A vehicle health monitoring system monitors the health of components for ground vehicles and accounts for the impact of changing engine RPM, a multi ratio gearbox, and the variable ratio encountered in vehicles having a differential. The vehicle health monitoring system may incorporate regime recognition that determines the vehicle state, e.g., the engine RPM, transmission gear ratio, whether its accelerating (or turning), so that a decision can be made whether the vehicle is in an appropriate regime for data acquisition for a monitored vehicle of the component, and if so, what type of configuration to use for analyzing the component for determining a condition indicator for that component. The configuration describes the ratio from a given tachometer to a shaft under analysis, and which, if any, gears/bearings are associated with the shaft.
G07C 5/08 - Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle, or waiting time
The magnitude and frequency of a peak in detected vibrational energy emitted from a component that includes a periodic portion is provided to monitor the component for faults. A Fast Fourier Transform of the signal is taken to generate a spectrum. A maximum index in the spectrum is found between a determined frequency bound. An array of parameters is generated and a determined optimized transform root is used on the array of parameters. An interpolated peak location is estimated based on the array and an interpolated frequency is found based on the peak location. An interpolated magnitude is then determined. The use of the optimized transform root in the processing results in significant improvements to the magnitude and frequency estimations, which can improve, for example, detection of defects from vibration spectra of rotating components, estimates of energy radiated from an electronic component, or analysis of spectral content of ionizing radiation.
G01P 15/097 - Measuring accelerationMeasuring decelerationMeasuring shock, i.e. sudden change of acceleration by making use of inertia forces with conversion into electric or magnetic values by vibratory elements
G06F 17/14 - Fourier, Walsh or analogous domain transformations
G01P 15/08 - Measuring accelerationMeasuring decelerationMeasuring shock, i.e. sudden change of acceleration by making use of inertia forces with conversion into electric or magnetic values
3.
System for detecting peaks in vibrational energy spectra
The magnitude and frequency of a peak in detected vibrational energy emitted from a component that includes a periodic portion is provided to monitor the component for faults. A Fast Fourier Transform of the signal is taken to generate a spectrum. A maximum index in the spectrum is found between a determined frequency bound. An array of parameters is generated and a determined optimized transform root is used on the array of parameters. An interpolated peak location is estimated based on the array and an interpolated frequency is found based on the peak location. An interpolated magnitude is then determined. The use of the optimized transform root in the processing results in significant improvements to the magnitude and frequency estimations, which can improve, for example, detection of defects from vibration spectra of rotating components, estimates of energy radiated from an electronic component, or analysis of spectral content of ionizing radiation.
G01P 15/097 - Measuring accelerationMeasuring decelerationMeasuring shock, i.e. sudden change of acceleration by making use of inertia forces with conversion into electric or magnetic values by vibratory elements
G06F 17/14 - Fourier, Walsh or analogous domain transformations
G01P 15/08 - Measuring accelerationMeasuring decelerationMeasuring shock, i.e. sudden change of acceleration by making use of inertia forces with conversion into electric or magnetic values
4.
Single sensor vibration monitoring of gas turbine components
Using tachometer-from-vibration processing of component signals and appropriate configuration allows for the analysis of both the compressor turbine and the power turbine of a turboshaft, turboprop, or twin spindle turbofan engine. One smart vibration sensor is positioned on or near the turbo engine and detects vibration data for components of both the gas compressor turbine and power turbine without the need for direct measurements of tachometer data from both the compressor and power turbine. From this, condition indicators are determined for monitored components on the sensor and returned to an onboard control unit.
Conditioning monitoring is provided for rotating components in gearboxes that accounts for gear system dynamics, allowing for improved analysis. A rotation rate for the component is generated from vibration data by estimating the rotation rate based on a tachometer measurement of another shaft and the shaft ratio. This estimated rotation rate is used, together with the known configuration of the component, to estimate a known gear mesh frequency of the component. By filtering for a range of frequencies around the gear mesh frequency based on variation in the shaft rate, the gear mesh frequency can be determined and from that signal, an actual rotation rate for the component can be determined. The actual or determined rotation rate can then be used in deriving an analytic vibration spectrum for the component that is not degraded due to gear system dynamics effects.
