Patent ID: 8112170

Claim:
A system for controlling machining processes to assure the reliability of the machined surface, said system comprising: a database for storing information; and a computer system communicatively coupled to said database, said computer system comprising a processor, said computer system configured to receive data relating to manufactured part processes and specimen testing, said computer further configured to: identify at least one machining process used to manufacture a part that damages a material treatment of the part during the machining process and impacts a service life of the part using at least one of an application procedure of the at least one machining process and at least one parameter of the at least one machining process to determine an available range of the parameter; evaluate survey data relating to the manufacturing process parameters used during the at least one machining process, the survey data including manufacturing processes and manufacturing process parameters used by vendors throughout the supply chain for manufacturing the part and a range of the manufacturing process parameters used during the process; receive identification data for the manufactured part that is potentially impacted by the at least one machining process; evaluate data relating to a feature specimen low cycle fatigue (LCF) design of experiment (DOE) wherein multiple manufacturing processes and associated process parameters are evaluated simultaneously, the DOE includes at least one of a specimen design, a life correction for specimen geometry, and a life correction for material pedigree; determine an LCF life distribution by evaluating at least one of the part and the machining process at a plurality of sets of process parameter conditions, identify process parameters that affect the LCF performance; determine an allowable range for each identified process parameters for safe operation wherein safe operation refers to operation of the part within which acceptable low cycle fatigue results are achieved; analyze the identified process parameters and the determined allowable range using a process measurement statistic; rate each process using the process measurement statistic; determine a process parameter window based on the LCF results using a process capability statistical method for determining the acceptability of each set of process parameters, the part process window includes allowable ranges of process parameters to be used during the machining process; output the process window embodied in a specification associated with at least one of the part and the process, the specification including allowable ranges of process parameters to be used to control machine tools during the machining process; and wherein said computer is further configured to receive test data for the specimen, the test data including material property data from testing at a plurality of stress levels and temperatures selected to simulate gas turbine engine operating conditions.