Air vehicle integrated diagnostics

The BAE Systems air vehicle fault diagnostics team is extending its static post-flight diagnostics system to include a real-time in-flight diagnostics module. The existing post-flight diagnostics processing (PDP) module is a knowledge-based, rule-driven expert system that interprets the fault log after a flight. The proposed in-flight diagnostics processing (IDP) system will interpret the fault stream while the air vehicle is in flight. Intelligence built into the IDP system will enhance the capability of the post-flight diagnostics processing system with the collection of additional air vehicle data (e.g., current condition, environment data and mode of operation). The in-flight information collected determines the organizational level maintenance and logistics support resources required upon landing in order to facilitate faster air vehicle turnaround time. The goal of this paper is to discuss the functional elements of the two systems as an integrated system within the open system approach integrated diagnostics (OSAID) model in order to develop an intelligent diagnostics solution.