Patent Abstract:
A method comprises storing data relating to the wear of a component of at least one turbine system in a database of a system for processing wear related information, generating a displayable menu containing a plurality of user-selectable links respectively associated with software modules of the system, and receiving an on-line selection of one of the user-selectable links to enable the associated software module of the system to generate displayable content including information relating to the wear of the component of the turbine system. The selected module may enable a quantitative amount of the wear of the component or qualitative wear range characterizing the amount of the wear of the component to be input and received on-line. Alternatively, the selected module may enable a component type to be input and received on-line and display a component fleet leader.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION  
       [0001]     This invention relates to an on-line system and method for processing information relating to the wear of turbine components. More specifically, this invention relates to an on-line system and method of processing information relating to the wear of combustion system interface components of a turbine system.  
         [0002]     Turbine systems have been used to generate electricity for many years. As one example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,218 issued to Cromer et al. on May 12, 1998, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference, discloses a gas turbine system for generating electricity. This gas turbine system includes a combustion system having a wear reduction kit. The wear reduction kit improves the wear characteristics at interfaces of various combustion system components which are subjected to wear as a result of combustion noise induced vibrations. The wear reduction kit allows time intervals between consecutive combustion system inspections to be increased by reducing the relative movement and associated wear of interface parts of the combustion system. With reference to  FIGS. 1A-1E , the wear reduction kit of the combustion system includes, for example, the following components:(1) U-shaped wear inserts  42  and seals  40  for combustion system transition piece  16  having frame  24 . Wear inserts  42  and seals  40  allow frame  24  of transition piece  16  to be secured to a first turbine stage  18 . The wear resistance of slot  38  in frame  24  of transition piece  16  may be increased by choosing an appropriate material for wear inserts  42 . (See  FIGS. 1A and 1B ).  
         [0003]     (2) H-shaped guide blocks  60  and guide finger covers  70  for bullhorn fingers  56 ,  58 . The interface between H-shaped guide blocks  60  and bullhorn fingers  56 ,  58  including bullhorn guide finger covers  70  allow combustion liner  20  to be secured to transition piece  16 . The materials forming H-shaped guide blocks  60  and guide finger covers  70  are appropriately chosen to form a wear couple which reduces the wear at the interface of the H-shaped guide blocks  60  and bullhorn fingers  56 . (See  FIGS. 1A and 1C ).  
         [0004]     (3) A flow sleeve stop  96  having an elongated stem  102  covered by a replaceable U-shaped strip  106  and a liner stop  11   0 . Flow sleeve stop  96  and liner stop  110  form a wear couple which enables combustion liner  20  to be inserted axially within flow sleeve  22  and to limit axial movement of combustion liner  20  within flow sleeve  22  in a direction toward transition piece  16 . (See  FIGS. 1A and 1D ).  
         [0005]     (4) A weld deposit material  138  and a combustion liner cap assembly  136  having an annular mounting ring  142 . Weld deposit material  138  is deposited on a radially outer collar  126  of fuel nozzle tip  124  of fuel nozzle  12 . The materials of deposit material  138  and ring  142  form a compatible wear couple so that most of the wear will occur on weld deposit  138  rather than ring  142  of the more complex and costly combustion liner cap assembly  136 . (See  FIGS. 1A and 1E ).  
         [0006]     (5) Cross fire tube  156  received within a hole  146  of combustion liner  20  and a cross fire tube collar  148 . An interface is formed where cross fire tube  156  is telescopically received within cross fire tube collar  148 . Cross fire tube collar  148  may be formed of a harder material than the material forming cross fire tube  156  and thus most of the wear experienced at this interface is predictably exhibited on the softer cross fire tube  156 . (See  FIGS. 1A and 1F ).  
         [0007]     Other inserts, seals, blocks, covers, liners, stops, strips, rings, caps, tubes and/or collars may be placed at the other interfaces of the turbine system as part of the wear reduction kit. For example, with reference to  FIGS. 1A  and IG, a wear coating  171  is applied to a hula seal  170  which is arranged between transition piece  16  and combustion liner  20 . A corresponding wear coating  172  is applied to transition piece  16  so that both wear coatings  171  and  172  are arranged between transition piece  16  and hula seal  170  attached to combustion liner  20 . The material forming wear coating  172  may be softer than wear coating  171  so that wear on hula seal  170  itself can be minimized.  
