein generating the suspension population data includes generating a simulated suspension population that has a population size equal to the number of units in operation;

accessing failure data associated with the population of units;

performing reliability analysis for the population of units based at least in part on the generated suspension population data and the failure data; and

providing a result of the reliability analysis to a user.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

accessing non-failure operation data associated with the population of units; and

generating the suspension representation based at least in part on the non-failure operation data associated with the population of units.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein units within the population of units are mechanical systems.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the mechanical systems are associated with a component of an aircraft engine.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a mean-time-to-failure for a particular unit within the population of units.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the suspension representation includes a polynomial representation of cumulative suspension population data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the suspension representation includes a Weibull representation of cumulative suspension population data.

8. A method of performing reliability analysis for a population of units, the method comprising:

generating suspension population data based on a suspension representation, wherein generating the suspension population data includes determining an age for a particular unit within a generated suspension population of units based on an inversion of the suspension representation and the particular unit'"'"'s order within the suspension population;

accessing failure data associated with the population of units;

perform reliability analysis for the population of units based at least in part on the generated suspension population data and the failure data; and

providing a result of the reliability analysis to a user.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

determining a mean-time-to-failure for a particular unit within the population of units.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the suspension representation includes a polynomial representation of cumulative suspension population data.

11. The method of claim 8, the suspension includes a Weibull representation of cumulative suspension population data.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the suspension representation includes a lognormal representation.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the suspension representation includes any piece-wise continuous representation.

14. A method of performing reliability analysis, the method comprising:

accessing operation data associated with a population of units, the operation data including non-failure option data associated with units within the population;

generating a suspension representation based at least in part on the non-failure operation data;

generating suspension population data based at least in part on the suspension representation and a total population size of the population of units, wherein generating the suspension population data includes generating operation age data for a unit of a suspension population based at least in part on the units order within the suspension population;

perform reliability analysis for the population of units based at least in part on the generated suspension population data; and

providing a result of the reliability analysis to a user.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the suspension population data comprises an estimated population of units.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

accessing failure data associated with the population of units; and

performing reliability analysis for the population of units based at least in part on the failure data and the generated suspension population data.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising determining a mean-time-to-failure of a particular unit within the population of units based at least in part on the reliability analysis.

18. A computer readable media including computer operable instructions operable by a processor to perform a method of performing reliability analysis, the method comprising:

determining a number of units in operation;

generating the on population data based on a suspension representation, wherein generating the suspension population data includes generating a simulated suspension population that has a population size equal to the number of units in operation;

accessing failure data associated with a population of units;

performing reliability analysis for the population of units based at least in part on the generated suspension population data and the failure data; and

providing a result of the reliability analysis to a user.

19. The computer readable media of claim 18, wherein the method further comprises:

accessing non-failure operation data associated with the population of units; and

generating the suspension representation based at least in part on the non-failure operation data associated with the population of units.

20. The computer readable media of claim 18, wherein the method further comprises:

determining a mean-time-to-failure for a particular unit within the population of units.