DIAGNOSTIC TOOLS FOR THE NEEDS OF ANALYSING THE RELIABILITY OF MACHINES.

The paper presents some aspects of analysing the reliability of machines when the recognized states of a machine form the base for conclusions about the further effectiveness of its functioning. In the first part the problem of states and classes of states is introduced, as well as the classic approach to the problem of machine reliability. The next part of the paper shows briefly the methodology of identifying the states of functioning machines by means of diagnostic methods. Special attention is paid to the domain of time in diagnostic investigations. The idea of representing the changes of states by time series of diagnostic symptoms has been presented and illustrated by some examples. In the conclusions, some proposals for further research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]