Banverket har behov att det genomförs analyser till orsaker till funktionstörningar och förseningstid vid infrastrukturen. Spårväxlar är en av de anläggningar som har många funktionstörningar. Syftet med studien har varit att ta fram ett arbetssätt för att värdera enskilda spårväxlars funktionssäkerhet. Det långsiktiga målet är att minska antalet störningar på Banverkets spårväxlar och de förseningar det orsakar. En matematisk modell har använts för att presentera den information som finns samlad i Banverkets datasystem om spårväxlar. Modellen baseras på teorin om den inhomogena poissonprocessen och visas grafiskt i ett kalkylblad. Kända faktorer kan anges för varje spårväxel och det gör det möjligt att testa hur stort inflytande enskilda faktorer har. En litteraturstudie har genomförts för att ta fram förslag på faktorer. De föreslagna faktorerna kan indelas i: Startvillkor Tågtrafik Ålder Klimat Med hjälp av faktorerna bestäms om en spårväxel kan anses vara normal. Förväntas den ha fler besiktningsanmärkningar eller funktionstörningar än normalt placeras den i en "riskgrupp". Med uppgifter om vilken grupp spårväxeln tillhör, typ av spårväxel, årligt tonnage och ålder kan antalet besiktningsanmärkningar och funktionstörningar förutsägas av modellen. Spårväxlar som, efter att uppdelningen med faktorerna är gjord, upptäcks ligga utanför prediktionsintervallet för modellen kan enkelt identifieras. Metoden har tillämpats i några delstudier och använts för att förklara antalet besiktningsanmärkningar och funktionstörningar för enskilda spårväxlar eller grupper av spårväxlar på bandels nivå. Någon heltäckande förklaring till alla spårväxlars antal besiktningsanmärkningar och funktionstörningar har inte rymts inom detta projekt och det finns behov av att komplettera den information som varit tillgänglig med bland annat: Användandet av avvikande tågspår Tågens vikt, antal axlar och hastighet Banförvaltarens underhållsstrategi Arbetsättet har visat sig vara tillämpbart och i framtiden kommer metoden att utvecklas så att den kan användas för att genomföra bedömningar av livscykelkostnaden för spårväxlar. / <p>Godkänd; 2005; 20061213 (haneit)</p>

The information society, having a growing information domain/amount, requires a reliable information infrastructure with ability to distribute the right information from the right information producer to the right information consumer, at the right time and with the right quality on demand (information-on-demand). Another growing demand, parallel with the information distribution infrastructure, is information visualization. Information visualization is one of the important tools that help consumers to interpret and understand the distributed data, and facilitate the decision-making process. Maps have always been a popular method for visualizing spatial objects, objects that contain spatial references such as address co-ordinates and building ID. The rapidly growing need for geographical information systems (also called GI systems/applications) and components has an impact on the processes of development and maintenance of geographical information systems and components. The main purpose of this research is to study design patterns and suggest methods, models, rules of thumb and so on to improve the process of development and maintaining geographical information systems and reduce the total life cycle cost. The main objective is divided into following sub objectives, namely, a) to describe different patterns, solutions, models, suggestions and recommendations that can improve the process of developing GI-applications in order to reduce the cost of producing, developing and maintaining applications with a high level of quality and serviceability, b) to examine if and how the idea of design pattern is applicable to the architecture of software with spatial components (commonly called GI systems), c) to identify the factors that impact the costs of GI software development and maintenance processes and if possible recommend a model for reducing the cost and improving the quality of the solutions, d) to find and suggest solutions, models, rules of thumb, suggestions and recommendations that can improve the process of developing GI-applications. During the study, it has been noticed that recurrent GI-problems are solved but those solutions are hardly communicated among developers. On the basis of software developed in many of the research projects and also students' works we have observed that the architecture of GI software is in most cases similar to any other software. This similarity makes it possible to apply general software development patterns to GI applications. Further more it is noticed that recurring problems are not dependent on who the developer is or to what category she or he belongs, but on the problem situation and the context of the application. This means that the developer faces almost the same kinds of problems in a given situation. It has also been noticed that the size of projects and demands from customers, management, development organisations and culture/experiences, maintenance organisations and so on have an effect on how much the developer group need to use patterns and semi-manufactured components during the software development process. The study has shown that generic IT patterns can be used for designing GI-applications, but there is still a need for technology- and product-specific patterns for GI- components / <p>Godkänd; 2005; 20061213 (haneit)</p>