         [0008]     The respective amounts of wear of each of the components of the wear reduction kit (e.g., inserts, seals, blocks, covers, liners, stops, strips, rings, caps, tubes, collars, strips, etc.) at interfaces of the turbine system and other turbine system components are evaluated during inspections by field technicians. In particular, the field technicians may quantifiably measure the amounts of wear (in mils for example) or determine a qualitative wear range category (e.g., high wear, medium wear or light wear) of each of the wear reduction kit components. Data reflecting the wear measurements or wear category determinations is typically recorded by field technicians in individual spreadsheets. These spreadsheets, however, lack the capability to provide centralized access to the collection of data. Technicians who did not perform the wear measurements or wear category determinations would therefore not have prompt access to this and other inspection information. Moreover, the spreadsheets do not prompt the field technicians to enter consistent inputs over numerous inspections. There has thus been no formalized process for consistently capturing and effectively processing inspection information including wear related data made by field technicians.  
         [0009]     Accordingly, there remains a need in the art to efficiently process information relating to the wear of turbine system components including efficiently receiving, managing, monitoring, sorting, searching and displaying data. In particular, there remains a need to provide centralized access to a database of information relating to the wear of turbine system components such as a combustion system&#39;s wear reduction kit components. It would therefore be beneficial to enable wear related information to be accessed by and presented in an interactive, easy-to-read interface to enable users to enter, review, sort, edit, update, search, output and/or report the information in an efficient manner and to use the data for various calculations and evaluations. It would also be beneficial to prompt field technicians or other users to enter inspection data such as wear-related data in a consistent manner.  
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION  
       [0010]     In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a method comprises storing data relating to wear of a component of at least one turbine system in a database of a system for processing wear related information, generating a displayable menu for an interface containing a plurality of user-selectable links respectively associated with software modules of the system, and receiving an on-line selection through the interface of one of the user-selectable links to enable the associated software module of the system to generate displayable content including information relating to the wear of the component of the turbine system.  
         [0011]     The module associated with the selected link may enable a quantitative amount of the wear of the component to be input and received on-line. The module associated with the selected link may enable a qualitative wear range characterizing the amount of the wear of the component to be input and received on-line. The module associated with the selected link may enable a component type to be input and received on-line and display a component fleet leader corresponding to the received component type using data stored in the database. The module associated with the selected link may enable the displayable content to depict, on-line, an example component having a standardized level of wear. The module associated with the selected link may enable a search criterion to be input and received on-line and retrieve data from the database based on the received search criterion. The wear of the component of the at least one turbine system may comprise the wear of a material in one of following turbine components: transition piece body assembly component, bull horn cover, side seal, AFT frame creep, combustion liner assembly component, flow sleeve, cross fire tube and fuel nozzle.  
         [0012]     In an on line wear monitoring system of another exemplary embodiment of the invention, a method of identifying a component fleet leader from among a plurality of a same type of components in respective turbine systems comprises: processing an on-line user selection of a component type of the turbine system, searching a database of the on-line system based on the on-line user selection, and processing information retrieved from the database as a result of the search including identifying that component from among the plurality of components corresponding to the user-selected component type which has been in operation in its respective turbine system for the longest cumulative time as the component fleet leader. The selected component type may be one of the following turbine component types: transition piece body assembly component, bull horn cover, side seal, AFT frame creep, combustion liner assembly component, flow sleeve, cross fire tube and fuel nozzle.  
