Method and apparatus for developing fault codes for complex systems based on historical data

• US 7,260,505 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2002
• Issued: 08/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Felke, Timothy J., Stone, John F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wachsman; Hal
• Assistant Examiner(s): West; Jeffrey R
• Application Number:
  US10/184,594
• Publication Number:
  US 20040003318A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,882 Days
• Field of Search: 702 33- 36, 702 57- 59, 702182-188, 702 81- 84, 702/108, 701/29
• US Class Current: 702/187
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0216 Human interface functionality, e.g. monitoring system providing help to the user in the selection of tests or in its configuration
• 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

Abstract

A method of developing fault codes for complex systems based on historical data that in one aspect is a software program arranged to be installed and to operate on a processor to process the historical data in order to facilitate development of the fault codes, the software program resulting in the processor performing the method including: grouping the historical data into a plurality of observations and a plurality of repairs; analyzing the plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures, each of the observation signatures being one or more of the observations; and assigning a fault code to each observation signature.

Claims

1. A method of identifying fault conditions for complex systems based on historical non-coded data, the method including the steps of:

grouping the historical non-coded data into a plurality of observations and a plurality of repairs;

assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations, said plurality of Standard Observations including a description of each of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of Standard Repairs including a description of each of said plurality of Standard Repairs, said description of each of said plurality of Standard Observations and said description of each of said plurality of Standard Repairs comprising a phrase, said step of assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations comprising assigning one or more weights to each of said descriptions of said plurality of Standard Observations and each of said descriptions of said plurality of Standard Repairs and resolving the historical non-coded data into one of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of said Standard Repairs, each of said one or more weights indicating a phrase importance and corresponding to a relative importance in said resolving said historical data into one of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of said Standard Repairs;

analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures, each of said observation signatures based on one or more of said plurality of observations;

assigning a fault code to each observation signature, said fault code identifying a fault condition; and

communicating the fault code to a user interface.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations further includes assigning one of said plurality of Standard Observations to similar discrepancies derived from the historical non-coded data and assigning one of said plurality of Standard Repairs to similar corrective actions derived from the historical non-coded data and maintaining a first reference to the historical non-coded data with each said similar discrepancies and a second reference to the historical non-coded data with each said similar corrective actions.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said step of analyzing said plurality of repairs further includes a step of discovering relationships between one or more of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs when said first reference to the historical non-coded data and said second reference to the historical non-coded data are common between said one or more Standard Observations and said one or more Standard Repairs.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein said step of analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures includes grouping each of said Standard Observation with an associated one of said Standard Repairs when said relationship is discovered.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said step of assigning said fault code results in each observation signature being assigned a unique fault code and each Standard Repair with the same observation signature being linked to the same fault code.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of analyzing said plurality of repairs further includes a step of creating relationships between said plurality of observations and said plurality of repairs utilizing the historical non-coded data that is common between an observation and a repair.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures includes grouping each of said plurality of observations with an associated one of said plurality of repairs.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of assigning said fault code results in each observation signature being assigned a unique fault code and each repair with the same observation signature being linked to the same fault code.

9. The method of claim 1 Wherein said step of assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations further includes a step of processing the historical non-coded data including discrepancies and corrective actions to provide a total weight for each of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs, said total weight corresponding to a sum of said weights that correspond to a degree of match between one of said discrepancies and said corrective actions and descriptions of one of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs.

10. A computer-readable medium comprising a software program comprising software instructions arranged to run on a processor to process information derived from historical non-coded data in order to identify fault conditions for complex systems based on the historical non-coded data, the software program when installed and operating on a processor resulting in the processor:

grouping the historical non-coded data into a plurality of observations and a plurality of repairs;

assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations, said plurality of Standard Observations including a description of each of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of Standard Repairs including a description of each of said plurality of Standard Repairs, said description of each of said plurality of Standard Observations and said description of each of said plurality of Standard Repairs comprising a phrase, said step of assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations comprising assigning one or more weights to each of said descriptions of said plurality of Standard Observations and each of said descriptions of said plurality of Standard Repairs and resolving said historical non-coded data into one of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of said Standard Repairs, each of said one or more weights indicating a phrase importance and corresponding to a relative importance in said resolving said historical non-coded data into one of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of said Standard Repairs;

analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures, each of said observation signatures based on one or more of said plurality of observations;

assigning a fault code to each observation signature, said fault code identifying a fault condition; and

communicating the fault code to a user interface.

