PNNL

Abstract

The ultimate goal of most prognostic systems is accurate prediction of the remaining useful life of individual systems or components based on their use and performance. Traditionally, individual-based prognostic methods use a measure of degradation to make lifetime estimates. Degradation measures may include sensed measurements, such as temperature or vibration level, or inferred measurements, such as model residuals or physics-based model predictions. Often, it is beneficial to combine several measures of degradation into a single parameter. Parameter features such as trendability, monotonicity, and prognosability can be used to compare candidate prognostic parameters to determine which is most useful for individual-based prognosis. By quantifying these features for a given parameter, the metrics can be used with any traditional optimization technique to identify an appropriate parameter. This parameter may be used with a parametric extrapolation model to make prognostic estimates for an individual unit. The proposed methods are illustrated with an application to simulated turbofan engine data.