Work package 1 | Autonomous Sensor

Motivation

The transition to condition-based maintenance (CBM) aims to enable the optimization of aircraft component life utilisation, maintenance task planning and maintenance resource allocation. To this end, it is necessary to frequently monitor the health of individual components. However, available sensor systems on board currently operating aircraft are often only meant to ensure correct component operation. Therefore, they are insufficient or simply not suitable for determining the health status and the remaining useful life of components.

WP1 of the Hyperion project researches and develops autonomous sensing systems that can be retrofitted to currently operating aircraft to measure specific component parameters. The monitoring of these parameters will enable the detection and diagnosis of component degradation at an earlier stage, thereby triggering maintenance actions in an optimal window of opportunity and preventing total component failure. This will reduce maintenance costs and operational disturbances and increase fleet availability. Finally, the WP1 findings on CBM and component monitoring have the potential to contribute to innovation and improvements in future aircraft.

Goals

The WP1 partners (KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, NLR Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre and Royal Netherlands Air Force) will work towards the design, demonstration and certification of an autonomous sensing system for selected critical components. This encompasses the selection of component use-cases and candidate sensing systems, definition of sensing system requirements, design and assembly of prototype systems, definition of certification plan, testing and on-wing demonstration in test flights.