Metadata for software aircraft parts

• US 8,051,031 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2008
• Issued: 11/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Nguyen, Hai, Sims, John Benjamin III
• Primary Examiner(s): HICKS, MICHAEL J
• Application Number:
  US12/026,918
• Publication Number:
  US 20090198712A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,364 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 707/602
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3604 Software analysis for verifying properties of programs byte-code verification G06F9/44589
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/64 Retargetable

Abstract

A computer implemented method, apparatus, and computer usable program code for creating a data structure residing on a computer recordable medium for verifying whether a software aircraft part can be loaded. The data structure comprises a set of aircraft identification objects. An aircraft identification object within the set of aircraft identification objects contains a level of specificity about a set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part can be loaded. The set of aircraft identification objects are capable of being read from the computer recordable medium to verify whether the software aircraft part can be loaded in an aircraft.

Claims

1. A data structure residing on a tangible computer recordable medium for verifying whether a software aircraft part can be loaded, the data structure comprising:

a set of aircraft identification objects, wherein an aircraft identification object within the set of aircraft identification objects contains a level of specificity about a set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part can be loaded and wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are read by an aircraft data processing system of an avionics system within an aircraft from the tangible computer recordable medium to verify whether the software aircraft part can be loaded in the aircraft, and

a metadata file, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are stored on the metadata file, and wherein the set of aircraft identification objects includes information regarding at least one of aircraft major model, aircraft minor model, aircraft engine type, and aircraft tail number, wherein the metadata file is compared to information about the aircraft stored within the aircraft data processing system of the avionics system within the aircraft, and wherein the software aircraft part is loaded in the avionics system within the aircraft responsive to the comparison indicating that the software aircraft part can be loaded.

2. The data structure of claim 1, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are described using program code that is capable of being read by both a computer and a human when extracted from the computer recordable medium.

3. The data structure of claim 2, wherein the program code describing the set of aircraft identification objects take the form of an extensible markup language.

4. The data structure of claim 1, wherein the data structure is a metadata file.

5. The data structure of claim 1, wherein each aircraft identification object within the set of aircraft identification objects has a different level of specificity from another aircraft identification object within the set of aircraft identification objects.

6. The data structure of claim 1, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects described using program code are described using a schema and further comprising:

a pointer to a location of the schema.

7. The data structure of claim 1, wherein the software aircraft part is checked for suitability for use on a particular aircraft during a loading process, wherein the software aircraft part is loaded into a line replaceable unit if the software aircraft part is suitable for use.

8. The data structure of claim 1, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are written in an extensible markup language.

9. A computer implemented method for identifying usability of a software aircraft part in an aircraft, the computer implemented method comprising:

identifying a particular level of specificity needed to specify a set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part is usable;

creating a set of aircraft identification objects, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects contains a level of specificity about the set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part can be loaded, and wherein the set of aircraft identification objects includes information regarding at least one of aircraft major model, aircraft minor model, aircraft engine type, and aircraft tail number;

storing the set of aircraft identification objects on a metadata file;

extracting the set of aircraft identification objects by a data processing system from a computer recordable medium;

reading the set of aircraft identification objects by the aircraft data processing system of an avionics system within the aircraft;

comparing the set of aircraft identification objects to information about the aircraft stored in the aircraft data processing system located on the aircraft;

verifying whether the software aircraft part can be loaded onto the aircraft; and

loading the software aircraft part.

10. The computer implemented method of claim 9 further comprising:

determining whether to load the software aircraft part on the aircraft using the set of aircraft identification objects.

11. The computer implemented method of claim 9, wherein the creating step comprises:

creating the set of aircraft identification objects using a schema, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects contains the level of specificity about the set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part can be loaded and wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are capable of being extracted by the data processing system from the computer recordable medium to verify whether the software aircraft part can be loaded onto the aircraft; and

associating a pointer to the schema with the set of aircraft identification objects.

12. The computer implemented method of claim 9, wherein the software aircraft part is checked for suitability for use on a particular aircraft during a loading process, wherein the software aircraft part is loaded into a line replaceable unit if the software aircraft part is suitable for use.

13. The computer implemented method of claim 9, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are viewable by a human user on a display of the data processing system when the set of aircraft identification objects are extracted from the computer recordable medium.

14. A computer program product for verifying whether a software aircraft part can be loaded, the computer program product comprising:

a tangible computer recordable medium;

program code, stored on the tangible computer recordable medium, for identifying a particular level of specificity needed to specify a set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part is usable;

program code, stored on the tangible computer recordable medium, for creating a set of aircraft identification objects, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects contains a level of specificity about the set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part can be loaded, and wherein the set of aircraft identification objects includes information regarding at least one of aircraft major model, aircraft minor model, aircraft engine, and aircraft tail number;

storing the set of aircraft identification objects on a metadata file;

program code, stored on the tangible computer recordable medium, for extracting the set of aircraft identification objects by a data processing system from a computer recordable medium;

program code, stored on the tangible computer recordable medium, for reading the set of aircraft identification objects by the aircraft data processing system of an avionics system within the aircraft;

program code, stored on the tangible computer recordable medium, for comparing the set of aircraft identification objects to information about the aircraft stored in the aircraft data processing system located on the aircraft;

program code, stored on the tangible computer recordable medium, for verifying whether the software aircraft part can be loaded onto the aircraft; and

program code, stored on the tangible computer recordable medium, for loading the software aircraft part.

15. The computer program product of claim 14 further comprising:

program code, stored on the computer recordable medium, for determining whether to load the software aircraft part on the aircraft using the set of aircraft identification objects.

16. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the program code, stored on the computer recordable medium, for creating the set of aircraft identification objects comprises:

program code, stored on the computer recordable medium, for creating the set of aircraft identification objects using a schema, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects contains the level of specificity about the set of aircraft on which the software aircraft part can be loaded and wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are capable of being extracted by the data processing system from the computer recordable medium to verify whether the software aircraft part can be loaded onto the aircraft; and

program code, stored on the computer recordable medium, for associating a pointer to the schema with the set of aircraft identification objects.

17. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the set of aircraft identification objects are viewable by a human user on a display of the data processing system when the set of aircraft identification objects are extracted from the computer recordable medium.