         [0013]     In another embodiment of the invention, a method of processing information relating to wear of a component of a turbine system comprises: receiving an on-line user selection of a user-selectable link on a menu, the link being associated with a software module for generating a depiction of an example component of the turbine system having a standardized level of wear, generating displayable content depicting the example component having the standardized level of wear based on the received on-line user selection of the user-selectable link, receiving an on-line user selection of another user-selectable link on the menu, the another usable link being associated with another software module for enabling input of information relating to the wear of the component of the turbine system to be received, and generating displayable content to enable input of the information indicating the wear of the component of the turbine system to be received based on the received on-line user selection of the another user-selectable link, the information received indicating the wear of the component being relative to the example component having the standardized level of wear. The information received indicating the wear of the component may be a quantitative measure of the amount of the wear or a qualitative wear range characterizing the amount of the wear. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0014]      FIG. 1A  is a side elevation, partly in section, illustrating a combustor (i.e., a combustion system) of a gas turbine system including various interfaces having wear reduction kit components;  
         [0015]      FIG. 1B  is a detailed view of a portion of the turbine system illustrated in  FIG. 1A  showing, for example, U-shaped wear inserts and seals for a transition piece of the turbine system;  
         [0016]      FIG. 1C  is a detailed view of a portion of the turbine system illustrated in  FIG. 1A  showing, for example, bullhorn guide finger covers at the interface between H-shaped guide blocks and bullhorn guide fingers;  
         [0017]      FIG. 1D  is a detailed view of a portion of the turbine system illustrated in  FIG. 1A  showing, for example, a flow sleeve stop having a wear strip and a liner stop;  
         [0018]      FIG. 1E  is a detailed view of a portion of the turbine system illustrated in  FIG. 1A  showing, for example, a weld deposit material on a fuel nozzle and a mounting ring of a combustion liner cap assembly;  
         [0019]      FIG. 1F  is a detailed view of a portion of the turbine system illustrated in  FIG. 1A  showing, for example, an interface of a cross fire tube and a cross tube collar;  
         [0020]      FIG. 1G  is a detailed view of a portion of the turbine system illustrated in  FIG. 1A  showing, for example, wear strips coupled to a hula seal which is arranged between a transition piece and a combustion liner;  
         [0021]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram showing a web-based, on-line, system for processing wear-related information in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0022]      FIG. 3  is a flow chart showing initial processing operations which occur when a user accesses the wear processing system;  
         [0023]      FIG. 4  is a flow chart showing possible operations performed when a user selects a main link from a navigation pane presented to a user in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0024]      FIG. 5  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the link HOME from the navigation pane of the system of the present invention;  
         [0025]      FIG. 6  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the link Input Portal from the navigation pane of the system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0026]      FIG. 7  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the button Find Turbines from the web page illustrated in  FIG. 6 ;  
         [0027]      FIG. 8  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from data entry and selection of the button Find Inspections from the web page illustrated in  FIG. 7 ;  
         [0028]      FIG. 9  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of a particular inspection in the window of the web page illustrated in  FIG. 8 ;  
         [0029]      FIG. 10  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from input of a particular turbine serial number in the window of the web page illustrated in  FIG. 6  and selection of the button Continue in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 6 ;  
         [0030]      FIG. 11  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the button Liner Assembly in the web page illustrated, for example, in  FIG. 10 , or the selection of an instance of the term Liner Assembly in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9 ;  
         [0031]      FIG. 12  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the button Fuel Nozzle Assembly in the web page illustrated, for example, in  FIG. 10 , or the selection of an instance of the term Fuel Nozzle Assembly in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9 ;  
         [0032]      FIG. 13  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the link Output Portal in the navigation pane of the system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0033]      FIG. 14  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the button Statistic in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 13 ;  
         [0034]      FIG. 15  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from data entry and selection of the button Search in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 14 ;  
         [0035]      FIG. 16  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the button Fleet Leader in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 13 ;  
         [0036]      FIG. 17  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from data entry and selection of the button Search in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 16 ;  
         [0037]      FIG. 18  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the link Visual Standards on the navigation pane of the system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0038]      FIG. 19  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of one of the icons presented in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 18 ; and  
         [0039]      FIG. 20  is an exemplary screen display of the web page resulting from the selection of the link Search Database on the navigation pane of the system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0040]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of an exemplary internet-based computer system for processing field inspection information such as wear-related data (hereinafter wear data processing system) in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The computer system includes personal computers (PCs)  310 a- 310 c interconnected via a wide area network (WAN)  312  such as the internet. PCs  310 a- 310 c are operated by users such as turbine field technicians. PCs  310 a- 310 c communicate on-line via WAN  312  with web server  316 . In particular, on-line requests from PCs  310 a- 310 c are routed through WAN  312  to web server  316 . Alternatively, PCs  310 a- 310 c may route a request through a local area network (LAN) rather than a WAN. A web server application is executed on computer  314 . Computer  314  may be, for example, a main frame computer which executes many application programs including the web server application. The web server application executed by computer  314  may thus communicate with web browsers executing at PCs  310 a- 310 c using conventional HTTP protocol. Computer  314  also retrieves and/or stores data in database  318 .  
