Method of and system for maintaining operating performance of a transparency

• US 8,401,718 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2012
• Issued: 03/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PPG Industries Ohio Incorporated (Nouryon BV)
• Original Assignee: PPG Industries Ohio Incorporated (Nouryon BV)
• Inventors: Rashid, Ali N., Stone, Monroe A., Priddy, James F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ilan, Ruth
• Application Number:
  US13/420,693
• Publication Number:
  US 20120173438A1
• Time in Patent Office: 369 Days
• Field of Search: 701/3, 701/29.1, 701/29.3, 701/31.4, 701/31.5, 701/32.7, 701/34.4
• US Class Current: 701/3
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 1/1484 Windows B64C1/1492 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/006 Indicating maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49718 Repairing

Abstract

Repair or replacement of a transparency mounted in body of a vehicle, e.g. an aircraft when one or more properties of the transparency is (are) operating outside of an acceptable limit(s) is arranged by monitoring operating performance of a property of the transparency, e.g. by mounted a sensor, e.g. a sensor for detecting moisture; a sensor for detecting impacts and vibrations; a sensor for detecting fractures; a sensor for detecting electric arcing, and a sensor for measuring temperature of an electrically conductive coating, on the transparency. Scheduling repair or replacement of the transparency at a geographical area when the operating performance of the property is outside an acceptable operating performance limit, and forwarding the schedule to the vehicle and to a maintenance location to prepare for the repair or replacement of the transparency at the geographical work area.

Claims

1. A method of arranging repair or replacement of an aircraft transparency mounted in body of an aircraft, the method comprising:

mounting a sensor on the transparency to measure performance of a property of the transparency and to transmit a first signal that provides information as to the operating performance of the property of the transparency;

using data processing apparatus to receive the first signal to monitor operating performance of at least one property of the transparency and to compare the operating performance of the at least one property of the transparency to acceptable operating limits defined as relationship of operating performance to acceptable limits;

monitoring the relationship of operating performance to acceptable limits of the at least one property of the transparency;

providing the relationship of operating performance to acceptable limits to personnel within the aircraft to provide real time performance of the at least one property of the transparency;

based on the monitored relationship, scheduling repair or replacement of the transparency at a geographical area when the monitored relationship is at a predetermined monitored relationship; and

forwarding the schedule to the aircraft and to a maintenance location to prepare for the repair or replacement of the transparency at the designated geographical work area when the monitored relationship is at a predetermined relationship.

2. The method according to claim 1 further comprising forwarding the first signal to a first monitoring system positioned in the aircraft, and transmitting a second signal to a second monitoring system positioned outside of the aircraft, wherein the second signal comprises information from at least one item from the group of items comprising the first signal, the acceptable operating performance of the at least one property, and combinations thereof.

3. The method according to claim 2 wherein the aircraft is a first aircraft and the second monitoring system also receives information regarding operating performance of a property of a transparency mounted in a second aircraft.

4. The method according to claim 2 wherein the scheduling repair or replacement comprises the second monitoring system monitoring the relationship of acceptable operating limits of the at least one property and the operating performance of the at least one property of the transparency to determine a time period in which repair or replacement of the transparency should be made;

designating the geographical work area;

arranging for the aircraft, personnel, equipment and/or parts to be available at the geographical work area.

5. The method according to claim 2 wherein the second signal is transmitted to the second monitoring system by transmitting the second signal from the aircraft to a first receiving and transmitting tower, or to a receiving and transmitting satellite, and transmitting the second signal from the receiving and transmitting tower, or receiving and transmitting satellite, to the second monitoring system.

6. The method according to claim 5 wherein forwarding the schedule comprises providing a third signal transmitting information having at least one of the items selected from the group of items comprising the time period in which the repair to, or replacement of, the transparency should be made;

designating the geographic work area;

arranging for the aircraft, personnel, equipment and/or parts to be available at the geographic work area to repair or replace the transparency, and transmitting the third signal from the second monitoring system to at least one of the following;

the aircraft, a third monitoring system, a fourth monitoring system, and combinations thereof.