11. The software program of claim 10 wherein said step of assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations further includes assigning one of said plurality of Standard Observations to similar discrepancies derived from the historical non-coded data and assigning one of said plurality of Standard Repairs to similar corrective actions derived from the historical non-code data and maintaining a first reference to the historical non-coded data with each said similar discrepancies and a second reference to the historical non-coded data with each said similar corrective actions.

12. The software program of claim 11 wherein said analyzing said plurality of repairs further includes discovering relationships between one or more of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs when said first reference to the historical non-coded data and said second reference to the historical non-coded data are common between said one or more Standard Observations and said one or more Standard Repairs.

13. The software program of claim 12 wherein said step of analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures includes grouping each of said Standard Observations with an associated one of said Standard Repairs when said relationship is discovered.

14. The software program of claim 13 wherein said assigning said fault code results in each observation signature being assigned a unique fault code and each Standard Repair with the same observation signature being linked to the same fault code.

15. The software program of claim 10 wherein said analyzing said plurality of repairs further includes a step of creating relationships between said plurality of observations and said plurality of repairs utilizing the historical non-coded data that is common between an observation and a repair.

16. The software program of claim 11 wherein said analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures includes grouping each of said plurality of observations with an associated one of said plurality of repairs.

17. The software program of claim 10 wherein said assigning said fault code results in each observation signature being assigned a unique fault code and each repair with the same observation signature being linked to the same fault code.

18. The software program of claim 10 wherein said step of assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations further includes a step of processing the historical non-coded data including discrepancies and corrective actions to provide a total weight for each of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs, said total weight corresponding to a sum of said weights that correspond tot degree of match between one of said discrepancies and said corrective actions and descriptions of one of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs.

19. A computer based system for development of fault codes for aircraft systems based on historical non-coded data lacking assigned fault codes, the system comprising in combination:

a user interface;

a computer, coupled to the user interface, having memory, for storing software instructions and databases, and a processor for;

executing said software instructions to process information derived from historical data in order to facilitate the development of the fault codes, the software instructions resulting in the computer;

grouping the historical non-coded data into a plurality of observations and a plurality of repairs;

assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations, said plurality of Standard Observations including a description of each of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of Standard Repairs including a description of each of said plurality of Standard Repairs, said description of each of said plurality of Standard Observations and said description of each of said plurality of Standard Repairs comprising a phrase, said step of assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations comprising assigning one or more weights to each of said descriptions of said plurality of Standard Observations and each of said descriptions of said plurality of Standard Repairs and resolving said historical non-coded data into one of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of said Standard Repairs, each of said one or more weights indicating a phrase importance and corresponding to a relative importance in said resolving said historical non-coded data into one of said plurality of Standard Observations and said plurality of said Standard Repairs;

analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures, each of said observation signatures based on one or more of said plurality of observations;

assigning a fault code to each observation signature; and

communication the fault code to a user interface.

20. The computer based system of claim 19 wherein said assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations further includes assigning one of said plurality of Standard Observations to similar discrepancies derived from die historical non-coded data and assigning one of said plurality of Standard Repairs to similar corrective actions derived from the historical non-coded data and maintaining a first reference to the historical non-coded data with each said similar discrepancies and a second reference to the historical non-coded data with each said similar corrective actions.

21. The computer based system of claim 19 wherein said analyzing said plurality of repairs further includes creating relationships between said plurality of observations and said plurality of repairs utilizing the historical non-coded data that is common between an observation and a repair.

22. The computer based system of claim 19 wherein said analyzing said plurality of repairs to determine associated observation signatures includes grouping each of said plurality of observations with an associated one of said plurality of repairs.

23. The computer based system of claim 19 wherein said assigning said fault code results in each observation signature being assigned a unique fault code and each repair with the same observation signature being linked to the same fault code.

24. The computer based system of claim 19 wherein said assigning a Standard Repair of a plurality of Standard Repairs to each of said plurality of repairs and a Standard Observation of a plurality of Standard Observations to each of said plurality of observations further includes processing the historical non-coded data including discrepancies and corrective actions to provide a total weight for each of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs, said total weight corresponding to a sum of said weights that correspond to a degree of match between one of said discrepancies and said corrective actions and descriptions of one of said Standard Observations and said Standard Repairs.