         [0041]      FIG. 3  is a flowchart showing exemplary initial processing operations of the wear data processing system. A user first accesses an internet browser, such as Netscape® or Microsoft Internet Explorer® using one of PCs  310 a- 310 c (step  320 ). Using the internet browser, a user enters a wear data processing system uniform resource locator (URL) (step  322 ). This URL is received by web server  316  via WAN  312  (step  324 ). A home web page (see  FIG. 5 ) is then generated by computer  314  and server  316  for display on the PC originally transmitting the URL (step  326 ). The home web page enables sign-on processing. In particular, the user is prompted to enter his/her login id and password. If the user is not an authorized user (NO in step  328 ), the server application is stopped (step  330 ). If, however, the user is an authorized user (Yes in step  328 ), the computer  314  and web server  316  enable access to software modules of the wear data processing system.  
         [0042]     Each web page generated and displayed by the wear data processing system, except the home web page illustrated in  FIG. 5 , includes a navigation pane  350  located on-the left-side of the web page (see  FIGS. 6-20 ). The contents of the left-side navigation pane  350  essentially form a menu which includes links that allow the user to click-on or select the type of software module of the system he or she wishes to execute. Some of the web pages also include various buttons and/or input screens to allow the user to control the type of wear-related data that he or she can input, review, edit, sort, search, etc.  
         [0043]     Referring to  FIGS. 4-20 , while a web page is currently being displayed on a user&#39;s PC  310 a- 310 c, the user may select another link from navigation pane  350 . In particular, the user may select one of the following links from navigation pane  350  (step  334 ) in  FIG. 4 : HOME—see  FIGS. 4 and 5 , Input Portal—see  FIGS. 4 and 6 - 12 , Output Portal—see  FIGS. 4 and 13 - 17 , Visual Standards—see  FIGS. 4 and 18 - 19 , Search Database—see  FIGS. 4 and 20 , and Logout—see  FIG. 4 . The user may alternatively select the same link corresponding to the web page that is being currently displayed to refresh the screen.  
         [0044]     By selecting the appropriate link on navigation pane  350 , a user of the wear data processing system may input inspection data such as data relating to the wear of components of a turbine system. In particular, a user (e.g., a field technician) may enter data relating to the wear (e.g., a quantitative measure or a qualitative wear range) of wear reduction kit components of a turbine system. The wear of other components of the turbine system may also be entered. By selecting the appropriate link on navigation pane  350 , a user of the wear data processing system may also review data previously input, edit any data, statistically sort data, identify a fleet leader of a particular turbine system component, obtain a visual standard of a particular level of wear of a certain component type and/or search the database for information relating to a particular component. A description of displayed web pages corresponding respectively to each of the links provided in navigation pane  350  is provided below in conjunction with  FIGS. 5-20 .  
         [0045]     As illustrated in  FIG. 5 , if a user selects the link HOME from navigation pane  350 , a home web page of the system will be generated and displayed. The home web page allows the user to enter his/her appropriate login id and password in data entry window  336 . For non-registered users, the system allows a guest account to be enabled through selection of Login button  338 .  
         [0046]      FIG. 6  illustrates an exemplary web page generated by the system resulting from a user selection of the link Input Portal from navigation pane  350 . As illustrated in the web page of  FIG. 6 , the user has the option of selecting a Find Turbines button  352  to search for existing turbine inspection data or to provide a turbine serial number and inspection date in window  354  to enter new data into the wear data processing system. This newly entered data may relate to, for example, the amount of wear on any of the components of the turbine system such as wear reduction kit components that was determined by a technician during a new field inspection. After entering the turbine serial number and inspection date in window  354 , the user may click-on the Continue button  356 .  
