METHOD AND DEVICE FOR DETERMINING A DAMAGE STATE OF COMPONENTS

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method and a device for determining the damage state of components.

[0002] From the prior art, as described in DE 100 60 694 A1, a method for recording the operating condition of internal combustion engines in motor vehicles is known. In this method, measured variables and events of the operation of the motor vehicle are recorded and base variables are formed from them. Furthermore, classification variables are formed from the residence times of two measured variables in the form of composite classifications. Both the base variables and the composite classification variables are stored in a memory and made available for retrieval as corresponding signals. On the basis of the information thus obtained, a suitable evaluation is carried out with the aim of mathematically determining a target evaluation variable for, for example, the consumption of an operating fluid such as engine oil and fuel and a corresponding comparison with a measured consumption value, which allows conclusions to be drawn about the state of wear of the internal combustion engine or components of the internal combustion engine.

[0003] DE 10 2005 004 023 A1 describes a method for describing the phenomenological relationship between the damaging effects of load or stress variables on a structure under operating conditions and the damaging effects of influencing variables acting on this structure. In this method, the structure is subjected to a test operation with the relevant, different operating conditions and types. During the test operation, influencing variables and the load and stress variables of interest are measured using suitable sensors. From the signals of three influencing variables recorded during the test operation, a virtual signal is generated using suitable filters. All virtual signals generated by the filtering are counted at at least one defined time using a counting method and evaluated as virtual computational damaging effects on the structure.Stress and strain variables of interest in various areas of the structure from signals recorded during test operation are counted at at least one defined point in time using a counting method and evaluated for their damaging effects on the structure. The phenomenological relationship between the virtual computational damaging effects of all processed virtual variables and the damaging effects of all stress and strain variables of interest is established using suitable analytical approaches. In long-term measurements on the structure under intended operating conditions, only the influencing variables measured during test operation are recorded. These recorded influencing variables are filtered and counted as in test operation and evaluated as virtual computational damaging effects.From the virtual computational damaging effects of the influencing variables of the long-term measurements, the damaging effects of all interesting load and stress variables are reconstructed as in test operation using the established phenomenological relationship.

[0004] The invention is based on the object of specifying a method and a device for determining the damage state of components that is improved compared to the prior art.

[0005] The object is achieved according to the invention by a method for determining a damage state of components with the features of claim 1 and a device for determining a damage state of components with the features of claim 15.

[0006] Advantageous embodiments of the invention are the subject of the subclaims.

[0007] In a method according to the invention for determining a damage state of components, damage states are determined for a component as a function of operating states of an overall system comprising the component by recording a time profile of stresses and / or loads on the component and a time profile of signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states during operation of the overall system, operating states of the overall system that have occurred are determined from the recorded signals, in particular a time profile of the operating states that have occurred, damaging events are determined from the recorded stresses and / or loads and assigned to the operating states,Stress collectives and / or load collectives are determined for each operating condition, and time-normalized stress collectives and / or load collectives are determined for each operating condition based on the duration of the respective operating condition. This, in particular the recording of the time course of the stresses and / or loads on the component and the time course of the signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating conditions, is carried out, for example, during one or more tests, in particular during one or more test drives and / or during one or more test bench tests, and / or during one or more simulations. The recording of the time course of the stresses and / or loads on the component, in particular the recording of the stresses and / or loads on the component,is carried out in particular by means of a corresponding unit for recording the stresses and / or loads on the component, in particular by means of a sensor system, for example comprising at least one sensor or several sensors, in particular on the component, i.e. this sensor system advantageously forms this unit for recording the stresses and / or loads on the component. This sensor system is designed and configured to record the stresses and / or loads on the component and is expediently arranged on the component. The test drive or the respective test drive does not have to be specifically specified and carried out according to such a specification in order to achieve specifically specified operating states, but the operating states that have occurred, in particular a time history of the operating states that have occurred,determined from the time course of the signals recorded by the entire system relevant for determining operating states. Thus, such tests, especially test drives, can also be carried out during normal operation of the entire system, for example, although the sensors are required to record the stresses and / or strains on the component, particularly their time course.

[0008] The assignment of damaging events to operating conditions is carried out in such a way that the damaging events resulting from the stresses and / or loads, for example, mechanical, particularly material-mechanical, damaging events (e.g., load changes in a rainflow classification), are proportionally assigned to all operating conditions involved in their occurrence. This enables the automated assignment of damage parameters to operating conditions. Load changes are one possible form of damaging events.

[0009] Using these time-normalized stress collectives and / or load collectives for each operating condition, the damage state is now determined, for example, for the component depending on the operating conditions that have occurred in the overall system and / or the future damage state is determined, for example, depending on the predicted future operating conditions of the overall system comprising the component and / or the damage state is determined, for example, for another component designed similarly to this component depending on the operating conditions that have occurred in a further overall system that includes this further component and is designed similarly to the overall system and / or the future damage state is determined, for example, depending on the predicted future operating conditions of the further overall system that includes the further component. This, ieIn particular, the determination based on actually occurring operating conditions can advantageously be carried out during normal operation of the overall system, i.e., test drives and simulations are no longer required and, in particular, sensors for determining the stress and / or load on the component are no longer required. The other variant of the determination based on future predicted operating conditions is not tied to actual operation of the overall system, but is based on a corresponding predicted future operation of the overall system. In the variant of the determination based on actually occurring operating conditions, these operating conditions are also recorded based on the time course of the signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating conditions, i.e.Here too, during operation, in particular during normal operation, of the overall system, the time course of the signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states is recorded, and from the recorded signals, the operating states of the overall system that have occurred, in particular the time course of the operating states that have occurred, are determined.

[0010] As is already clear from the formulation of the recording of the time course of the signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states and the determination of the operating states that have occurred in the overall system, in particular the time course of the operating states that have occurred, operating states are thus advantageously determined continuously over an entire recorded time course, i.e. each point in time during the operation of the overall system at which signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states were determined is assigned to a respective operating state. The operation of the overall system is therefore advantageously a continuous sequence of operating states. At any one time point in time, exactly one operating state is active, namely the state that results from the current signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states.

[0011] In summary, in a first part of the process, time-normalized stress collectives and / or load collectives for operating states are determined based on the time course of stresses and / or strains and the time course of signals relevant for determining operating states. In a second part of the process, the damage state of the component is determined based on the time-normalized stress collectives and / or time-normalized load collectives for each operating state determined in the first part of the process and the operating states now occurring. This second part of the process can be carried out during normal operation of the overall system, in particular without having to equip the overall system with additional sensors to record the time course of stresses and / or strains.

[0012] The overall system is, for example, a vehicle, a machine or another developed overall system.

