|Publication number||US7814369 B2|
|Application number||US 12/138,254|
|Publication date||Oct 12, 2010|
|Filing date||Jun 12, 2008|
|Priority date||Jun 12, 2008|
|Also published as||EP2141595A2, EP2141595A3, US20090313505|
|Publication number||12138254, 138254, US 7814369 B2, US 7814369B2, US-B2-7814369, US7814369 B2, US7814369B2|
|Inventors||Robert C. McCroskey, Kyusung Kim|
|Original Assignee||Honeywell International Inc.|
|Export Citation||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Patent Citations (16), Non-Patent Citations (1), Classifications (9), Legal Events (2)|
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet|
The present invention generally relates to diagnostics for an electronic system, and more particularly relates to a system and method for detecting combinations of performance indicators associated with a root cause.
Modern complex electronic systems, such as the types that are used in avionics, typically have extensive self-test capabilities called Built-In-Test (BIT). BIT allows these systems to test the functionality of their critical components and to report negative test results in the form of a BIT error code. A technician or other personnel may decide whether the electronic system is in need of any maintenance based on these BIT error codes. BIT and other error code generating procedures allow electronic systems to provide notification of any operational failures, thus permitting these issues to be addressed and corrected.
One issue that often arises with electronic systems that are configured with BIT is a high rate of false alarms. A false alarm occurs when the electronic system reports one or more negative BIT error codes but there is no fault found when the electronic system is taken to a repair facility and subject to diagnostic procedures. In such circumstances, these BIT false alarms might result in the removal of an electronic system that is functioning properly. In extreme cases, where the use of BIT on an electronic system results in a high rate of BIT false alarms, the utility of this self-testing capability in discovering operational failures of an electrical system is reduced.
Further, a given electronic system may comprise a plurality of subcomponents, each configured to test their own functionality and report the results in the form of a BIT error code. In this case, when the electronic system experiences a system level fault, such as a power failure, a large number of BIT error codes may generated by each one of these subcomponents and reported by the electronic system. This may result in a large number of BIT error codes thus making it difficult to diagnose the operational failure.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a system and method for identifying specific failure modes for an electronic device based on an error code. In addition, it is also desirable to identify false alarms for an electronic device based on an error code. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.
A method is provided for detecting combinations of performance indicators that are associated with a root cause. The method comprises storing a plurality of error codes, each representative of at least one performance indicator, storing descriptive data associated with each of the plurality of error codes, storing a plurality of root causes, each associated with descriptive data that corresponds to the descriptive data of the plurality of error codes, identifying the error codes from the plurality of error codes that correspond to at least one of the plurality of root causes, and analyzing the error codes that correspond to at least one root cause to determine combinations of performance indicators that are associated with the root cause.
The present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote like elements, and
The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of the invention. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory presented in the preceding background or the following detailed description.
The error code database 14 comprises a plurality of error codes and descriptive data. As used herein, the term “error code” refers to a collection of one or more performance indicators. The error codes are generated by an electronic system to provide notification of one or more failures in its operational state. For example, the electronic system may be configured to test its own functionality (e.g., Built-in-Test) and report any negative test results in the form of one or more BIT error codes. In this case, each test may be associated with a symbol (e.g., “A”, “B”, “C”, etc.) so that the BIT error code comprising performance indicators A, B, D indicates that the electronic system received negative results for those tests. The electronic system may be any electronic system that is capable of generating data regarding its operational state. In one embodiment, the electronic system comprises a Line Replaceable Unit (LRU) for use on an aircraft. An aircraft may include a plurality of distinct LRUs that can be easily removed and replaced when an operational failure is detected.