A system for determining a remaining useful life of a component is provided that includes an onboard control unit including a processor, a plurality of sensors to detect a plurality of signals from the component, and a data bus connecting the sensors to the onboard control unit. The processor receives data from the plurality of sensors and determines a plurality of condition indicators for the component, a health indicator from the plurality of condition indicators, and a remaining useful life for the component. An alert or warning may be given if the remaining useful life reaches a certain value provided that certain automated reporting conditions are also met.
G07C 5/08 - Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle, or waiting time
G07C 5/00 - Registering or indicating the working of vehicles
7.
Rotating body monitoring and alert system and method
A system and method as disclosed herein develops a predicted current remaining useful life (RUL) of a component through a generalized fault and usage model that is designed through a process of simplifying Paris' Law (or other power law) in conjunction with a Kalman Smoother (or other filtering technique). One of the many advantages of this state observer technique is that the backward/forward filtering technique employed by the Kalman Smoother has no phase delay, which allows for the development of a generalized, zero tuning model that provides an improved component health trend, and therefore a better estimate of the predicted current RUL.
A system and method for generating a tachometer signal from a vibration sensor is disclosed in which an approximately idealized band pass filter is used along with a fast Fourier transform (FFT) to create a sufficient analytic signal to derive the tachometer signal for a shaft or other rotating component. In addition, jitter in the generated tachometer signal, or any tachometer signal, can be reduced by using an approximately idealized low pass filter and then transforming the filtered signal using a real FFT. These processes can be performed using a smart vibration sensor, which facilitates improved vibration analysis on rotating equipment where in the past the addition of a tachometer would be prohibitive due to cost, weight, certification requirements, or physical impracticality.
Assessing and removing jitter from tachometer signals enhances the performance of condition monitoring systems where accurate tachometer signals are needed. A system as disclosed herein can be designed and configured to have a low order of operations, so as to allow for implementation on low cost microcontrollers, which can be important for bused, distributed monitoring systems in which the tachometer zero crossing data is collected at a tachometer sensor and then broadcast to other remote sensors needing that information for vibration or other advanced analysis. Moreover, for monolithic architecture systems (e.g., a centralized processing and control architecture), the low order of operation and small software code base allows the system to be a simple/low cost addition to existing monitoring systems.
An integrated hanger bearing monitor is provided for reducing installation time and added weight that includes a sensor and an interconnect on a mounting bracket that is sized and configured to be attached to a hanger bearing mounting bracket via connectors that mount the hanger bearing mounting bracket to the helicopter.
G07C 5/08 - Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle, or waiting time
F16C 19/52 - Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement with devices affected by abnormal or undesired conditions
B64D 1/08 - Dropping, ejecting, or releasing articles the articles being load-carrying devices
F16C 35/04 - Rigid support of bearing unitsHousings, e.g. caps, covers in the case of ball or roller bearings
B64F 5/60 - Testing or inspecting aircraft components or systems
B64D 45/00 - Aircraft indicators or protectors not otherwise provided for
11.
Tachometer signal jitter reduction system and method
Assessing and removing jitter from tachometer signals enhances the performance of condition monitoring systems where accurate tachometer signals are needed. A system as disclosed herein can be designed and configured to have a low order of operations, so as to allow for implementation on low cost microcontrollers, which can be important for bused, distributed monitoring systems in which the tachometer zero crossing data is collected at a tachometer sensor and then broadcast to other remote sensors needing that information for vibration or other advanced analysis. Moreover, for monolithic architecture systems (e.g., a centralized processing and control architecture), the low order of operation and small software code base allows the system to be a simple/low cost addition to existing monitoring systems.
A system and method as disclosed herein develops a predicted current remaining useful life (RUL) of a component through a generalized fault and usage model that is designed through a process of simplifying Paris' Law (or other power law) in conjunction with a Kalman Smoother (or other filtering technique). One of the many advantages of this state observer technique is that the backward/forward filtering technique employed by the Kalman Smoother has no phase delay, which allows for the development of a generalized, zero tuning model that provides an improved component health trend, and therefore a better estimate of the predicted current RUL.
patents