[0013] The determination of the stresses and / or strains is only mandatory during the period in which the time-normalized stress collectives and / or strain collectives are determined, thus only during the course of the first part of the method mentioned above, i.e. the recording of the stresses and / or strains is not necessary during normal operation. For this reason, the recording, in particular measurement, of the stresses and / or strains during the determination of time-normalized stress collectives and / or strain collectives can preferably be carried out using the additional sensors mentioned above, which are not included as standard in the overall system, i.e. using sensors that do not have to be available during normal operation of the overall system. This, in particular additional, sensor technology comprises, for example, one or more strain gauges, force sensors and / or temperature sensors.The signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states are recorded and used during the determination of the time-normalized stress collectives and / or load collectives, i.e. in the above-mentioned first method component, and advantageously also during normal operation of the overall system, i.e. in the above-mentioned second method component, in the second method component in particular to determine the operating states of the overall system that have occurred in order to determine the damage state depending thereon, at least if these operating states are not forecast as operating states that will occur in the future, as described above as an alternative. Such signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states can be, for example, a driving speed or a position of switches, in particular in the case that the overall system is a vehicle.

[0014] Alternatively or additionally, the determination of the time-normalized stress collectives and / or load collectives can be carried out completely or partially on the basis of a simulated operation of the overall system, in which the stresses and / or loads and in particular the signals of the overall system relevant for the determination of operating states, which are also available during normal operation of the overall system, are also simulated.

[0015] Using the method according to the invention, the damaging events are determined depending on the operating conditions of the overall system that have occurred. This makes it possible to determine a damage state of the component or a similar component exclusively based on the operating conditions that have occurred for the respective component and their respective duration, or to predict a damage state of the component or a similar component exclusively based on predicted future operating conditions of the respective component and their respective duration. This is because the solution according to the invention enables the reconstruction of a stress collective and / or load collective for the respective specific component solely from the recording of the operating conditions of the overall system that includes this component.The method according to the invention can thus be used, for example, for online monitoring of the current damage state of the component without having to determine the stress and / or load profile on the component itself. A prerequisite for this reconstruction is, as already described above, the prior determination of time-normalized stress and / or load collectives for each occurring operating state on the same and / or another similarly designed component of a similarly designed further overall system, which were determined using the inventive procedure, in particular according to the first method component described above, and are used for the reconstruction.

[0016] The method according to the invention provides, in particular, an operating-condition-dependent stress analysis and / or load analysis for reconstructing future and / or historical stress collectives and / or load collectives of a component. Operating-condition-dependent stress collectives and / or load collectives are determined, and from these, future and / or historical stress collectives and / or load collectives can be determined to describe the current damage state of a component, without having to perform a stress measurement and / or load measurement on this component.

[0017] The method is applicable to components to which a stress collective and / or load collective can be assigned based on a stress-time history and / or load-time history, i.e., based on a recorded time history of stresses and / or loads. The stress collective and / or load collective must be determined by identifying damage-relevant events from the stress-time history or from the load-time history. In particular, the definition of a damage-relevant event is based on the fundamental damage mechanism for a specific component under consideration and the method used to describe the current damage state resulting from the occurrence of damage-relevant events.For example, damage-relevant events for the damage mechanism "mechanical material fatigue due to cyclic loading and / or stress" are defined in the description according to the nominal stress concept of fatigue strength as so-called load cycles, whereby the person skilled in the art is aware of further methods for describing this and / or other damage mechanisms, with their own respective definitions for damage-relevant events.

[0018] The stress and / or strain can be, for example, a mechanical stress, a quantity proportional to the mechanical stress, a temperature, a pressure, an electrical voltage, an electrical current, or another physical quantity. In particular, stresses and / or strains refer to physical quantities that, depending on the damage mechanism relevant to the component, represent directly damage-relevant quantities and / or designate one or more quantities that can be converted into a directly damage-relevant quantity using at least one calculation and / or simulation model.

[0019] The principle of the method according to the invention is based on the assignment of the operating conditions to the corresponding stress measurement value and / or load measurement value and the generation of a respective individual set of damage characteristics, ie a set of damaging events.

[0020] A particular damaging event is advantageously distributed proportionally among the operating states involved.

[0021] In one possible embodiment of the method, a damaging event, in particular a respective damaging event, is divided equally among the operating states involved.

[0022] In a further, particularly alternative, possible embodiment of the method, the respective damaging event is allocated to the operating states involved in it, weighted according to the operating states involved in its occurrence. In one possible embodiment of the method, the weight of the respective operating state is determined by determining the period during which the damaging event occurred and the total duration of the respective operating state within this period. The weight is calculated as the ratio of the total operating state duration of the respective operating state to the total duration of the damaging event.For example, the period for the total duration of a damaging event according to the nominal stress concept of fatigue strength can be considered the period between the first and last reversal point of a load cycle, or alternatively, the period between the first and last reversal point of a load cycle, excluding the periods attributable to the occurrence of included load cycles. The sum of the weights of all operating states must again correspond to the original frequency of the damaging event.

[0023] The allocation of the respective damaging event according to the embodiments of the procedure described above can also be illustrated using the following formulas: The following applies to the weighted allocation: H i = G i ⋅ H 0

[0024] Here, H i is the resulting frequency of the damaging event in operating state i, G i is the weight for operating state i and H 0 is the original frequency of the damaging event before the split.

[0025] The condition is that: ∑ i = 1 n B G i = 1 where n B is the number of operating states.

[0026] For a distribution weighted according to characteristic points (in the case of load changes, their reversal points), the following applies: G i = N i N 0

[0027] Where N i is the number of characteristic measurement points in operating state i and N 0 is the number of characteristic measurement points for the entire damaging event.

[0028] For a time-weighted distribution, the following applies: G i = t i t 0

[0029] Here, ti is the duration of the operating state i during the damaging event and t 0 is the total duration of the damaging event.

[0030] For a weighted distribution according to the incremental change in stress and / or load, the following applies: G i = Δ B i Δ B 0

[0031] Where ΔB i is the accumulated increment of stress and / or strain in operating condition i and ΔB 0 is the total increment of stress during the damaging event.

[0032] In order to obtain the temporal progression of the operating states that have occurred, it is advantageous to classify the signals of the overall system and thereby define possible operating states. This means that the operating states are determined from the recorded signals of the overall system, in particular using signals that are also available during normal operation of the overall system. During class classification, for example, the value range of all signals of the overall system to be considered is divided individually and completely into classes, i.e. intervals, for each signal, with each possible combination of the classes of all signals of the overall system considered being defined as an operating state, i.e. the definition of possible operating states is carried out. This can therefore also take place, for example, during normal operation and / or after normal operation of the overall system.A specification of operating states that the entire system must undergo, i.e., in the form of a standardized test drive, is therefore not necessary. The procedure described here is therefore significantly more flexible and can also be used, for example, in normal customer operation of entire systems, such as vehicles.