         [0047]      FIG. 7  illustrates an exemplary web page generated by the system resulting from the selection of the Find Turbines button  352  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 6 . As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , a window  358  having a drop down select box allows the user to select one of the turbines for which data has been previously entered in the wear data processing system. In particular, a user may select a specific turbine serial number (295816 ( 7 E Standard) in the example illustrated in  FIG. 7 ) using the drop down select box in window  358  and then click on the Find Inspections button  360 .  
         [0048]      FIG. 8  illustrates an exemplary web page generated by the system resulting from the input of a particular turbine serial number in window  358  and selection of the Find Inspections button  360  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 7 . As can be seen in  FIG. 8 , an inspection report for the particular turbine identified in the web page of  FIG. 7  is displayed on the user&#39;s PC. The inspection report includes(from left to right in the inspection report) the inspection id formed by a turbine serial number and month and year of inspection, the inspection date, a name of a contact person, a name of the person who created the information relating to that inspection, and the creation date. Upon viewing the inspection report, a user may click on any particular inspection to view and/or edit its details. For example, the first row  362  having inspection id 295816  10 _ 96  can be selected by the user to view and/or edit the details of this particular inspection.  
         [0049]      FIG. 9  is an exemplary web page generated by the system resulting from the selection of one of the rows of the inspection report illustrated in the web page of  FIG. 8 . In this particular example, the user has selected the first row  362  of the inspection report having inspection id 295816  10 _ 96 . The web page illustrated in  FIG. 9  provides a list of can assemblies for the selected turbine (i.e., the turbine associated with the selected row of the inspection report). For example, the list provided in the web page of  FIG. 9  indicates ten cans having respective can numbers  1 - 10 . Each of the cans has a transition piece (TP) assembly, a liner assembly and a fuel nozzle assembly as indicated by the columns (from left to right) on the web page. A user may click on one of the assemblies of one of the cans in order to view and/or edit detailed information for that particular can assembly of the selected turbine. For example, a user may select TP Assembly  364  or Liner Assembly  366  or Fuel Nozzle Assembly  368  of can number  1  from the first row of data presented in the web page of  FIG. 9 .  
         [0050]      FIG. 10  is an exemplary web page resulting from the user&#39;s selection of the term TP Assembly  364  from the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9 . As can be seen in  FIG. 10 , the user may view and/or edit inspection data such as wear data of turbine system components which relate specifically to an inspection of the transition piece (TP) assembly of can number  1  of the turbine having serial no. 295816. All of the entered data may be stored in database  318 . After the data is stored, centralized access to this data is available to other users via computer  314  and server  316 .  
         [0051]     In column  370 , the user may view and/or edit the Quantitative Wear of various transition piece assembly components of can number  1  of the turbine system. Specifically, a user may view and/or edit the amount of Quantitative Wear of one or more of the following components of transition piece body assembly: H block, forward (FWD) inner portion of the transition piece body, outer floating seal, inner floating seal, aft frame in mils, and thermal barrier coating(TBC) in sq. ins. The TBC may be a thermal protective ceramic coating applied to high temperature components for reducing thermal stress. In the lower portion of column  370 , a user may also view and/or edit the amount of Quantitative Wear in mils of the following additional transition piece assembly components: Bull Horn Cover, Side Seal, Aft Frame Creep (Left), Aft Frame Creep (Center) and Aft Frame Creep (Right). Aft refers to the rear end and Aft Frame Creep refers to deformation of the rear end of the transition piece via a mechanical strain process referred to as creep. The amount of Quantitative Wear may be measured by a field technician through the use of, for example, a micrometer.  
         [0052]     During an inspection, a field engineer must typically examine the wear of many components of the turbine system. The field engineer may thus not have the time to quantitatively measure the amount of wear for each of these turbine system components. Rather than determine a quantitative measure of the wear of each of these components, a field technician may determine the Wear Range (light amount of wear, medium amount of wear or heavy amount of wear) of each of the turbine system components. The wear range of components of the transition piece assembly may be reviewed and/or edited by a user (e.g., field engineer) in column  372 . For example, the H Block, Outer Floating Seal and Inner Floating Seal of can number  1  of the TP body assembly were entered as having a light amount of wear during the Oct. 1, 1996 inspection of turbine no. 295816. The wear range of the Side Seal was entered as having a medium amount of wear as can be seen in the lower portion of column  372 . Each of the Wear Ranges of the components of the transition piece assembly may be viewed and revised using the appropriate drop down box in Wear Range column  372 .  
