Computerized method for integration and facilitating single source access to user community messaging transport vehicle location status, vehicle maintenance requirement and service procedures

• US 7,069,121 B1
• Filed: 08/05/2005
• Issued: 06/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: American Airlines Incorporated (American Airlines Group Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: American Airlines Incorporated (American Airlines Group Incorporated)
• Inventors: Cummings, Joe Lynn Jr., Wander, Kyle E., Vedda, James N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Camby, Richard M.
• Application Number:
  US11/198,616
• Time in Patent Office: 326 Days
• Field of Search: 701/1, 701/3, 701/29, 701/30, 701/31, 701/33, 701/35, 701/213, 701/208, 701/207, 701/209, 701/210, 340/825.49, 3423571-35713, 307/9.1
• US Class Current: 701/3
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 23/00 Combined instruments indicating more than one navigational value, e.g. for aircraft; Combined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement, e.g. distance, speed or acceleration
• 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: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/00 Traffic control systems for aircraft , e.g. air-traffic control [ATC]
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0095 Aspects of air-traffic control not provided for in the other subgroups of this main group

Abstract

A computerized method for integrating and facilitating single source access to user community messaging transport vehicle location and vehicle maintenance and requirements and servicing procedures comprised of a plurality of databases and proprietary software systems which are accessed through a web portal application eliminating the need for arduous and extensive knowledge of input entry format with respect to database/proprietary system utilization.

Claims

1. A computerized method for integrating and facilitating single source access to user community messaging, transport vehicle location status and vehicle maintenance requirements and servicing procedures comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a first database containing transport vehicle maintenance records and service requirements relating to one or more uniquely identifiable transport vehicles;

(b) providing one or more first host central processing units executing transport vehicle maintenance software, the host central processing unit and software in communication with the database of (a);

(c) providing one or more web-portal central processing units executing web-portal software in communication with an identifiable user community, the database of (a) and the one or more first host central processing units of (b);

(d) providing one or more transportable central processing units accommodated and positioned within a transport vehicle, the one or more transportable central processing units executing software in communication with the one or more first host central processing units and software of (b);

(e) providing one or more transportable central processing units accommodated and positioned geographically distant from the transport vehicle of (d), the one or more transportable central processing units executing user community software in communication with the web-portal central processing unit and web-portal software of (c);

(f) communicating a transport vehicle maintenance information request via the user community software of (e) from one or more users defined within the community of (c) to the web-portal software of (c) causing the web-portal software to access the databases of (a) and (b);

(g) interrogating the database of (a) in response to the user information request of (f); and

(h) formatting the interrogated information of the database of (a) responsive to the user input request of (f) and communicating the formatted information to one or more users defined within the community of (c).

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the web portal software is further in communication with the host central processing unit executing first transfer vehicle maintenance software.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the first provided database containing selective transport vehicle service records requirements relating to one or more uniquely identifiable transport vehicles is a segregated plurality of databases with each database of said plurality in communication with a uniquely identifiable host central processing unit.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising the providing of at least one second database containing maintenance procedures relevant to the uniquely identifiable transport vehicle of claim 1(a).

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising the providing of one or more third databases containing transport vehicle origination, destination and statusing information.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein communicating a transport vehicle maintenance information request from one or users defined within the community of claim 1(c) to the web-portal software further comprises:

(a) selecting an information action to be taken via the user community software from the group of actions including, Request Maintenance History for an Aircraft (KVA/DAYS/AIRCRAFT/SYSTEM/STATUS/PRIORITY), Request Open Maintenance Items for An Aircraft (RGMN AIRCRAFT), Request Flight Plan for the Aircraft for the next 3 Days (RGA Aircraft F3), Request Detailed Flight Information (FIL FLIGHT #), View Overnight Workload Schedule for an Aircraft (EW*STATION AIRCRAFT), Accomplish Overnight Workload Item (EJTA Aircraft Station Date JobName), Defer Overnight Workload Item (EWX Aircraft JobName Station Date), Add Part Number Reference to Maintenance Record Item (KP Part Number), Add Deferral Reason to Maintenance Record Item (KD Deferral Reason), Add Information Line to Maintenance Record Item (KI Text), Add Position Code to Maintenance Record Item (KPC PositionCode), Display an individual Maintenance Record Item (K* Record Number), Save an individual Maintenance Record Item (KET), Ignore Changes to a Maintenance Record Item (KIG), View Aircraft Configuration (JDM* Aircraft Number), View Engineering Change Orders for an Aircraft (M3P* Aircraft Number), View Inbound Flights to an Airport (RGS Airport), View Detailed Gate Activity for a single gate in an airport (RGT Airport Gate), View Flight Status Information (FL Flight Number), View Cancellations at a single Airport (XI*Airport), View Maintenance Delays at a single Airport (DJD Date 44-54/72/75 Airport), View Weather at an Airport (SLTD Airport), View Out-of-Service information for a single Aircraft (RGO*Aircraft), View Part Information (includes description &

inventory) (MOC*Part #), and Defer a Maintenance Item on the MEL List (ROP) Aircraft System Station Flight Position DispatcherCode Comment;

(b) parsing information action presented to the web-portal software from one or more users defined within the community of claim 1(c) and constructing an input entry recognizable by the transport vehicle software of claim 1(b) and communicating the input entry constructed to the transport vehicle software executing within the host processing unit(s) of claim 1(b);

(c) executing the communicated entry of (b) and interrogating the information derived therefrom;

(d) formatting the interrogated information of (c) by the web-portal software of claim 1(c) into a format recognizable to the user community software; and

(e) communicating the formatted information of (d) from the web-portal software to the user community of claim 1(e).