[0033] The duration of the respective operating state is advantageously determined by creating a multi-dimensional histogram for the signals of the overall system and the classes into which they are divided, based on which the duration of the respective operating state is determined. The histogram is advantageously determined using multi-parameter, related instantaneous value counting. This means that for each measuring point at which a stress measurement and / or load measurement value was recorded, the values ​​of all recorded signals of the overall system relevant for determining the operating states (i.e. the recorded signals with the exception of stress and / or load) are determined, and the associated signal classes are determined. For each combination of classes, there is exactly one element in the histogram, the count value of which is incremented by the time interval from the previous measuring point. Each element of the histogram formally represents an operating state.The result is therefore a duration of the operating states of the entire system.

[0034] As an alternative to the procedure described in the two previous paragraphs, i.e. as an alternative to the described classification for defining possible operating states in order to obtain the time course of the operating states that have occurred and to the described determination of the duration of the respective operating state, the operating states can also be determined, for example, using artificial intelligence methods from the signals relevant for determining operating states.

[0035] To determine the duration of the operating states in normal operation of the overall system, i.e. in particular for operation in which no determination of stresses and / or loads has to be carried out, thus in particular for the above-mentioned second method component, a one-parameter dwell time count is preferably used, in which the dwell time of the overall system in the individual operating states is determined from the operating state-time curve, which was determined, for example, according to one of the methods described above, whereby a duration of the operating states of the overall system in normal operation is obtained.

[0036] The determination of damaging events for each operating condition is advantageously carried out by determining damaging events in the frequency range from the recorded stresses and / or loads in the time domain, using a counting method suitable for the given stress and / or load quantity to convert the quantity from the time domain to the frequency range, and assigning them to the operating conditions. For this purpose, a stress analysis and / or load analysis is advantageously performed, in which the damaging events are determined using a suitable counting method, and a quantitative characteristic is assigned to the determined damaging events to indicate their contribution to damage.This can be done either by identifying all damaging events first and then allocating the damage contribution to all events in a subsequent step, or by assigning the damage contribution for a damaging event immediately after identifying a damaging event before identifying further events.

[0037] In stress analysis and / or load analysis, particularly according to the nominal stress concept or the notch stress concept of fatigue strength, each stress and / or load is advantageously assigned its corresponding operating state based on the signals of the overall system. A rainflow classification of the stresses and / or loads is performed to determine the occurrence of damaging events in the form of load cycles. A separate rainflow matrix is ​​generated for each operating state in which the counted load cycles are proportionally distributed among the operating states involved in the generation of the load cycles. This is achieved, for example, by dividing each load cycle into two half load cycles and storing each in the rainflow matrices of the operating states corresponding to its reversal points.To account for a residual, the respective load change is divided among the rainflow matrices of the participating operating states according to the type of consideration, in particular whether there is no load change, a half load change, or a full load change. In particular, the rainflow matrices of the participating operating states are divided proportionally, in one possible embodiment of the method, 50% each. The corresponding reversal points are, in particular, the first two reversal points of the load change, which, in a classic rainflow classification, are removed from the stress-time curve and / or the load-time curve after counting a load change.

[0038] In a possible further embodiment of the method, the respective load cycles and / or residuals can be distributed among the operating states involved according to one of the methods described above for the temporal weighting of damaging events. Advantageously, a separate rainflow matrix is ​​generated for each operating state in the stress analysis and / or load analysis, in which the counted load cycles are proportionally distributed among the operating states involved in the generation of the load cycles. The respective load cycle is weighted according to the operating states involved in its generation and stored accordingly in the rainflow matrices of these operating states.To take a residual into account, the respective load change is divided into the rainflow matrices of the operating states involved, weighted according to the type of consideration, in particular whether there is no load change, a half load change or a full load change, in relation to the operating states involved in its creation.

[0039] The weight of the respective operating state is determined, for example, by determining a period during which the respective load change occurred and the total duration of the respective operating state within this period. The weight is calculated as the ratio of the total operating state duration of the respective operating state to the total duration of the respective load change. For example, the period for the total duration of the respective load change according to the nominal voltage concept can be considered the period between the first and last reversal point of the load change, or alternatively as the period between the first and last reversal point of the load change, excluding the periods attributable to the occurrence of included load changes. The sum of the weights of all operating states must again correspond to the original frequency of the load change.

[0040] In a possible further embodiment, the weight of the respective operating state is determined as the ratio of the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or load increments of the associated load changes in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or load increment of the associated load changes, wherein the total stress and / or load increment of the associated load changes results from twice the difference between the upper and lower stress or load measured values ​​of the reversal points of the associated load changes.In this embodiment of the method, the respective load cycles and / or residuals can be distributed among the participating operating states based on the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or load increments, whereby the total stress and / or load increment of a load cycle corresponds to twice the difference between the upper and lower measured stress or load values ​​of the reversal points, and the weight of an operating state corresponds to the ratio of the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or load increments that occurred in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or load increment of the load cycle. This procedure corresponds to an energetically motivated weighting of the operating states based on the proportional mechanical work performed within an operating state.

[0041] Advantageously, in this embodiment of the method, a separate rainflow matrix is ​​generated for each operating state in the stress analysis and / or load analysis, in which counted load changes are distributed to the operating states involved in the occurrence of the load changes on the basis of the accumulated amounts of stress and / or load increments, wherein the total stress and / or load increment of a respective load change corresponds to twice the difference between the upper and lower stress or load measured values ​​of reversal points of the load change, and the weight of the respective operating state corresponds to the ratio of the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or load increments that occurred in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or load increment of the load change.To take a residue into account, the respective load change is distributed among the rainflow matrices of the operating states involved based on the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or strain increments, depending on the type of consideration, in particular whether there is no load change, half a load change, or a full load change. The total stress and / or strain increment of a respective load change corresponds to twice the difference between the upper and lower stress or strain measured values ​​of the reversal points of the load change, and the weight of the operating state is the ratio of the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or strain increments that occurred in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or strain increment of the load change. The sum of all weights is therefore always 1, and the weights are, as mentioned, multiplied by the original frequency, i.e.i.e., 0, 1 / 2, or 1 in the case of the residual, depending on how the residual is considered, in particular whether it is considered as no load change, half a load change, or one load change, and always 1 in the case of a regular load change. This applies, in particular, regardless of the damaging events involved.

[0042] This can also be expressed using formula (5), where for the entire stress and / or load increment ΔB 0 applies: Δ B 0 = 2 B Ob − B Ub

[0043] The weight G i of the operating state i follows from formulas (5) and (6) as: G i = Δ B i 2 B Ob − B Ub

[0044] Where G i is the weight of operating condition i, ΔB i are the accumulated amounts of stress increments and / or load increments, B Ob is the upper stress measurement and / or load measurement and B Ub is the lower stress measurement and / or load measurement.

