Adaptive central maintenance system and method for planning maintenance operation for systems

• US 8,560,160 B2
• Filed: 12/17/2009
• Issued: 10/15/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airbus Operations GmbH (Airbus SE)
• Original Assignee: Airbus Operations GmbH (Airbus SE)
• Inventors: Holzer, Werner
• Primary Examiner(s): Marc, McDieunel
• Application Number:
  US13/140,267
• Publication Number:
  US 20110270482A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,398 Days
• Field of Search: 701/29, 701/29.4, 340/30, 340/571.1, 340/945, 235/439, 235/449, 429/143, 429/147, 700/79, 714/3, 714/37, 622/383
• US Class Current: 701/29.4
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4184 characterised by fault tolerance, reliability of production system
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32234 Maintenance planning
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32235 Sharing of data between process control and maintenance management computers
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32408 Case based diagnosis to assist decision maker, operator
• 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]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

A maintenance system for generating maintenance instructions for at least one system, the maintenance system having a plurality of system components set up to receive operating data for a system from a central control unit of the system, to use said data to identify a fault of a system component, to compare the fault with predefined known faults and to retrieve maintenance operations which have already been carried out or are predefined and are correlated with the known faults from a main memory and to select a maintenance operation which correlates with the identified fault in order to rectify the fault and to output the operation as a maintenance instruction. A method for planning maintenance operations has steps of monitoring the systems for faults and generating a maintenance instruction.

Claims

1. A maintenance system for generating maintenance information on at least one system that contains several system components, comprising

at least one arithmetic unit;

and

at least one input/output means;

wherein the maintenance system is configured for receiving operational data of a system from a central control unit of the system;

wherein the maintenance system is configured for identifying a fault of a system component based on the operational data;

wherein the maintenance system is configured for comparing the identified fault with predefined known faults;

wherein the maintenance system is configured for retrieving already performed or predefined maintenance operations that are correlated to the known faults from a random access memory, as well as for selecting and outputting as maintenance information a maintenance operation that is correlated to the identified fault in order to correct the fault; and

wherein the maintenance system is further configured for determining the replacement of a system component and the correction of an identified fault.

2. The maintenance system of claim 1, further configured for identifying the fault of the system component by comparing fault data of the central control unit received via the input/output means or operational data of the central control unit with known fault data or operational data that is linked to faults and made available in the maintenance system.

3. The maintenance system of claim 1, further configured for being connected to a maintenance terminal in order to output maintenance information.

4. The maintenance system of claim 1, further configured for identifying by the arithmetic unit whether a system component has been replaced by comparing operational data received via the input/output means with older operational data.

5. A method for planning maintenance operations of a system, comprising the steps:

monitoring the system for faults;

generating, by a processor, maintenance information that contains information on a maintenance operation to be carried out if a fault occurs, wherein a maintenance operation that is correlated to the occurred fault and has the highest rating is selected from a rating table;

monitoring the system for replacement of system components as well as the correction of an identified fault subsequently; and

adapting the rating of the performed maintenance operation in the rating table in dependence on the status of the fault after the maintenance operation.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein every potential maintenance operation has a point rating in the rating table, wherein the point rating of a maintenance operation for correcting a fault is increased or decreased depending on the status of the fault after carrying out the maintenance operation.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein at least one maintenance operation has a point rating other than zero in the rating table.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the point rating of a maintenance operation for an occurred fault is increased if the maintenance operation results in correcting the fault.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein the point rating of a maintenance operation for an occurred fault is decreased if the maintenance operation does not result in correcting the fault.

10. The method of claim 5, wherein the method is carried out dynamically and continuously.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein a central maintenance system determines the replacement of a component of the system.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the central maintenance system determines the presence of all components of the system.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the system components of the system comprise an identification that is transmitted to the central maintenance system.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the central maintenance system identifies the system components of the system by means of an RFID scanner and RFID tags arranged on the system components.

15. The method of claim 5, wherein the central maintenance system communicates with a configuration system and data on system components installed in the system is transmitted.

16. A vehicle with a maintenance system for generating maintenance information on at least one system that contains several system components, comprising

at least one arithmetic unit;

and

at least one input/output means;

wherein the maintenance system is configured for receiving operational data of a system from a central control unit of the system;

wherein the maintenance system is further configured for identifying a fault of a system component based on the operational data;

wherein the maintenance system is further configured for comparing the identified fault with predefined known faults;

wherein the maintenance system is further configured for retrieving already performed or predefined maintenance operations that are correlated to the known faults from a random access memory, as well as for selecting and outputting as maintenance information a maintenance operation that is correlated to the identified fault in order to correct the fault; and

wherein the maintenance system is configured for determining the replacement of a system component and the correction of an identified fault.