Mobile Aircraft Maintenance Office Concept from a Wide Area Perspective

As mobile computing becomes more ubiquitous, through the use of very capable mobile computing devices and broadband wide-area wireless data networks, naval aviation maintenance has an opportunity to extend the reach of the Naval Aviation Logistics Command Management Information System (NALCOMIS) to fielded aircrew, maintenance technicians, and maintenance supervisors supporting out-of- local-area operations. The combination of the new mobile technologies and the wireless Internet makes modern Mobile Business (m-business) initiatives possible, but ushers in a host of new problems and issues that are radically different from those experienced with traditional fixed electronic business (e- business) projects. This thesis examines the concept and components that comprise m-business, details wide-area data over cellular technologies, and identifies problems and issues unique to m-business initiatives. Scenario-based "Use Cases" will be employed within the Unified Process (UP) framework to develop the three major artifacts of the UP's inception phase: the project's vision, a Use Case model, and a supplemental specification containing functional and nonfunctional requirements for an aircrew mobile aircraft maintenance application. The results of this study can serve as the foundation for the development of a complete mobile aircraft maintenance office. A detailed survey of the evolution of cellular technologies; a review of the Third Generation Wireless (3G) specification; the issues surrounding 3G's implementation; and an in-depth technical discussion of the two most predominant 3G system architectures, data capabilities, and required protocols is presented in the three appendices and are referenced throughout the thesis. (10 tables, 9 figures, 22 refs.)Naval Postgraduate School Monterey CA is the author of 'Mobile Aircraft Maintenance Office Concept from a Wide Area Perspective', published 2003 under ISBN 9781423502975 and ISBN 1423502973.