[0045] In this variant, H 0 =1 would be for regular load changes and H 0 ∈{0,0.5,1} for residuals according to no / half / full load changes.

[0046] The stress collectives for each operating condition are advantageously determined by evaluating the rainflow matrices individually for each operating condition, in particular by extracting the recorded load changes.

[0047] In an alternative procedure, each stress and / or load in the form of a mechanical stress or a mechanical strain is advantageously assigned its corresponding operating state based on the signals of the overall system, and a rainflow classification of the stresses and / or loads is carried out to determine the occurrence of damaging events in the form of load cycles. The determined load cycles are converted into a damage parameter, in particular according to the notch strain concept of fatigue strength, directly after their determination and / or taking into account the order of their occurrence, and are assigned to the operating states involved in the associated load cycle (here, in particular, operating states associated with the reversal points of the load cycle) as damage parameters, in particular proportionally, in one possible embodiment of the method with half the original frequency - i.e.½ - added to the damage parameter collectives of the corresponding operating conditions. The damage parameter collectives for each operating condition represent the stress and / or load collectives for each operating condition.

[0048] In a further possible embodiment of the method, the distribution of the damage parameters to the operating states can be weighted, preferably using one of the methods described above for determining the weights of damaging events or load changes, in particular as described in formulas (1) to (7).

[0049] For example, in the stress analysis and / or load analysis, the determined load changes are converted into a damage parameter directly after their determination and / or taking into account the order of their occurrence and are each divided as a damage parameter, weighted according to the operating conditions involved in its occurrence, and added to damage parameter collectives of the operating conditions involved in the associated load change, whereby the damage parameter collectives for each operating condition represent the stress collectives and / or load collectives for each operating condition.

[0050] The weight of the respective operating state is determined by determining a period during which the respective load change occurred and a total duration of the respective operating state within this period, and the weight is calculated as the ratio of the total operating state duration of the respective operating state to the total duration of the respective load change. In a possible further embodiment of the method, the weight of the respective operating state is determined as the ratio of the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or strain increments of the associated load changes in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or strain increment of the associated load changes, wherein the total stress and / or strain increment of the associated load changes results from twice the difference between the upper and lower stress or strain measured values ​​of the reversal points of the associated load changes.In this embodiment, the damage parameters can be distributed among the operating states involved based on the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or strain increments of the underlying load cycles, whereby the total stress and / or strain increment of a load cycle corresponds to twice the difference between the upper and lower measured stress or strain values ​​of the reversal points, and the weight of an operating state corresponds to the ratio of the accumulated amounts of the stress and / or strain increments of the load cycle that occurred in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or strain increment of the load cycle. This approach corresponds to an energetically motivated weighting of the operating states based on the proportional mechanical work performed within an operating state on a damage parameter.

[0051] This is already stated, for example, in the above formulas (1) to (7) for damaging events, whereby load changes are a special form of damaging events.

[0052] The method according to the invention can thus be used to carry out an operating condition-dependent stress analysis and / or an operating condition-dependent stress analysis, starting from a stress analysis and / or load analysis suitable for describing the damage mechanism according to the respective prior art, in particular, but without limiting the generality, a stress analysis and / or load analysis according to the nominal stress concept, the notch stress concept and / or the notch strain concept of the operational strength, wherein the person skilled in the art is aware of further methods of stress analysis and / or load analysis depending on the decisive damage mechanism, in which damaging events are determined to describe a damage state based on stress-time profiles and / or load-time profiles, to which the method according to the invention can also be applied.

[0053] The time-normalized stress collectives and / or load collectives for each operating condition are advantageously determined by normalizing the frequency of the individual stress collectives and / or load collectives for each operating condition to the duration of the associated operating condition and / or by normalizing the stress collectives and / or load collectives for each operating condition based on the duration of the associated operating condition. A collective level is defined as a damage characteristic with a damage parameter that quantitatively describes the damage content and the frequency of occurrence of damaging events with this damage parameter.For example, a collective stage in the sense of the nominal stress concept or the notch stress concept of fatigue strength is described by the damage characteristic load cycles with the quantitative damage parameter "amplitude" and the frequency of load cycles with this damage parameter. Alternatively, a collective stage according to the nominal stress concept can also be given as an entry in a rainflow matrix, with the quantitative damage parameter then being given by the row and column number, and the frequency as the corresponding count value of the matrix element. In the latter case, a standardization of the stress collective and / or load collective can be carried out according to a method for extrapolating rainflow matrices known to those skilled in the art.

[0054] In an alternative embodiment, the frequency of the individual collective stages can also be standardized to another variable, for example, a distance traveled in mobile overall systems and / or a cultivated area in overall soil cultivation systems, for example, from the field of agricultural machinery technology, whereby these stress collectives and / or load collectives are referred to as distance-normalized and / or area-normalized, respectively. The determination of the duration of the operating states is accordingly replaced and / or supplemented by the determination of the distance traveled and / or the cultivated area for each operating state.

[0055] The method can be carried out, for example, by means of a device which is arranged, for example, directly on the overall system, i.e. onboard, or, for example, partly on the overall system and partly offboard, i.e. external to the overall system. External to the overall system, the device in particular comprises a processing unit, for example in the form of a computer. In the case of a device arranged entirely on the overall system, the processing unit is, for example, a control unit or another computer unit. External to the overall system, the method can be carried out, for example, on the basis of externally recorded data, in particular time profiles of the stress and / or load on the component under consideration and the signals of the overall system relevant for determining the operating states.For example, the device comprises corresponding acquisition units in the overall system, which transmit this data to an external unit, in particular to the processing unit, for recording and processing. Alternatively, this data can be initially recorded in the overall system and later transmitted to the processing unit for evaluation. Data transmission can be wireless, for example, via radio, or via a cable.

[0056] Such a device according to the invention is thus designed and configured to carry out the method.

[0057] The device comprises, for example, at least one unit for detecting the stresses and / or loads on the component, in particular the aforementioned sensor system, at least one unit for detecting the signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states, and at least one processing unit. The processing unit is particularly designed and configured to carry out the above-mentioned method steps, in particular to process the detected stresses and / or loads on the component and the signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states, in particular in the manner described above.

[0058] For example, as already mentioned, the device can be arranged or can be arranged entirely within the overall system, or for example, at least one component of the device, in particular the at least one unit for detecting the stresses and / or loads on the component and / or the at least one unit for detecting the signals of the overall system relevant for determining operating states, can be arranged or can be arranged within the overall system. The processing unit is then, for example, a component of the device external to the overall system, such as a computer.

[0059] Embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to a drawing.