The root cause database 16 includes a plurality of root causes and descriptive data that uniquely identifies each root cause. As used herein, the term “root cause” refers to a general description of one of the primary failure modes for an electronic system. The root causes are not specific descriptions of the cause of a failure of an electronic system, but rather broad descriptions into which one or more specific failures may be categorized. For example, if an electronic system fails because one or more of its capacitors is faulty, the root cause for that failure might be “Capacitor Failure” without regard for the identity of the faulty capacitor or the nature of its operational failure. Other possible root causes include “Power Supply Failure” to identify instances in which an electronic system failed due to a fault in its power supply and “No Fault Found” to identify instances in which an electronic system generated an error code, but no operational failure was discovered. Although three exemplary root causes are described above, it should be noted that an electronic system may have many root causes that are different from and/or in addition to those described.
In addition, the error code database 14 and the root cause database 16 include descriptive data. The content of the descriptive data is sufficient to uniquely identify each error code and a corresponding root cause as further described below. For example, the descriptive data may comprise a module identifier. The module identifier may be any value or collection of values (e.g., a part number and a serial number) that uniquely identify a specific electronic system. In addition, the descriptive data may also include a timestamp. The timestamps in the error code database 14 may correspond to the date and time that the error code was reported whereas the timestamps in the root cause database 16 may correspond to the date and time that the electronic system was received, or repaired, at the repair facility. These timestamps may be used to differentiate between error codes and root causes that have the same module identifier in the case where an electronic system generates more than one of the error codes stored in the error code database 14.
The processor 12 may comprise one or more microprocessors or any other type of processing unit that is known by one who is skilled in the art. As further described below, the processor 12 receives data from the error code database 14 and the root cause database 16 and associates corresponding error codes and root causes with one another based on the descriptive data. Processor 12 then analyzes the associated error codes and root causes to detect combinations of performance indicators that are associated with at least one root cause and stores this information in memory 18.
The error code database is generated during step 102. As described above, the error code database comprises a plurality of error codes and their associated descriptive data. The information in the error code database is obtained from historical error code information generated by a specific type of electronic system. For example, a particular type of LRU on an aircraft that is equipped to test its critical components (e.g., using BIT) may report one of more failed tests in the form of a BIT error code. These BIT error codes are stored along with additional information, including a module identifier for the LRU and a timestamp representing the date and time that the BIT error code was generated, as error code information. Similar error code information for LRUs of the same type that have generated BIT error codes during a specific time period is compiled as historical error code information during step 102.
The error codes and descriptive data are then extracted from the historical error code information, if necessary, to create the error code database. For example, the historical error code information may be stored as one or more HTML documents and/or in more than one database. In this case, a processor (e.g., the processor 12 of
The historical repair data is analyzed to determine the primary failure modes for the electronic system. Root causes are generated to describe each one of these primary failure modes. The choice of the type and number of root causes to generate will depend on the specific electronic system as well as other factors, such as amount of historical repair data that is available and the level of detail that is required to adequately describe the primary failure modes of the electronic system. For example, in some embodiment the primary failure modes of the electronic system may be adequately described using general root causes (e.g., “Capacitor Failure”), while in other embodiments more specific root causes (e.g., “RF Capacitor Failure” or “C123 Capacitor Failure”) may be required. Each record of the historical repair data is analyzed and assigned a root cause based on the operational failure that was recorded at the repair facility. For example, the root cause “Capacitor Failure” might be associated with each record of the historical repair data for which the operational failure indicated a fault with a capacitor of the electronic system. Further, the root cause “Power Supply Failure” might be associated with each record of the historical repair data for which the operational failure indicated a fault with the power supply of the electronic system. On the other hand, the root cause “No Fault Found” would be associated with each record of the historical error code information for which no operational failure could be diagnosed at the repair facility. In this sense, root cause “No Fault Found” is distinct from the other root causes in that it is not indicative of a particular operational failure of the electronic system.
With reference to
For example, during step 106 (
Next, the processor identifies module identifier M1:S24 that corresponds to error code “D, E, F” in the error code database 200 and searches for that module identifier in the root cause database 210. In this case, M1:S24 is not found in the root cause database 210. Thus, the processor does not store the error code “D, E, F” in the error code/root cause database 220.
