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[Pages:42]REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE

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2 REPORT DATE

1994

4 TITLE AND SUBTITLE AN OVERVIEW OF HEALTH AND USAGE MONITORING SYSTEMS (HUMS) FOR MILITARY HELICOPTERS

3 TYPE/DATES COVERED 5 FUNDING NUMBERS

6 AUTHOR KF FR?SER

7 FORMING ORG NAMES/ADDRESSES DEEFENCE SCIENCE AND

8 PERFORMING ORG. REEQRT NO

TECHNOLOGY ORGANIZATION .AERONAUTICAL AND

MARTIME RESEARCH LABORATORY, PO BOX 4331, 0$t* ELECT ??

VICTORIA 3001 AUSTRALIA

ti^ iflHB3l99

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11 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES

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13 ABSTRACT (MAX 200 WORDS): THE APPLICATION OF HUMS FOR MILITARY HELICOPTERS IS LAGGING THAT FOR CIVIL HELICOPTERS BUT MILITARY OPERATORS ARE SERIOUSLY EXAMINING THE EFFECTIVEENESS OF SUCH SYSTEMS FOR THEIR FLEETS.

THE MATERIAL PRESENTED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS BASED MAINLY ON THE AUHOR'S RECENT DISCUSSIONS WITH RESEARCHERS, MANUFACTURERS AND MILITARY OPERATORS. IT OUTLINES SOME OF THE IMPORTANT ISSUES WHICH OPERATORS FACE AND SOME INITIATIVES IN THE AREA..

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bT

r

An Overview of Health and Usage

Monitoring Systems (HUMS)

for Military Helicopters

K.F. Fr?ser

^

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE DEFENCE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ORGANISATION

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An Overview of Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) for Military Helicopters

Accesion For

K.F. Fr?ser

NTIS CRA&I DTIC TAB

Unannounced

D

Justification

Airframes and Engines Division Aeronautical and Maritime Research Laboratory By.

Distribution /

DSTO-TR-0061

Availability Codes

Avail and/or

Dist

Special

ABSTRACT

d

The application of HUMS for military helicopters is lagging that for civil helicopters, but military operators are seriously examining the effectiveness of such systems for their fleets. The material presented in this document is based mainly on the author's recent discussions with researchers, manufacturers and military operators. It outlines some of the important issues which operators face

and some initiatives in the area.

K?DS

Approved for public release

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE DEFENCE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ORGANISATION

19950118 064

Published by DSTO Aeronautical and Maritime Research Laboratory PO Box 4331 Melbourne Victoria 3001 Australia Telephone: (03) 626 7000 Fax: (03)626 7999 ? Commonwealth of Australia 1994 AR No. 008-923 September 1994

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Author

K.F. Fr?ser

Airframes and Engines Division

Mr Ken Fr?ser joined the Aeronautical Research Laboratory (as it was then known) in 1959 after graduating with honours from the University of Melbourne with a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering Degree. Since that time he has worked in various aeronautical fields including crash data recording, weapon kinematics, turbine engine health monitoring, turbine engine control and helicopter life assessment. He was involved in the development and flight demonstration of the world-first "black-box" aircraft crash data recorder which recorded cockpit voice and flight data on a magnetic wire medium. He developed a system for in-flight monitoring of the accumulated fatigue damage to heavily loaded helicopter gears; it was the first time a full fatigue damage calculation, which included component strength characteristics, had been performed during flight in a helicopter. Currently he is a Principal Research Scientist who manages helicopter fatigue life assessment work (structural and mechanical) undertaken by the laboratory on behalf of the Australian Defence Force. He pioneered the setting up , and is now a member, of an Australian Defence Organisation (including all three Services) Working Party which is providing guidance on the applicability of accident data recorders and HUMS (Health and Usage Monitoring Systems) to Australian Defence Force helicopters.

An Overview of Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) for Military Helicopters

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. The Report draws together insights gained from an examination of specialist views on the application of Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) to military helicopters. These views were conveyed in discussions or correspondence with the author or in published works. Special attention is given to the views expressed by various manufacturers and military operators in the USA and the UK.

2. Multi-function systems now coming into service in some civil helicopters combine the functions of accident data recording and HUMS using common equipment. Similar systems are on order by some military operators and are being evaluated by others.

3. HUMS health monitoring technologies for the transmission and engine systems are fairly mature, and selected technologies are incorporated in current commercial HUMS. Rotor track and balance is also well handled in these HUMS but diagnosis of other rotor system faults has been identified as an area requiring much more research and development. The verification of health diagnostics and the development of a suitable means of interfacing with military aircraft maintainers continue to be health monitoring areas requiring much more attention.

4. HUMS usage monitoring has received far less attention than health monitoring. This appears to have occurred because the main emphasis to this time, for civil helicopters, has been on airworthiness aspects rather than cost benefits. Usage monitoring in currently available HUMS is limited to exceedance monitoring. Usage monitoring appears to be regarded as being more important for military than for civil operators, probably because there is a perception that, in general, military operations are more severe and more difficult to quantify than civil operations.

5. Military operators see great airworthiness benefit from health and usage monitoring techniques which provide warnings of impending failures and ensure that fatigue life-limited components are replaced before the risk of failure becomes unacceptable, but consider the fitting of HUMS can only be justified if quantifiable cost benefits can be demonstrated.

6. A major concern of military operators is that HUMS will become a large generator of data requiring an unacceptably high level of ground support. The development and implementation of improved information management strategies which address the specific requirements of the military environment are considered to be essential. The use of advanced information management methods, such as artificial intelligence techniques, is being actively pursued by some leading HUMS developers.

\ , 7. Research currently being undertaken on the synthesis of loads on rotating components from loads measured in the static system, may overcome some of the major concerns relating to the practicality of measuring important structural loads in the operational environment. The synthesis technique provides significant scope to place load sensors in benign locations and to minimise the number of sensors required. Developments in this area are likely to influence the technologies adopted for HUMS structural usage monitoring in the longer term. 8. A number of military working groups have been set up to investigate effectiveness or implementation issues for HUMS and accident data recorders. 9. Collaborative arrangements have been established under The Technical Cooperation Program, in the area of effectiveness of HUMS in the military environment.

VI

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CONTENTS

ABBREVIATIONS

viii

1. INTRODUCTION

1

2. ACCIDENT DATA RECORDING

2

3. HEALTH AND USAGE MONITORING SYSTEMS (HUMS)

4

3.1 General

4

3.2 Health Monitoring Issues

4

3.2.1 Engines

4

3.2.2 Transmission System

5

3.2.3 Structural Components

7

3.3 Usage Monitoring Issues

9

3.3.1 Engines

10

3.3.2 Transmission System

10

3.3.3 Structural Components

11

3.4 System Issues

15

3.4.1 Integration Benefits

15

3.4.2 System Configuration Options

15

3.4.3 Extent of In-Flight Processing

16

3.4.4 Monitoring System Reliability

16

3.4.5 Cost Effectiveness

16

3.4.6 Information Management

17

3.4.7 Other

18

4. MILITARY INITIATIVES

18

5. CONCLUSIONS

20

REFERENCES

22

ANNEX A: TTCP HTP-7 COLLABORATIVE STUDY ASSIGNMENT

25

DISTRIBUTION

DOCUMENT CONTROL DATA

vii

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