[0060] To avoid misunderstandings, it should be noted that the terms "stress collective," "stress analysis," "stress-time curve," "stress curve," "stress measurement," and "stress measurement" used above all refer to the implementation of the method using stresses. Analogously, the method can also be implemented using loads, either alternatively or additionally, to which the terms "stress collective," "stress analysis," "stress-time curve," "stress curve," "stress measurement," and "stress measurement" used above refer accordingly.

[0061] It shows: Figure 1 schematically shows a process flow for determining a damage state of at least one component.

[0062] Figure 1shows a schematic of a method for determining the damage state of components, particularly mechanical components. This method enables an operating-condition-dependent stress analysis to reconstruct future and / or historical stress collectives of a component. In particular, the method enables the determination of operating-condition-dependent stress collectives to reconstruct future and / or historical stress collectives to describe the current damage state of a component without having to perform a stress measurement on the component. The prerequisite for this is the determination of time-normalized operating-condition-dependent stress collectives for the same or a similarly designed component in advance using corresponding stress measurements on the component.

[0063] Alternatively or additionally, the procedure described below for determining the damage state of components, in particular mechanical components, is not carried out using stresses but rather loads. The procedure then enables an operating-condition-dependent load analysis to reconstruct future and / or historical load collectives of a component. The procedure then enables, in particular, the determination of operating-condition-dependent load collectives to reconstruct future and / or historical load collectives to describe the current damage state of a component without having to carry out a load measurement on the component. Therefore, in the following description relating to stresses, the respective term or term component "stress" can be replaced by the term or term component "load" in order to describe the analogous procedure for loads and load analysis.

[0064] The method is applicable to components to which a stress collective can be assigned based on a stress-time history (BSV), i.e., a time history of stresses encountered on the component. The stress collective must be determined by identifying damage-relevant events from the stress-time history (BSV). The stress and / or load can be, for example, a mechanical stress, a quantity proportional to the mechanical stress, a temperature, a pressure, an electrical voltage, an electrical current, or any other physical quantity.

[0065] It is already known from the state of the art to conduct a mechanical stress analysis for the purpose of fatigue strength. For this purpose, material-mechanical damage-relevant events are recorded based on a stress-time function and processed into a stress collective, for example, a stress amplitude collective (nominal stress concept, notch stress concept) or a damage parameter collective (notch strain concept).

[0066] The mechanical stress is first subjected to a rainflow classification. From the resulting rainflow matrix, recorded load cycles are determined according to amplitude, mean, and frequency. Rainflow classification leaves a residual (turning points that do not generate load cycles), which, depending on the application, is either ignored, considered as half a load cycle, or considered as a full load cycle. The resulting amplitude-mean collective can be transformed into a substitute amplitude collective using a Haigh diagram, thus yielding the desired stress collective.

[0067] However, since a measurement period is usually significantly shorter than the component's service life, the resulting stress spectrum must be extrapolated to obtain a design spectrum for the component's entire service life. According to the current state of the art, this extrapolation is primarily based on the relationship between the measurement period and the planned service life. It is assumed that the stress behavior during the service life is the same as it was during the measurement. This requires precise knowledge of a future application profile right from the test planning stage in order to accurately represent the composition of the various application scenarios and obtain the most representative design spectrum possible.

[0068] The design spectrum thus obtained can be used to carry out theoretical and experimental lifetime analyses.

[0069] To determine the current damage state of a component, a current stress spectrum is required that reflects the component's stress history. Currently, this requires either a measurement of the stress over the entire service life or a reconstruction based on the previously determined design spectrum.

[0070] Such a reconstruction of a current load spectrum has so far been based primarily on the relationship between the current and planned service life. This means that the spectra of the reconstructed current load spectrum and the design load spectrum do not differ, and in the case of a relative service life analysis using a damage accumulation hypothesis, only the corresponding service lives are effectively compared. Due to this fact, the use of such reconstructed load spectrums for damage assessment in the sense of predictive maintenance is questionable.

[0071] Furthermore, state-of-the-art approaches exist that determine separate stress collectives from defined test operations for selected, previously defined operating conditions and superimpose them, weighted according to a usage profile, to form a design collective. This also makes it possible to reconstruct a current stress collective based on a usage profile. However, this approach involves considerable effort in test planning and execution. The number of manageable operating conditions is severely limited.

[0072] The method described below therefore extends the stress analysis of a component to determine the damage-relevant events depending on the operating conditions encountered within an overall system. The method thus enables the reconstruction of a stress collective for a specific component solely from the recording of the operating conditions of the overall system, provided that time-normalized stress collectives for the occurring operating conditions are known, which were advantageously previously determined using the method described here. This can be used, for example, for online monitoring of the current damage state of the component without having to determine the stress profile on the component itself.

[0073] Advantageously, in this method, damage states are determined for a component as a function of operating states of an overall system comprising the component by recording a time profile of stresses on the component and a time profile of signals S of the overall system relevant for determining operating states during operation of the overall system, operating states of the overall system that have occurred are determined from the recorded signals S, in particular a time profile of the operating states that have occurred, damaging events are determined from the recorded stresses and assigned to the operating states, stress collectives are determined for each operating state BB and time-normalized stress collectives are determined for each operating state ZBB based on a duration of the respective operating state.Using these time-normalized stress collectives per operating condition ZBB, the damage state can now be determined, for example, for the component depending on the operating conditions that have occurred in the overall system. Alternatively or additionally, the future damage state can be determined, for example, depending on predicted future operating conditions of the overall system comprising the component. Alternatively or additionally, the damage state can be determined, for example, for another component similar to this component depending on the operating conditions that have occurred in another overall system that includes this additional component and is similar to the overall system.Alternatively or additionally, the future damage state can be determined, for example, depending on predicted future operating conditions of the further overall system comprising the further component.

[0074] The procedure is described below using the example of a load on a component in the form of mechanical stress, which is present as a discrete time curve. The data recorded is therefore a stress-time curve BSV of the component, i.e. a, in particular, discrete, time curve of the stresses, i.e. of stress measurements, of the component. In addition to this stress-time curve BSV, which in the example described here is in the form of a stress curve, signals S from the higher-level overall system, which includes the component, are recorded as further data. More precisely, a time curve of these signals S is recorded. These are, in particular, signals S that are relevant for determining operating states of the overall system. In particular, these signals S are also available during normal operation of the overall system.

[0075] In a first process step VS1, these signals S are initially divided into areas, specifically classes, that are characteristic of the operating states occurring in order to define possible operating states of the overall system. The result is an operating state-time profile (BZV), i.e., a time profile of the operating states that have occurred.

