In a bid to improve the maintenance of and extend the life of primary hydraulic flight control actuators, Lufthansa Technik AG and Politecnico di Torino—the polytechnic university of Turin, Italy—are partnering on the hydraulic diagnostics, or HyDiag, project, to develop an automated, noninvasive diagnostic procedure for initial examination of the actuators.

Using automated processes and highly sensitive measuring devices, the team has been able to identify damage on actuators that was previously undetectable by human inspection and testing. The project is scheduled to run through 2020 and expected to lead to an improved process that will result in more precise troubleshooting and quicker repair of the safety-critical actuators while at the same time increasing their lifespan.

“The HyDiag project has a highly innovative content leading to a technological breakthrough in the maintenance of aircraft equipment,” said professor Giovanni Jacazio of Politecnico di Torino. “Our work together with Lufthansa Technik has advanced the field of prognostics and health management and resulted in multiple papers acknowledged by the community for their quality and scientific relevance.”