Method of managing maintenance and maintenance managing apparatus

• US 7,328,133 B2
• Filed: 08/18/2006
• Issued: 02/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Araki, Kenji, Utaka, Kenji, Kaimori, Kimihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Bui; Bryan
• Application Number:
  US11/506,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20060293866A1
• Time in Patent Office: 536 Days
• Field of Search: 702 33- 35, 702182-188, 714/25, 714/47, 376/215
• US Class Current: 702/184
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0213 Modular or universal configuration of the monitoring system, e.g. monitoring system having modules that may be combined to build monitoring program; monitoring system that can be applied to legacy systems; adaptable monitoring system; using different communication protocols
• 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: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

Structural members constructing a plant are classified into a plurality of groups on basis of a likeness criterion of a predetermined operation status. An index member having a higher degradation tendency than the structural members belonging to the group is installed at at least a part of at least one of structural member to generate an inspection plan through actual inspection of the index member to provide reduction in the number of structural members to be inspected and an extended inspection interval without decrease in reliability.

Claims

1. A maintenance managing apparatus for a plant, comprising:

structural member grouping means for grouping structural members of the plant on the basis of likeness criterion of a predetermined operation status into a plurality of groups; and

index member setting means for setting an index member to be inspected at at least a part of at least one of the structural members belonging to each group, the index member having a higher degradation tendency than the other structural members in the group, wherein index member setting means comprises;

predicting means for predicting degradation of the structural members belonging to each group based on design information of the structural members to estimate the degradation tendencies; and

selecting means for selecting the at least one of the structural members from a part of the structural members having a high degradation tendency in each group on the basis of the result of predicting the degradation.

2. The maintenance managing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predicting means predicts the degradation further based on operation information of the plant.

3. The maintenance managing apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the predicting means predicts the degradation further based on maintenance history information of the plant.