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

(a) communicating a transport vehicle maintenance requirement from a transportable central processing unit accommodated and positioned within a transport vehicle to the database of claim 1(a) via the host central processing unit and software of claim 1(b);

(b) deriving an input entry recognizable to the transport vehicle software of claim 1(b);

(c) executing the derived entry of (b) and interrogating the information resulting therefrom;

(d) formatting the resulting information of (c) into a format recognizable to transportable central processing unit accommodated and positioned within a transport vehicle; and

(e) communicating the formatted information of (d) from the host central processing unit and software of claim 1(b) to the web-portal software to the transportable central processing unit accommodated and positioned within the transport vehicle of (d).

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the provided one or more host central processing units and transport vehicle maintenance software are central processing units and proprietary software of American Airlines.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein said software is the American Airlines Sabre®

system, associated databases and communications protocols associated therewith.

8. A computerized method for integrating and facilitating single source access to user community messaging, transport vehicle location status (gates) and vehicle maintenance requirements and servicing procedures comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a first database containing transport vehicle maintenance records and service requirements relating to one or more uniquely identifiable transport vehicles;

(b) providing one or more first host central processing unit executing transport vehicle maintenance software, the host central processing unit and software in communication with the database of (a);

(c) providing one or more web-portal central processing units executing web-portal software in communication with an identifiable user community, the database of (a) and the one or more first host central processing units of (b);

(d) providing one or more transportable central processing units accommodated and positioned within a transport vehicle, the one or more transportable central processing units executing software in communication with the one or more first host central processing units and software of (b);

(e) providing one or more transportable central processing units accommodated and positioned geographically distant from the transport vehicle of (d), the one or more transportable central processing units executing user community software in communication with the web-portal central processing unit and web-portal software of (c);

(f) selecting an information action to be taken via the user community software from the group of actions including, Request Maintenance History for an Aircraft (KVA/DAYS/AIRCRAFT/SYSTEM/STATUS/PRIORITY), Request Open Maintenance Items for An Aircraft (RGMN AIRCRAFT), Request Flight Plan for the Aircraft for the next 3 Days (RGA Aircraft F3), Request Detailed Flight Information (FIL FLIGHT #), View Overnight Workload Schedule for an Aircraft (EW*STATION AIRCRAFT), Accomplish Overnight Workload Item (EJTA Aircraft Station Date JobName), Defer Overnight Workload Item (EWX Aircraft JobName Station Date), Add Part Number Reference to Maintenance Record Item (KP Part Number), Add Deferral Reason to Maintenance Record Item (KD Deferral Reason), Add Information Line to Maintenance Record Item (KI Text), Add Position Code to Maintenance Record Item (KPC PositionCode), Display an individual Maintenance Record Item (K* Record Number), Save an individual Maintenance Record Item (KET), Ignore Changes to a Maintenance Record Item (KIG), View Aircraft Configuration (JDM* Aircraft Number), View Engineering Change Orders for an Aircraft (M3P* Aircraft Number), View Inbound Flights to an Airport (RGS Airport), View Detailed Gate Activity for a single gate in an airport (RGT Airport Gate), View Flight Status Information (FL Flight Number), View Cancellations at a single Airport (XI*Airport), View Maintenance Delays at a single Airport (DJD Date 44-54/72/75 Airport), View Weather at an Airport (SLTD Airport), View Out-of-Service information for a single Aircraft (RGO*Aircraft), View Part Information (includes description &

inventory) (MOC*Part #), and Defer a Maintenance Item on the MEL List (ROP) Aircraft System Station Flight Position DispatcherCode Comment;

(g) parsing information action presented to the web-portal software from one or more users defined within the community of (c) and constructing an input entry recognizable by the transport vehicle software of (b) and communicating the input entry constructed to the transport vehicle software executing within the host processing unit(s) of (b);

(h) communicating the input entry constructed in (g) to the transport vehicle software executing within the host processing unit(s) of (b);

(i) executing the communicated entry of (h);

(j) interrogating the database of (a) in response to the user input entry executed in (i);

(k) formatting the interrogated information of (j) by the web-portal software into a format recognizable to the user community software of (e); and

(l) communicating the formatted information of (k) from the web-portal software to the user community software of (e).

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the web portal software is further in communication with the database of (a) and host central processing unit executing first proprietary maintenance software.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

(a) communicating a transport vehicle maintenance requirement from a transportable central processing unit accommodated and positioned within a transport vehicle to the database of claim 8(a) via the host central processing unit and software of claim 8(b);

(b) deriving an input entry recognizable to the transport vehicle software of 8(b);

(c) executing the derived entry of (b) and interrogating the information resulting therefrom;

(d) formatting the resulting information of (c) into a format recognizable to a transportable central processing unit accommodated and positioned within a transport vehicle; and

(e) communicating the formatted information of (d) from the host central processing unit and software of claim 8(b) to the web-portal software to the transportable central processing unit accommodated and positioned within the transport vehicle of (d).

13. The method of claim 8 wherein the provided one or more host central processing units and transport vehicle maintenance software are central processing units and proprietary software of American Airlines.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein said software is the American Airlines Sabre®

system, associated databases and communications protocols associated therewith.