Banverket (‘the National Swedish Railway Administration') is responsible for management of the infrastructure in Sweden. The main objective of Banverket, stated by the Swedish government, is to assure a cost-effective and long-term provision of transportation for citizens and the business sector. In order to stay competitive with other forms of transportation, the railway needs to be cost-effective and provide reliable service. The reliable service is to a great extent reflected in terms of train punctuality. Railway components in general have a fairly long life, which means that the cost effectiveness of the transportation system is highly dependent on the effectiveness (doing the right things) and the efficiency (doing the things right) of its operation and maintenance process. The purpose of maintenance is to ensure business objectives through the assurance of required technical functions. Maintenance in the railway ensures the function of the systems that are es-sential for the operation of the transportation system. In other words, maintenance is a vital tool for achieving punctuality, which next to safety is Banverket's most important goal area. Developments in sensor technology and in the information and communication technology sector have provided new opportunities to use technology to assess infrastructural and rolling stock conditions. Decision support derived from condition monitoring systems can provide opportunities for improved maintenance management. In other words, condition monitoring can provide conditions for improved maintenance effectiveness and efficiency and hence punctuality. The thesis explores three areas. The first area is the exploration of current train delay statistics, performed in order to assess how the statistics can represent the influence of different factors on punctuality. The second is an exploration of the link between punctuality and maintenance and more specifically condition monitoring. The third area explores current condition monitoring applications at Banverket to form a knowledge foundation for further condition monitoring implementations intended to improve the reliability and hence the punctuality of the transportation system. In the perspective of the studies are important factors for successful applications of condition monitoring technology proposed. These are factors such as knowledge of problem characteristics, information accuracy, measurement limitations and ability to combine condition based maintenance objectives with business objectives etc. Furthermore, are recommendations for future condition monitoring implementations made. These are recommendations for enhancing the condition-based maintenance, which in turn is dependent on applications of condition monitoring. The final discussions are based upon overall experience from working with the material. The discussion links to the initial research problem, whose intension is to widen the horizon of possible condition monitoring applications. / <p>Godkänd; 2005; 20061213 (haneit)</p>

Several dam failure accidents have occurred during the last years and mine tailings dam failures are occurring at relatively high rates. Studies of past earth dam failures show embankment dam problems and failures are often related to internal erosion in one way or another. Geophysical methods have the potential of detecting internal erosion processes and anomalous seepage at an early stage of their development. The methods have been tested to monitor and investigate earth dams; however the methods have not been used very much in mine tailings dam. The present study has been conducted to test the applicability of geophysical methods, mainly electrical resistivity and self-potential (SP), for detecting anomalous seepage through mine tailing dams and monitoring the physical condition of the dam. Field measurements of resistivity and self-potential have been performed in the Kiruna, Aitik and Kristineberg tailings dams to look for streaming potentials, inhomogeneities and time variations of electrical properties and self-potentials. SP and resistivity measurements have also been carried out with fixed electrodes in the Kiruna and Kristineberg dam at a roughly monthly interval during one year starting in November 2003 and ending in October 2004. Laboratory measurements of resistivity have been carried out on different soil samples from the tailings dams to look for eventual changes in electrical properties with change in grain size and water content. The electric resistivity survey in the Kristineberg provides a good image of the subsurface resistivity distribution associated with filling materials and water table in the dam. The results of the electrical resistivity survey from 2004 on the Kristineberg tailings dam are fairly similar to those obtained from in 2003. The SP distribution in the dam also reveals that there are