[0076] For the signals S used with the classes defined in this way, a multidimensional histogram is subsequently created in a second process step VS2, based on which the duration of the respective operating state is determined. The histogram has a dimension for each of the signals S. For example, for the analysis of a component designed as a mechanical vehicle component, such a signal S could be the driving speed. The relevant ranges would be defined by the designated operating points. For example, four classes can be defined here in which the driving speed typically falls: Standstill (speed = 0 km / h), city driving (speed between 0 km / h and 50 km / h), cross-country driving (speed from 50 km / h to 100 km / h), motorway driving (speed greater than 100 km / h).

[0077] The histogram is determined in the second process step VS2 using a multi-parametric, related instantaneous value count. This means that for each measuring point at which a stress measurement was recorded, the values ​​of all recorded signals S of the overall system relevant for determining the operating states (i.e., the recorded signals S with the exception of mechanical stress) are determined, and the associated classes of the signals S are identified. For each combination of classes, there is exactly one element in the histogram, whose count is incremented by the time interval from the previous measuring point. Each element of the histogram formally represents an operating state. The result of this second process step VS2 is thus a duration of the operating states DB of the overall system.

[0078] This determines a real sequence of operating states and the actual duration of each operating state, rather than processing a predetermined sequence and duration of operating states using the entire system. The method can therefore be implemented, for example, during real operation of the entire system, allowing more realistic results to be achieved compared to a test system and the predetermined operating states implemented during test operation. A particular advantage over previous methods is that changes in operating states can be detected automatically and do not need to be specifically considered or deliberately induced.

[0079] The next and third process step VS3 is a stress analysis which is modified from the stress analysis used previously described above. This means that the damage-relevant events, i.e. those which damage the component, are determined in a manner which is modified from the prior art procedure described above. For this purpose, each measured stress value is first assigned its corresponding operating state based on the signals S of the overall system. The input data is therefore the determined operating state-time curve BZV and the stress-time curve BSV. A modified form of rainflow classification is then carried out. The damaging events, in this example the load change, are determined using classic rainflow classification. The actual modification occurs when these determined events which damage the component are saved.

[0080] According to the conventional method, the load changes would be stored in a rainflow matrix. In contrast, the method described here creates a separate rainflow matrix for each operating state, in which the counted load changes are proportionally distributed among the operating states involved in the generation of the load changes.

[0081] A load cycle according to the classic rainflow classification consists of two reversal points, which are removed from the load curve after counting the load cycle. Each reversal point is characterized by a measured stress value and / or a measured load value. In the method described here, however, in addition to the measured stress value of the reversal points, the corresponding operating states are also known. Therefore, each load cycle is divided into two half load cycles and stored in the rainflow matrices of the operating states corresponding to the reversal points.

[0082] The residual is considered in a similar way. Here, too, the load change is divided 50% each among the rainflow matrices of the operating states involved, depending on the type of consideration—that is, whether there is no load change, a half load change, or a full load change. Only in the special case where only one operating state has occurred does the result of the modified rainflow classification correspond to the result of the classic rainflow classification described above.

[0083] In an alternative embodiment, the allocation is based on the energetically motivated weighting described above. In contrast to the classic rainflow classification, not only the reversal points are considered, but also all stress measurements and their associated operating states within the period during which the load cycle lasts. For each time interval, the magnitude of the load increment, i.e., the stress difference between the two points in time, is assigned to the operating state effective at the beginning of the time interval. The energetically motivated weight of an operating state in the overall load cycle is then calculated as the sum of the magnitudes of the load increments assigned to it, divided by twice the difference between the highest and lowest stress values ​​of the load cycle.The load cycle is then added to the entry in the rainflow matrix of the corresponding operating state as the product of its frequency and the energetically motivated weight of the operating state. The position of the load cycle in the rainflow matrices, i.e., the row number and column number, of the operating states remains unchanged compared to the state of the art. All measurement points of the load cycle, except for the last one, are then removed from the stress-time curve and the operating state-time curve, thereby removing included load cycles from further counting, as in the classic rainflow classification. Even with this procedure, the result for the special case in which only one operating state occurred corresponds to the result of the classic rainflow classification.

[0084] The result of this third process step VS3 are the events damaging the component per operating state EB, ie the distribution of the events damaging the component across the operating states.

[0085] In the example shown, the rainflow matrices obtained in this way are advantageously evaluated individually for each operating condition in at least one further, here fourth, method step VS4 in order to obtain stress collectives for each operating condition BB as a result. In this case, the recorded load changes, in the exemplary embodiment described here, the mechanical stress are extracted according to stress amplitude, mean stress and frequency. The mean stress is taken into account according to the Haigh diagram, preferably for a damage-equivalent, mean stress-free amplitude. In this way, the stress collectives for each operating condition BB are obtained as substitute amplitude collectives for each operating condition. In a further, here fifth, method step VS5, these are normalized in terms of the frequency of their individual collective levels to the duration of the associated operating condition. I.e.The extent of the stress collectives is standardized with the duration of the respective operating condition. The quantitative description of the damage content of damage characteristics is thus given in this example as a medium-voltage transformed stress amplitude, which is also known to those skilled in the art as the equivalent stress amplitude.

[0086] In one possible embodiment of the method, the level of stress at the individual collective stages can also be influenced during this standardization process. This is done by taking into account statistical parameters of the distribution of the maximum stress values ​​and the ratio of the duration of an operating condition to the predicted total service life of the entire system.

[0087] The result is a time-related, ie, time-normalized, stress collective for each operating condition ZBB, ie, a time-normalized stress collective for each operating condition. This is the related, ie, time-related, damage characteristic of the respective operating condition.

[0088] The described procedure for determining the time-normalized stress collective for each operating condition ZBB from the stress-time curve BSV for the component and the time curve of the signals S of the overall system comprising the component is a coupled stress analysis GB.

[0089] The procedure described serves as an example for the evaluation of a mechanical stress-time curve based on the nominal stress concept or the notch stress concept of fatigue strength, but is not limited to these applications. The principle of the method described here is based on assigning the operating states of the overall system to the corresponding measured stress value of the component and generating a specific set of damage characteristics for each operating state. A damaging event is distributed equally among the participating operating states.

[0090] By means of the time-related, ie time-normalized, stress collectives for each operating condition ZBB determined in the manner described, a stress collective for a component can now be reconstructed for any period of time, for example for the component by means of which the time-normalized stress collectives for each operating condition ZBB are calculated in the manner described above and in Figure 1 were determined in the manner described, and / or similarly for another similar component of another similar overall system. For this purpose, only a histogram for the occurrence of the operating states of this component, for which the stress collective is to be reconstructed, or more precisely, of the entire system including this component, is required in a particular time interval under consideration, i.e., the time interval of interest.