         [0053]     There are several components of the turbine system which must be replaced after experiencing a certain amount of wear. For example, the transition piece body assembly, bull horn cover and the side seal of the transition piece assembly must be replaced after a certain amount of wear. In column  374  of the web page illustrated in  FIG. 10 , a user may indicate whether or not the TP Body Assembly, Bull Horn Cover and/or Side Seals have been replaced. For example, the web page illustrated in  FIG. 10  indicates that the TP Body Assembly and the Bull Horn Cover have not been replaced, whereas the Side Seal has been replaced.  
         [0054]     During an inspection, a field engineer may obtain a picture (e.g., take a digital photograph) of a particular component of the turbine system. For example, the field engineer may photograph any portion of the TP Body Assembly, Bull Horn Cover, Side Seal and Aft Frame Creep. This picture may be uploaded through the selection of column  376  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 10 . After the picture has been uploaded, a user may select an appropriate row in column  376  to view the picture of that particular component.  
         [0055]     A serial number of a particular component of the TP body assembly may be entered and stored in database  318 . A user may review and/or edit the serial number through appropriate data entry in column  378 .  
         [0056]     General Information button  379 , Can Assemblies button  380 , Liner Assembly (Can  1 ) button  382  and Fuel Nozzle Assembly (Can  1 ) button  384  or Next Can button  386  presented in the upper portion of the web page illustrated in  FIG. 10  allow the user to efficiently select the next page for viewing. For example, if the user next wished to view and/or edit inspection data of components of the combustion liner assembly for can number  1  of the turbine system, the user may select button  382 . Alternatively, the user may accomplish the same by clicking on the term Liner Assembly  366  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9 . If the user next wished to view and/or edit inspection data of components of the Fuel Nozzle Assembly of can number  1 , he/she may select button  384  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 10 . Alternatively, the user may click on the term Fuel Nozzle Assembly  368  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9 . If the user would like to view inspection data relating to can number  2 , he or she can select the Next Can button  386  or the Can Assemblies button  380  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 10 . Selection of the Can Assemblies button  380  may also allow the user to view data relating to other cans (e.g., any one of can numbers  3 - 10 . Viewing data relating to another can number may also be selected by selecting the appropriate can number in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9 .  
         [0057]      FIG. 11  discloses a web page resulting from the selection of Liner Assembly (can  1 ) button  382  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 1   0  or the selection of the term Liner Assembly  366  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9 . The web page illustrated in  FIG. 11  includes the same columns as columns  370 - 378  illustrated in the web page of  FIG. 10 . A user may thus enter the quantitative amount of wear or a qualitative wear range characterizing the amount of wear in the columns labeled Quantitative Wear and Wear Range for the following components of the combustion liner of can number  1  of the turbine having serial no. 295816: XFT Collar (Left), XFT Collar (Right), Liner Collar, Liner Stops and Hula Seal. As can be seen in the lower rows of the Quantitative Wear and Wear Range columns, the user may also view and/or edit the quantitative amount of wear or qualitative wear range for the following turbine system components: Flow Sleeve Stop Maximum, X-Fire Tube (Right) and X-Fire Tube (Left). A picture of the cross-fire tube (XFT or X-Fire tube) collar, cross-fire tube and liner stops A-F is provided in window portion  389  to aid the user to identify the appropriate component part.  
         [0058]     In the Replaced column, a user may view and/or edit whether the Liner, Flow Sleeve Stop Maximum, X-Fire Tube (Right) and/or X-Fire Tube (Left) have been replaced. In the Picture (optional) column, a picture (e.g., digital photograph) of any component of or associated with the combustion liner may be viewed or uploaded. In the Serial Number column, a serial number of the combustion liner may be viewed and/or edited.  
         [0059]     While not explicitly illustrated, the web page illustrated in  FIG. 11  may include Can Assemblies, TP Assembly (can  1 ), Fuel Nozzle Assembly (Can  1 ) and Next Can buttons to allow the user to efficiently select the next web page for viewing.  
