Core Avionics Master Plan - NAVAIR - U.S. Navy

Core Avionics Master Plan 2011 Appendix A-5E. Component Health Monitoring. The component health monitoring capabilityelement addresses systems that capture indications of the performance and integrity ofmajor dynamic components on the airframe.1. Current capabilities.Most Naval Aviation aircraft incorporate some form of health monitoring capability.Many of these systems are unique and are often managed by platform prime vendors.They are primarily used to record operating time against forecasted airframe fatigue life.Some take selected measurements of key component attributes, or record equivalentstrain and stress counts for engineering calculations of structural life usage. Manylegacy platform maintenance schedules are built around operating time instead of actualcomponent health degradation or evidence of potential impending failure. TheIntegrated Mechanical Diagnostic and Health and Usage Monitoring System (IMDHUMS) is used on both rotary and fixed wing aircraft and assists with maintenancecheck flights, warns of potential defects, tracks operational and structural life usage, andrecords exceedances. Some systems track component vibration signatures to comparethem against known healthy or problem signatures. Some are also designed to analyzesignature change trends to alert maintainers to perform integrity inspections.2. Advanced Research and Technology Development.Sensor Improvements. (2010) This effort is a Small Business Innovative Research(SBIR) initiative that will evaluate the potential for benefits of incorporating microminiaturewireless sensors into health monitoring systems. Wireless components couldbe more easily and cost-effectively fitted to locations that cannot be connected to therecorder by wires. Other digital and material technology advancements are beingapplied to the aircraft and component health monitoring field. Sensors are detectingsignatures over larger frequency ranges with finer sensitivities. Filters are becomingmore capable at detecting smaller metal or composite traces. Some technology gainsare already being incorporated in unmanned aerial vehicles applications.3. Funded Enhancements and Potential Pursuits.Wireless Maintenance Information Download. (2012) Wireless download ofmaintenance diagnostic information will enable planners and ground crews toaccelerate aircraft turnaround for following missions. Wireless digital transmission willeliminate the need for additional classified handling equipment, avoid potential loss ofdata fidelity during manual transfer and enable maintainers to monitor airframeparameters that could prevent mishaps. JSF will field Prognostic Health Management(PHM) down-link capability Block II in support of mission sortie generation/readinessobjectives. Downloaded parameters will include fuel state, ammunition state,expendables state, and component health conditions requiring maintenance in order tominimize turnaround time. Real time, accurate PHM down-link of specific componentconditions supports Condition-Based Maintenance (CBM), which would significantlyenhance readiness by enabling maintainers to move from time-scheduled removals andinspections to removing items only when required. Removing components only whenthey have achieved their limit of safe operations within tolerances can also returnsignificant cost avoidances by extending the lives of the parts beyond their engineeringestimates, thereby reducing the costs of repairs or replacements. CBM may also resultin reduced requirements for spares inventories or deployed spare support footprints.A-5 Flight Safety 9