no significant changes in SP values from 2003 to 2004. The resistivity from the fixed electrodes indicates a seasonal variation in the apparent resistivity representing the freezing and thawing effect within in the dam. The SP measurements from the fixed electrode at the Kristineberg dam, shows fairly stable values during summer and more unstable during the winter probably due to change in contact resistance. The result from the 2002 SP measurements in the Kiruna dam reveals a general pattern of positive SP values at the downstream side, which is in agreement with the expected result of streaming potentials developed over the dam core. The dam was raised during the summer 2003 and new SP measurements were repeated thereafter during the autumns of 2003 and 2004 in the same areas as for the 2002 measurements. The results from 2003 measurements deviate from 2002 measurements; with in general, more negative potentials along the downstream slope. The potential distribution obtained from the 2004 measurements is compatible with the results obtained before the raising of the dam. The SP data from the fixed electrode shows unsteady physical conditions within the dam after increasing the height of the dam. The apparent resistivity from fixed electrode survey is much influenced by the variations of the pool level of the tailings pond. Some positive SP anomalies on the downstream slope of the IJ-dam at Aitik have been identified that could be related to the seepage through the dam. A distinct positive anomaly at the coordinate 7451330 north that continues to the toe of the downstream slope of the dam is generated from a known seepage of the water. The laboratory measurements on soil samples from the dams reveal a decrease in resistivity as finer particles are added to the samples that contained coarser fractions. Internal erosion may thus be reflected by increase in resistivity. This work has demonstrated the potential of using resistivity and self-potential methods for monitoring the physical condition, and the time changes in the condition of mine tailings dams. / <p>Godkänd; 2006; 20070108 (mlk)</p>

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In the context of mining, drilling is the process of making holes in the face and walls of underground mine rooms, to prepare those rooms for the subsequent operation, which is the charging process. Due to the nature of the task, drilling incurs a high number of drilling rig failures. Through a combination of a harsh environment (characterised by dust, high humidity, etc.), the operating context, and reliability and maintainability issues, drilling rigs are identified as a major contributor to unplanned downtime.The purpose of the research performed for this thesis has been to develop methods that can be used to identify the problems affecting drilling rig downtime and to identify the economic lifetime of drilling rigs. New models have been developed for calculating the optimum replacement time of drilling rigs. These models can also be used for other machines which have repairable or replaceable components. Based on an analysis performed in a case study, a life cycle cost (LCC) optimization model has been developed, taking the most important factors affecting the economic replacement time of drilling rigs into consideration. To this end, research literature studies, case studies, and simulation studies have been performed, interviews have been held, observations have been made and data have been collected. For the data analysis, theories and methodologies within reliability, maintainability, ergonomics and optimization have been combined with the best practices from the related industries.Firstly, this thesis analyses the downtime of the studied drilling rigs, with the precision and uncertainty of the estimation at a given confidence level, along with the factors influencing the failures. Secondly, the thesis identifies components that significantly contribute to the downtime and the reason for that downtime (maintainability and/or reliability problems). Based on the failure analysis, some minor suggestions have been made as to how to improve the critical components of the drilling rig. Thirdly, a new method is proposed that can help decision makers to identify the replacement time of reparable equipment from an economic point of view. Finally, the thesis proposes a method using the artificial neural network (ANN) for predicting the economic lifetime of drilling rigs through a series of basic weights and response functions. This ANN-based method can be made available to engineers without the use of complicated software.Most of the results are related to specific industrial and scientific challenges, such as planning for cost-effectiveness. The results of the case study are promising for the possibility of making a significant reduction in the LCC by optimizing the lifetime. The results have been verified through interaction with experienced practitioners from both the manufacturer and the mining company using the drilling rig in question. / Godkänd; 2014; Bibliografisk uppgift: Hussan Al-Chalabi received a B.Sc.Eng. degree in mechanical engineering from Mosul University, Iraq, in 