Damage Tracking for Helicopters

To permit more accurate gauging of the fatigue life of rotorcraft rotor assembly components, International Electronic Machines (IEM), a leader in rugged sensor design for safety and maintenance, proposes the design of the MEMS-based Integrated Strain Tracking System. Due to the small rotor component sizes and the necessity that the sensors not interfere with rotorcraft operation, some form of MEMS (Microelectromechanical systems) technology must be used. IEM will use an innovative ultraminiature RF passive/active tag approach which will remove the need for power sources on-board the sensors (power provided by interrogating transceivers). In Phase I, IEM, assisted by Dr. James Castracane of Albany Nanotech and by the Boeing Corporation's Rotorcraft Division, will: -Provide a basic operational design for MISTS -Evaluate MEMS strain sensing methods for this application -Select or design appropriate strain sensors, calibration sensors, and MEMS RFIT (Radio-frequency Information Transceiver) devices -Design an innovative Component Monitoring Tag (CMT) -Profile selected rotor components for their stress patterns to determine best sensor placement -Design and prototype the Sensor Interrogation Transceiver Units (SITUs) -Design the SAN (Sensor Area Network) and protocols for interrogation and data transfer -Demonstrate the feasibility and practicality of all subsystems in laboratory settings in preparation for Phase II.