         [0060]      FIG. 12  illustrates the web page resulting from the selection of the term Fuel Nozzle Assembly  368  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 9  or the Fuel Nozzle Assembly (Can  1 ) button  384  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 10  (or  FIG. 11 ). As can be seen in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 12 , a user may view and/or edit inspection data relating to the Fuel Nozzle Assembly of any can of the turbine system. The columns Quantitative Wear, Wear Range, Replaced, Picture (optional) and Serial Number are similar to columns  370 - 378  illustrated in the web page of  FIG. 10 . A user may view and/or edit the amount of quantitative wear of the primary fuel nozzle or view and/or edit a qualitative wear range characterizing the amount of wear of the primary fuel nozzle in the Quantitative Wear and Wear Range columns, respectively. A user may also indicate whether the primary fuel nozzle has been replaced through the appropriate selection in the Replaced column. A picture may be viewed or uploaded through selection of the Picture (optional) column. A serial number of the primary fuel nozzle may also be viewed and/or edited in the Serial Number column. Comments regarding the fuel nozzle assembly may be entered in window  390 . For example, any comments regarding the wear of the fuel nozzle may be viewed and/or edited in window  390 . Rather then allowing a user to edit data in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 12 , access can be limited to viewing only.  
         [0061]     Similar to the discussion above in connection with  FIGS. 10 and 11 , one of the General Information, Can Assemblies, TP Assembly (Can  1 ), Liner Assembly (Can  1 ) or Next Can buttons located in the upper portion of the web page illustrated in  FIG. 12  may be clicked on by the user to select the next page for viewing.  
         [0062]     Turning back to  FIG. 6 , new inspection data for a particular turbine can be entered by providing a turbine serial number and inspection date in window  354  and selecting the Continue button  356 . After the Continue button is selected, web pages such as those illustrated in  FIGS. 9-12  will be displayed to enable the user to input data relating to the inspection. These web pages prompt users to enter inspection data in a consistent manner. For example, different users are prompted to newly enter, data relating to the Quantitative Wear or Wear Range of the transitional piece assembly, combustion liner and/or fuel nozzle assembly in a consistent manner. This data will be stored in database  318  and processed by the wear data processing system. The data can be immediately viewed by other users having access to the wear data processing system.  
         [0063]      FIG. 13  illustrates an exemplary web page resulting from the selection of the link Output Portal in navigation pane  350 . As can be seen in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 13 , upon the selection of the Output Portal link, a user is prompted to select either the Statistic button  400  or the Fleet Leader button  402 . By selecting the Statistic button  400 , a user may perform a statistical sorting of existing inspection data including wear-related data. By selecting the Fleet Leader button  402 , a user may view fleet leader units of the various types of turbine components.  
         [0064]      FIG. 14  is an exemplary web page resulting from the selection of the Statistic button  400 . As can be seen in the exemplary web page of  FIG. 14 , a user may enter search criteria as attributes for data sorting. Wild cards such as * and ? may be used by the user where needed. In particular, the user may enter one or more of the following as possible search criteria: the Type of turbine system component such as H Block (TP) as indicated in  FIG. 14 , Turbine Serial Number, Turbine Type such as  7 E as illustrated in  FIG. 14 , Combustor Type such as Standard, Can Number and Liner Stop Location (for liner stops only). After entering in the appropriate search criteria, a user may click on search button  404  to view data retrieved and sorted on the basis of the search criteria. If the user makes a mistake in one or more of his/her search criteria entries, he/she may click on the Reset button  405  to clear all of the search criteria fields.  
         [0065]      FIG. 15  is an exemplary web page resulting from the input search criteria and selection of search button  404  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 14 . A user may thus efficiently view inspection data that has been sorted based on the search criteria input in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 14 . As can be seen in  FIG. 15 , one column of information for the selected component is Wear (third column from the right). A user may select WearPlot button  410  to view a graphical plot of the wear data.  
         [0066]      FIG. 16  is an exemplary web page generated by the system resulting from the selection of the Fleet Leader button  402  in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 13 . As can be seen in  FIG. 16 , the user may view an identified fleet leader through appropriate input of search criteria. A fleet leader of a particular turbine component is that component from amongst the same type of components installed at different turbines which has the most time in operation. By identifying the fleet leader, a user may determine which component of the various turbine installations is most likely to be in need of being replaced. Moreover, information regarding how long a particular component has lasted in operation may be used in marketing information.  