1994 and an M.Sc degree in mechanical engineering in thermal power from Mosul University, Iraq, in 2008. Then he joined the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Mosul University as a lecturer. In October 2010, he joined the Division of Operation, Maintenance and Acoustics at Lule°a University of Technology as a doctoral student.; 20141009 (hasham); Nedanstående person kommer att disputera för avläggande av teknologie doktorsexamen. Namn: Hussan Al-Chalabi Ämne: Drift och underhållsteknik/Operation and Maintenance Uppsats: Reliability and Life Cycle Cost Modelling of Mining Drilling Rigs Opponent: Professor emeritus Jan-Gunnar Persson, Institutionen för maskinkonstruktion, Kungliga tekniska högskolan, Stockholm Ordförande: Professor Jan Lundberg, Avd för drift, underhåll och akustik, Institutionen för samhällsbyggnad och naturresurser, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Fredag den 12 december 2014 kl 10.00 Plats: F1031, Luleå tekniska universitet

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Railway infrastructure is a complex system which comprises different subsystems. Long life span is one of the important aspects of this prime mode of transport. However, the useful life of its assets is highly dependent on the maintenance and renewal strategy used during the assets’ life cycle. Today’s demands on the railway industry call for increased capacity, including more trains, travelling at higher speeds with higher axle loads. This increased usage results in higher degradation of railway assets and higher maintenance costs. Formerly, railway maintenance procedures were usually planned based on the knowledge and experience of the infrastructure owner. The main goal was to provide a high level of safety, and there was little concern for economic issues. Today, however, the deregulated competitive environment and budget limitations are forcing railway infrastructures to move from safety limits to cost-effective maintenance limits to optimise operation and maintenance procedures. The goal is to make operation and maintenance cost-effective while still meeting high safety standards.One of the main parameters to assure railway safety and comfortable railway service is to maintain high quality of track geometry. Poor quality of track geometry, directly or indirectly, may result in safety problems, speed reduction, traffic disruption, greater maintenance cost and higher degradation rate of the other railway components (e.g. rails, wheels, switches and crossings etc.). The aim of this study is to develop a methodology to optimise track geometry maintenance by specifying cost-effective maintenance limits. The methodology is based on reliability and cost analysis and supports the maintenance decision-making process. The thesis presents a state-of-the-art review of track geometry degradation and maintenance optimisation models. It also includes a case study carried out on the iron ore line in the north of Sweden to analyse the track geometry degradation and discuss possible reasons for the distribution of failures along the track over a year. It describes Trafikverket’s (Swedish Transport Administration) maintenance strategy regarding measuring, reporting on and improving track quality, and it evaluates the efficiency of this strategy. It introduces two new approaches to analyse the geometrical degradation of turnouts due to dynamic forces generated from train traffic. In the first approach, the recorded measurements are adjusted at crossing point and then the relative geometrical degradation of turnouts is evaluated by using two defined parameters, the absolute residual area (ARa) and the maximum settlement (Smax). In the second approach, various geometry parameters are defined to estimate the degradation in each measurement separately. It also discusses optimisation of the track geometry inspection interval with a view to minimising the total ballast maintenance costs per unit traffic load. The proposed model considers inspection time and the maintenance-planning horizon time after inspection and takes into account the costs associated with inspection, tamping and risk of accidents due to poor track quality. Finally, it proposes a cost model to identify the cost-effective maintenance limit for track geometry maintenance. The model considers the actual longitudinal level degradation rates of different track sections as a function of million gross tonnes (MGT) / time and the observed maintenance efficiency. / <p>Godkänd; 2013; 20130814 (iman); Tillkännagivande disputation 2013-08-26 Nedanstående person kommer att disputera för avläggande av teknologie doktorsexamen. Namn: Iman Arasteh Khouy Ämne: Drift och underhållsteknik/Operation and Maintenance Avhandling: Cost-Effective Maintenance of Railway Track Geometry A Shift from Safety Limits to Maintenance Limits Opponent: Professor Peter Veit, Institute of Railway Engineering and Transport Economy, Technical University Graz, Austria Ordförande: Professor Uday Kumar, Institutionen för samhällsbyggnad och naturresurser, Luleå tekniska universitet Tid: Tisdag den 17 september 2013, kl 10.00 Plats: F1031, Luleå tekniska universitet</p>