Abstract:

The purpose of this paper is to present a methodology and a supporting toolbox that identify information-based maintenance support services using an evaluation of the services' impacts on the effectiveness of complex technical systems. A hypothetical aircraft and its support system are simulated in SIMLOX. The variables included in the model, as well as their expected effects on critical measures of system-effectiveness, were identified through interviews and studies of documents and the literature. The simulations have been planned and analysed according to established Design of Experiment (DoE) principles supported by MATLAB. Microsoft Access and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET has been used to integrate SIMLOX and MATLAB. The outcome of the study was scrutinised by both practitioners and statisticians. The methodology and its toolbox are useful for those involved in simulation work or the development of information services that support maintenance activities. The proposed systematic methodology, along with its supporting toolbox, identifies information-based services that are currently lacking when applying a Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) approach during design and are considered valuable in identifying information-based maintenance support services within an eMaintenance solution.
Received on October 21, 2009, revised May 24, 2010
References: 31