         [0067]     As indicated in the web page of  FIG. 16 , a user may enter in the type of fleet leader such as Fleet Leader by Hours, a particular turbine type such as  7 E and/or a certain combustor type such as Standard. Search button  412  may then be selected by the user to enable the fleet leader to be identified based on the input search criteria. The search criteria may be cleared through selection of reset button  414 .  
         [0068]      FIG. 17  is an exemplary web page illustrating the fleet leaders identified based on the search criteria entered in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 16 . As can be seen in  FIG. 17 , the identification of the fleet leaders involves a ranking of a particular type of turbine system component within various turbines. For example, as can be seen in the window  420 , for a transition piece (TP) of a turbine type  7 E and combustor type Standard, the transition piece installed in the turbine having number 282508 has the longest duration of cumulative operation.  
         [0069]     The transition piece installed in turbine having number 295816 has the second longest duration of cumulative operation as measured by the number of interval fired hours.  
         [0070]     In window  430 , the liner assembly component of turbine type  7 E and combustor Standard that has the highest number of interval fire hours (i.e., the longest cumulative operation time as measured by interval fire hours) is the liner assembly installed in turbine number 295816.  
         [0071]      FIG. 18  is an exemplary web page of the wear monitoring system resulting from the selection of the link Visual Standards from navigation pane  350 . As discussed in detail in connection with  FIGS. 10-12 , a user may view and/or edit the Wear Range (e.g., light wear, medium wear or heavy wear). In entering this type of data, a field technician makes a qualitative determination of the amount of wear of a particular turbine system component. For example, the field technician may make a qualitative decision on the amount of wear on the following turbine system components: bull horn cover, hula seal, inner floating seal, liner collar, liner stop, fuel nozzle, side seal, XF tube male, XFT left collar, and XFT right collar.  
         [0072]     In order to determine an accurate qualitative determination of the amount of wear, standards are necessary so that, for example, a light amount of wear can be distinguished from a medium amount of wear and a heavy amount of wear. Users viewing this data subsequent to its entry will also need to be aware of these standards so that they can correctly interpret this wear information.  
         [0073]     Accordingly, a particular turbine system component type may be selected in the web page illustrated in  FIG. 18  to obtain a visual standard. That is, a particular turbine system component type may be selected to view a picture (e.g., digital photograph) of a component having a light amount, medium amount and heavy amount of wear by selecting the appropriate icon in column  440 . For example,  FIG. 19  illustrates picture  446  forming a visual standard for a liner stop of the turbine system having a heavy amount of wear. Picture  446  may be displayed upon the selection of icon  440   a . Other visual standards for other component types may be obtained through selection of the icon in column  440  corresponding to the appropriate row. Moreover, detailed written notes describing the particular picture forming the visual standard may be obtained by selection of the icon in column  442  corresponding to the appropriate row.  
         [0074]      FIG. 20  is an exemplary web page resulting from the selection of the link Search Database in navigation pane  350 . As can be seen in  FIG. 20 , information stored in database  318  can be searched through input of the appropriate search criteria. Wild cards such as * and ? may be used by the user where needed. In particular, the user may input one or more of the following fields as search criteria: Type, Name, Revision, Owner, Vault, State, Created Between, Description, Attachment Preference and Find Limit. The Type field allows the user to search for a particular type of turbine system component. The Name field allows the user to enter in a specific inspection site. The Revision field allows the user to search between different edits of the inspection data relating to the same inspection. The Owner field allows the user to use the person who inputs the data (i.e., the field data engineer) as a search criteria. The Vault field allows the user to search for data among various vaults or servers. The State field allows the user to search for the location state (e.g., New York) where the data was entered. The Created Between field allows the user to search for data that is created during a certain time period. The Description field allows the user to search from among any additional information that may be specific to a particular inspection. The field Attachment Preference allows the user to restrict the attachments that the user may want to view. The Find Limit field allows the user to restrict the number of matching hits that the search criteria will find. The user may then select the Search button in  FIG. 20  to enable the search or the Reset button to clear the data input in the search fields.  
         [0075]     While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 5