Use of knowledge based systems for rational reliability analysis based inspection and maintenance planning for offshore structures : Tang, M.X.; Dharmavasan, S.; Peers, S.M.C. Proceedings of the 4th (1994) International Offshore and Polar Engineering Conference, Osaka (Japan), 10–15 Apr. 1994. Vol. IV, pp. 514–523. Edited by Y. Ueda, J.F. Dos Santos, I. Langen, Y. Tomita and K. Waagaard. ISOPE (1994)

Abstract

The structural integrity of fixed offshore platforms is ensured by periodic inspections. In the past, decisions made as to when, where and how to inspect have been made by engineers using rules-of-thumb and general planning heuristics. It is now hoped that more rational inspection and maintenance scheduling may be carried out by applying recently developed techniques based on structural reliability methods. However, one of the problems associated with a theoretical approach is that it is not always possible to incorporate all the constraints that are present in a practical situation. These constraints modify the decisions made for analysis data input and the interpretation of the analysis results. Knowledge based systems provide a mean of encapsulating several different forms of information and knowledge within a computer system and hence can overcome this problem. In this paper, a prototype system being developed for integrating reliability based analysis with other constraints for inspection scheduling will be described. In addition, the scheduling model and the algorithms to carry out the scheduling will be explained. Furthermore, implementation details are also given.