[0091] The occurrence of the operating states can be determined, for example, by recording actually occurring operating states of this overall system, for example analogous to the procedure described above according to process steps VS1 and VS2 from a recorded time history of signals S of this overall system, or an operating state history can be specified, for example resulting from a usage forecast for the overall system. The time-related, i.e. time-normalized, load collectives for each operating state ZBB are then extrapolated to the duration of the respective operating state, for example by multiplying their frequency by the duration of the respective operating state, and then superimposed to form an overall load collective across all operating states.

[0092] In one possible embodiment of the method, the level of stress and / or load of the individual collective stages can also be influenced in this extrapolation process. This is done by taking into account the statistical parameters of the distribution of the maximum stress values ​​used for standardization and, for example, the ratio of the duration of an operating condition to the predicted total service life of the entire system.

[0093] In another possible embodiment of the method, the normalization and extrapolation are performed based on the extrapolation of rainflow matrices, whereby process step VS4 is initially omitted. In process step VS5, the rainflow matrices are directly normalized as an extrapolation to shorter operating condition durations. Before determining an entire stress collective, the rainflow matrices of the operating conditions are first extrapolated based on the duration of the respective operating condition. This is followed by process step VS4 to determine a current stress collective of the operating condition based on a current rainflow matrix, and finally, the superposition of all current stress collectives of the operating conditions that have occurred.

[0094] This superimposed total stress collective is the reconstructed stress collective for the component, as mentioned above, for example, for the component, by means of which the time-normalized stress collectives for each operating state ZBB are calculated to the value described above and in Figure 1 manner described, and / or for a similar further component of a similar further overall system.

[0095] The particular advantage of this approach is that reconstructing a stress spectrum eliminates the need to perform repeated stress measurements in the corresponding time range. Based on this, the current damage state of a component can be derived by selecting appropriate reconstructed stress spectrums. This requires a stress spectrum that corresponds to the stress to be endured over the entire service life of the component, in the sense of a failure criterion.This can be determined, for example, by constructing a histogram for the occurrence of operating conditions for the expected service life by extrapolating from a measurement, or by performing a measurement across a group of identical overall systems, for example, across an entire vehicle fleet, over the expected service life and superimposing the individual histograms of all overall systems, for example, all vehicles. From this histogram, a design collective for the component is determined by reconstruction using the time-related, i.e., time-normalized, stress collectives for each operating condition ZBB.

[0096] Furthermore, a histogram of the occurrence of operating conditions over the entire service life of an entire system, for example, a vehicle, can be determined. From the reconstruction of the stress spectrum based on this histogram, the stress spectrum of the entire system, for example, the vehicle, can be reconstructed up to the current point in time. By comparing this currently reconstructed stress spectrum with the design spectrum, the current damage of the component can be determined in comparison to the design spectrum. A suitable method for this is the linear damage accumulation hypothesis according to Palmgren and Miner, for example, in the "Miner-Elementary" modification.

[0097] A prerequisite for the applicability of this method for determining damage is knowledge of the Wöhler curve. This is either determined experimentally or estimated using suitable methods (e.g., according to the FKM guideline). The linear damage accumulation calculation yields a damage sum for each of the reconstructed stress collective and the design collective, with the ratio of the two damage sums representing the current damage of the component, i.e., the current damage state. The continuous updating of the current reconstructed stress collective by updating the histogram of the occurrence of the operating states enables online monitoring of the component's damage state.

[0098] The described procedure is an example for determining the damage of an equivalent amplitude collective as a stress collective based on the nominal stress concept or the notch stress concept of fatigue strength, but is not limited to these applications. The principle is based on the separate determination of the damage of the current reconstructed stress collective and the design stress collective using a suitable method for determining the damage and the comparison of the resulting damage values.

[0099] As a further exemplary embodiment, the procedure for the modified stress analysis based on the notch strain concept is described below. In this case, only the concrete implementation of process steps VS3 and VS4 differs from the procedure described above. In step VS3, the damaging events are determined in the form of load cycles using rainflow classification. However, these are not stored in rainflow matrices as described above; instead, they are converted into a stress parameter (here: damage parameter) in step VS4 directly after their recording and / or taking into account the order of their occurrence, based on the notch strain concept of fatigue strength.The damage parameter thus determined is added to the damage parameter collectives of the corresponding operating states according to the operating states involved in the corresponding load cycle (e.g., operating states associated with the reversal points of the load cycle), in particular proportionally, for example, as a damage parameter with 50% of the original frequency – i.e., 0.5 – to the damage parameter collectives of the corresponding operating states. In this way, the stress collectives for each operating state BB are obtained as damage parameter collectives for each operating state.

[0100] In an alternative embodiment, the distribution of the damage parameters to the operating states is preferably carried out according to the weighting described above, in particular energetically motivated.

[0101] The further procedure is, at least essentially, analogous to the above example. The only difference here is partly the determination of the damage. According to the notch strain concept, damage parameter Wöhler curves corresponding to the damage parameter used are required instead of conventional Wöhler curves. The damage sum is determined analogously to the Miner's rule.

[0102] The method can be carried out, for example, by means of a device which is arranged, for example, directly on the overall system, i.e., onboard, or, for example, partially on the overall system and partially offboard, i.e., external to the overall system. External to the overall system, the device comprises, in particular, a processing unit, for example, in the form of a computer. In the case of a device arranged entirely on the overall system, the processing unit is, for example, a control unit or another computer unit. External to the overall system, the method can be carried out, for example, on the basis of externally recorded data, in particular, time profiles of the stress on the component under consideration and the signals of the overall system relevant for determining the operating states.For example, the device comprises corresponding acquisition units in the overall system, which transmit this data to an external unit, in particular to the processing unit, for recording and processing. Alternatively, this data can be initially recorded in the overall system and later transmitted to the processing unit for evaluation. Data transmission can be wireless, for example, via radio, or via a cable.

[0103] Such a device according to the invention is thus designed and configured to carry out the method.

[0104] The device comprises, for example, at least one unit for detecting the stresses on the component, at least one unit for detecting the signals S of the overall system relevant for determining operating states, and at least one processing unit. The processing unit is particularly designed and configured to carry out the above-mentioned method steps, in particular to process the detected stresses on the component and the signals S of the overall system relevant for determining operating states, in particular in the manner described above.

