Augmented and Virtual Reality for Inspection and Maintenance Processes in the Aviation Industry

TLDR

Augmented and virtual reality technologies have matured, yet their adoption in aviation inspection and maintenance is challenged by diverse process and device characteristics that complicate technology selection. The paper proposes a concept to assess the suitability of mixed‑reality systems for aviation inspection and maintenance processes. Four distinct use cases illustrate how augmented or virtual reality devices can be applied in industrial aviation contexts.

Abstract

Maturity of augmented and virtual reality devices has considerably grown recently. As processes in the aviation industry are error prone and time consuming, efforts are made to implement these technologies to support human workers during inspection and maintenance. Nevertheless, varying process and device characteristics impede the selection of a suitable technology. A concept is presented to evaluate the potential of inspection and maintenance processes in the aviation industry regarding the use of mixed reality systems. Four different use cases are discussed applying augmented or virtual reality devices in an industrial context.