7. The method according to claim 6 wherein the third signal is transmitted from the second monitoring system to the receiving and transmitting satellite, or to a receiving and transmitting tower, and transmitted from the receiving and transmitting satellite, or transmitting and receiving tower to at least one of the following:

the aircraft, the third monitoring system, the fourth monitoring system, and combinations thereof.

8. The method according to claim 6 wherein the third signal is transmitted to the third monitoring system, and further comprising acting on the information provided by the third signal to arrange for the personnel, equipment and/or parts to repair or replace the transparency to be available at the geographic work area.

9. The method according to claim 8 further comprising transmitting the third signal to the fourth monitoring system wherein the fourth monitoring system is located at the geographic work area.

10. The method according to claim 2 wherein the transparency is an aircraft laminated windshield having two or more glass and/or plastic sheets.

11. The method according to claim 10 wherein the sensor is selected from the group of a sensor for detecting moisture;

a sensor for detecting impacts to, or vibration of, the windshield;

a sensor for detecting a fracture in one of the sheets;

a sensor for detecting electric arcing;

a sensor for detecting temperature changes of an electrically conductive member, and combinations thereof, wherein the sensor is mounted on a surface of one of the sheets between first and second outer major surfaces of the transparency.

12. A system for arranging repair to, or replacement of, an aircraft transparency when a property of the transparency is operating outside of acceptable limits, wherein the transparency is mounted in body of an aircraft, the system comprising:

a sensor to monitor operating performance of a property of the transparency, and to generate a first signal providing the operating performance of the property of the transparency,

first data processing apparatus mounted in the aircraft to receive the information of the first signal, to compare the operating performance of the at least one property of the transparency to the acceptable operating limits defined as relationship of operating performance to acceptable operating limit and to generate a second signal scheduling repair or replacement of the transparency at a geographical area when the operating performance as indicated by the first signal is outside of the acceptable operating limit;

a console positioned in the vehicle to receive the first and the second signals and to display the relationship of operating performance to acceptable operating to provide real time performance of the property of the transparency; and

second data processing apparatus positioned outside of the aircraft to receive the first and the second signal to prepare for repair or replacement of the transparency when the monitored relationship is at the predetermined relationship.

13. The system according to claim 12 wherein the sensor is mounted on the transparency, and the first data processing apparatus receives the first signal, and the second data processing apparatus generates the second signal and receives a third signal, wherein the third signal comprises information from at least one item from of the group of items comprising the first signal, acceptable operating performance omit of the property, and combinations thereof.

14. The system according to claim 13 wherein the second data processing apparatus generates the second signal, wherein the second signal includes information selected from the group of time period in which repair or replacement of the transparency should be made;

designating a geographic area to make the repair to the transparency or to replace the transparency;

arranging for the aircraft, personnel, equipment and/or parts to be available at the geographic area.

15. The system according to claim 14 wherein the first data processing apparatus transmits the third signal to a receiving and transmitting tower, or to a receiving and transmitting satellite, and the receiving and transmitting tower, or the receiving and transmitting satellite transmits the third signal to the second data processing apparatus.

16. The system according to claim 15 wherein the second data processing apparatus transmits the second signal to at least one of the following:

the aircraft, a third data processing apparatus, a fourth data processing apparatus, and combinations thereof.

17. The system according to claim 16 wherein the second data processing apparatus transmits the second signal to a receiving and transmitting tower, or to a receiving and transmitting satellite, and the receiving and transmitting tower, or the receiving and transmitting satellite transmits the second signal to the at least one of the following:

the aircraft, the third data processing apparatus, the fourth data processing apparatus, and combinations thereof.

18. The system according to claim 12 wherein the sensor is selected from the group of a sensor for detecting moisture;

a sensor for detecting impacts and vibrations;

a sensor for detecting fractures;

a sensor for detecting electric arcing;

a sensor for measuring temperature of an electrically conductive coating, and combinations thereof.