[0105] For example, as already mentioned, the device can be arranged or can be arranged entirely within the overall system, or for example, at least one component of the device, in particular the at least one unit for detecting the stresses on the component and / or the at least one unit for detecting the signals S of the overall system relevant for determining operating states, can be arranged or can be arranged within the overall system. The processing unit is then, for example, a component of the device external to the overall system, such as a computer. LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS

[0106] BBStress collectives per operating condition BSVStress-time history BZVOperating condition-time history DBDuration of operating conditions EBDamaging events per operating condition GBCoupled stress analysis SSignals ZBBTime-normalized stress collective per operating condition VS1first process step VS2second process step VS3third process step VS4fourth process step VS5fifth process step

Claims

1. Method for determining a damage condition of components, wherein damage conditions are determined for a component on the basis of operating states of an integral system comprising the component by recording, during operation of the integral system, a time characteristic of stresses and / or strains on the component and a time characteristic of signals (S) of the integral system that are relevant to the determination of operating states, by using the detected signals (S) to determine operating states of the integral system that have occurred, in particular a time characteristic of the operating states that have occurred, by using the detected stresses and / or strains to determine damaging events and to associate them with the operating states, by determining stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (BB) and by taking a duration of the respective operating state as a basis for determining time-normalized stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (ZBB), wherein the time-normalized stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (ZBB) are used - to determine the damage condition for the component on the basis of operating states of the integral system that have occurred, and / or to determine the future damage condition on the basis of operating states of the integral system comprising the component that are predicted to occur in the future, and / or - to determine the damage condition for a further component designed in the same way as this component on the basis of operating states of a further integral system comprising this further component and designed in the same way as the integral system that have occurred, and / or to determine the future damage condition on the basis of operating states of the further integral system comprising the further component that are predicted to occur in the future.

2. Method according to Claim 1, wherein the signals (S) of the integral system are classified and, as a result, possible operating states are defined in order to obtain the time characteristic of the operating states that have occurred, and wherein the duration of the respective operating state is determined by forming a multi-dimensional histogram for the signals (S) of the integral system with the classes into which they are split, which histogram is taken as a basis for determining the duration of the respective operating state, and wherein the histogram is determined by way of a multiparametric, referenced instantaneous value count, and wherein the detected stresses and / or strains are used to determine damaging events and to associate them with the operating states, and thus damaging events are determined for each operating state (EB) by performing a stress analysis and / or strain analysis, and wherein the stress analysis and / or strain analysis involves - each stress and / or strain being assigned its associated operating state on the basis of the signals (S) of the integral system, - a rainflow classification of the stresses and / or strains being performed to determine the occurrence of damaging events in the form of load changes.

3. Method according to Claim 2, wherein the stress analysis and / or strain analysis involves - a separate rainflow matrix, in which counted load changes are divided proportionally between each of the operating states involved in producing the load changes, being produced for each operating state, - taking into consideration a residual by dividing the respective load change between the rainflow matrices of the operating states involved, in particular dividing it proportionally between the rainflow matrices of the operating states involved, according to a type of consideration, in particular whether there is no load change, a half load change or a complete load change.

4. Method according to Claim 2 or 3, wherein the stress analysis and / or strain analysis involves - a separate rainflow matrix, in which counted load changes are divided proportionally between each of the operating states involved in producing the load changes, being produced for each operating state by dividing the respective load change into two half load changes and storing each of them in the rainflow matrices of the operating states belonging to reversal points, - taking into consideration a residual by dividing the respective load change with a share of 50% each between the rainflow matrices of the operating states involved, according to a type of consideration, in particular whether there is no load change, a half load change or a complete load change.

5. Method according to Claim 2 or 3, wherein the stress analysis and / or strain analysis involves - a separate rainflow matrix, in which counted load changes are divided proportionally between each of the operating states involved in producing the load changes, being produced for each operating state by dividing the respective load change in weighted fashion with respect to the operating states involved in producing it and storing said load change accordingly in the rainflow matrices of these operating states, - taking into consideration a residual by dividing the respective load change between the rainflow matrices of the operating states involved in weighted fashion with respect to the operating states involved in producing it, according to a type of consideration, in particular whether there is no load change, a half load change or a complete load change.

6. Method according to Claim 5, wherein the weight of the respective operating state is determined by determining a period during which the respective load change occurred, and a total duration of the respective operating state within this period, and the weight is obtained as the ratio of the total operating state duration of the respective operating state to the total duration of the respective load change.

7. Method according to Claim 5, wherein the weight of the respective operating state is determined as the ratio of the accumulated absolute values of the stress and / or strain increments of the associated load changes in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or strain increment of the associated load changes, wherein the total stress and / or strain increment of the associated load changes is obtained from twice the difference between upper and lower stress or strain measured values of the reversal points of the associated load changes.

8. Method according to one of Claims 3 to 7, wherein the stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (BB) are determined by individually evaluating the rainflow matrices for each operating state, in particular by extracting the detected load changes.

9. Method according to Claim 2, wherein the stress analysis and / or strain analysis involves the determined load changes being converted into a damage parameter directly after they are determined and / or in consideration of the order in which they occur and each being added as damage parameters, in particular proportionally, to damage parameter collectives of the operating states involved in the associated load change, wherein the damage parameter collectives for each operating state represent the stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (BB).

10. Method according to Claim 2 or 9, wherein the stress analysis and / or strain analysis involves the determined load changes being converted into a damage parameter directly after they are determined and / or in consideration of the order in which they occur and each being added as damage parameters with half of the original prevalence to damage parameter collectives of the operating states involved in the associated load change, wherein the damage parameter collectives for each operating state represent the stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (BB).

11. Method according to Claim 2 or 9, wherein the stress analysis and / or strain analysis involves the determined load changes being converted into a damage parameter directly after they are determined and / or in consideration of the order in which they occur and each being added as damage parameters, in weighted fashion with respect to the operating states involved in producing them, to damage parameter collectives of the operating states involved in the associated load change, wherein the damage parameter collectives for each operating state represent the stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (BB).

12. Method according to Claim 11, wherein the weight of the respective operating state is determined by determining a period during which the respective load change occurred, and a total duration of the respective operating state within this period, and the weight is obtained as the ratio of the total operating state duration of the respective operating state to the total duration of the respective load change.

13. Method according to Claim 11, wherein the weight of the respective operating state is determined as the ratio of the accumulated absolute values of the stress and / or strain increments of the associated load changes in the respective operating state to the total stress and / or strain increment of the associated load changes, wherein the total stress and / or strain increment of the associated load changes is obtained from twice the difference between upper and lower stress or strain measured values of the reversal points of the associated load changes.

14. Method according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the time-normalized stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (ZBB) are determined by normalizing the stress collectives and / or strain collectives for each operating state (BB) in the prevalence of their individual collective stages to the duration of the associated operating state.

15. Device, designed and configured for carrying out a method according to one of the preceding claims, comprising - at least one unit for detecting the stresses and / or strains on the component, - at least one unit for detecting the signals (S) of the integral system that are relevant to the determination of operating states, and - at least one processing unit, wherein the device is completely arranged or arrangeable on the integral system or wherein at least one component of the device, in particular the at least one unit for detecting the stresses and / or strains on the component and / or the at least one unit for detecting the signals (S) of the integral system that are relevant to the determination of operating states, are / is arranged or arrangeable on the integral system.