The processor then identifies the next module identifier M1:S2 that corresponds to error code “B, G, W” in the error code database 200 and searches for that module identifier in the root cause database 210. As shown, M1:S2 corresponds to two root cause candidates “Power Supply Failure” and “No Fault Found” in the root cause database 210. In this case, the processor compares the timestamp 206 for error code “B, G, W” (e.g., 10/15/2003 9:45 AM) to the timestamps 216 for both root cause candidates to determine which is closer. In this case, the timestamp for the root cause “Power Supply Failure” (e.g., 10/20/2003 3:45 PM) is closer and the processor associates the error code “B, G, W” with the root cause “Power Supply Failure” in the error code/root cause database 220. In addition, in some embodiments the processor determines the difference between the timestamp for error code “B, G, W” and the timestamp for the corresponding root cause “Power Supply Failure” to ensure that it does not exceed a predetermined threshold. This process continues until each associated error code 202 and root cause 212 have been detected and stored in the error code/root cause database 220.
Referring now to
The strength of a combination of performance indicators as predictor for a specific root cause is expressed as a percentage representing how often that combination of performance indicators is found in error codes for the root cause (hereinafter referred to as the “detection rate”) and a percentage representing how often the same combination is found in error codes that correspond to the other root causes (hereinafter referred to as the “erroneous detection rate”). A combination of performance indicators that has a high detection rate for a particular root cause and a low erroneous detection rate would be considered a strong predictor. Conversely, a combination that has a low detection rate for a particular root cause and a high erroneous detection rate would be a weak predictor.
For example, during step 108, the processor would analyze the error codes for the first group 226 and detect any combinations of performance indicators that are associated with each of these error codes. In the depicted embodiment, combination “A & D” is associated with each of the error codes in group 226. The processor then analyzes the error codes for groups 228 and 230 and determines whether the combination A & D is present in those error codes. In this case, A & D is not present in any of the error codes for groups 228 and 230 and the processor determines that combination of performance indicators A & D has a 100% detection rate and a 0% erroneous detection rate for root cause “Capacitor Failure.”
Similarly, the processor may analyze the error codes for the second group 228 and detect that the combination of performance indicators G|H corresponds to each. The processor then analyzes the error codes for groups 226 and 230 to determine if combination G|H corresponds to any of the error codes in that group. In this case, performance indicator G occurs in one of the error codes associated with root cause “No Fault Found” or in one out of the nine error codes in groups 226 and 230. Thus, in this case the processor determines that the combination of performance indicators G|H has a 100% detection rate and an 20% (e.g., one-fifth) erroneous detection rate for the root cause “Power Supply Failure.”
A similar process may be used to analyze the error codes for the third group 230 that are associated with root cause “No Fault Found.” Any combination of performance indicators that are identified as predictors for root cause “No Fault Found” may be used in the future to identify instances in which an electronic system generates a false alarm even though it has no operational failure. This could prevent the removal and replacement of an electronic system that is functioning properly, which would reduce the costs associated with maintaining the electronic system.
It should be noted that the strength or weakness of a combination of performance indicators as a predictor of a root cause will also depend on a plurality of other factors. One such factor is the size and completeness of the data in the error code/root cause database 220. In general, combinations of performance indicators that are determined by analyzing an error code/root cause database 220 containing a large amount of data or a substantial portion of the error codes that have been generated by a certain type of electronic device will be stronger predictors than combinations of performance indicators that are determined by analyzing an error code/root cause database 220 that includes a small amount of data or a small portion of the error codes that have been generated by the type of electronic system in question.
While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in the foregoing detailed description of the invention, it should be appreciated that a vast number of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing an exemplary embodiment of the invention. It being understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements described in an exemplary embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.
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|U.S. Classification||714/26, 714/47.2|
|Cooperative Classification||G06F11/006, G06F11/079, G06F11/0739|
|European Classification||G06F11/07P1J1, G06F11/07P6, G06F11/00K|
|Jun 12, 2008||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC., NEW JERSEY
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:MCCROSKEY, ROBERT C.;KIM, KYUSUNG;REEL/FRAME:021089/0541
Effective date: 20080612
|Mar 26, 2014||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 4