Air Vehicle Diagnostic System Technology Demonstration Program

The Air Vehicle Diagnostic System Technology Demonstration Program was a Navy sponsored project to apply emerging technologies for an advanced helicopter health and usage monitoring system. The objective was to demonstrate the technical feasibility of high risk and potentially high payoff technologies at full-scale levels in a realistic operational environment. Emphasis was on applying artificial neural network technology and advanced sensor concepts for onboard real time diagnostics to warn of incipient catastrophic failures. Three primary areas were addressed, neural network drivetrain diagnostics, optical oil debris monitoring and comprehensive rotor system monitoring. Ground testing and flight tests on an SH-60 and two CH-46 helicopters was accomplished. Results show that artificial neural networks are a powerful tool that can be used with existing diagnostic techniques to significantly enhance the capabilities of currently fielded helicopter health and usage monitoring systems.