Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06Q—INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • G06Q10/00—Administration; Management
  • G06Q10/06—Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06Q—INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • G06Q10/00—Administration; Management
  • G06Q10/20—Administration of product repair or maintenance

Definitions

• the present invention relates generally to scheduli ng of mai ntenance for motor vehicles. More particularly the invention relates to a planning entity according to the preamble of claim 1 . The invention also relates to a method according to the preamble of claim 8, a computer prog ram according to claim 1 5 and a computer program product accordi ng to claim 1 6.
• US 201 0/0087985 discloses a solution for collecting and recor- ding details relating to the operation of a vehicle under adverse conditions.
• the recorded data is particularly useful to forestall catastrophic failures, and to provide valuable information for potential buyers of used vehicles.
• the operating conditions that are considered are hig h levels of air contaminants, opera- tion i n extreme hot or cold temperatures, hauling heavy loads, as well as hard braking, tu rning and acceleration .
• prorated mai ntenance schedules are recalculated and adjusted to accommodate for the operation of the vehicle under these adverse or less than ideal conditions.
• the data is stored in the on-board computers present in most vehicles. Periodic off loadi ng of the data to the dealer and service providers is also provided .
• US 201 0/0023209 reveals a method of organizing ai rcraft maintenance.
• a recommended maintenance prog ram is defined for an aircraft, where maintenance deadlines for the recommended mai ntenance program are determined by using pri mary data from testing pieces of equipment and/or elements of the aircraft. Utilization data for the aircraft is used and stored.
• a calculation device implements at least one algorith m to recalculate the maintenance deadlines as a function of the actual utilization data. The recom mended maintenance prog ram is then updated.
• the object of the present invention is therefore to provide a solution, which offers maintenance scheduling with improved precision relative to when maintenance is actually requi red, such that the frequency of u n necessary workshop visits is reduced.
• the object is achieved by the initially described planning entity, wherein the utilization data contains a predefined set of condition factors.
• the processor is also configured to compute the at least one maintenance interval on the further basis of at least one weight factor asso- ciated to each condition factor in the predefined set of condition factors.
• the weig ht factor reflects how the condition factor to which it is associated influences the wear of at least one component being the subject of a given maintenance instance.
• the maintenance interval is expressed in terms of an operating time and/or a distance driven by the motor vehicle.
• the processor is fu rther configured to compute the mai ntenance interval based on the condition factors, such that the maintenance interval is either decreased or increased from a nominal value depending on whether the data reflected by a particular condition factor is expected to intensify or reduce the wear of a component being the subject of the maintenance instance.
• the processor is configu red to compute the maintenance interval on the fu rther basis of the at least one weig ht factor, such that the influence of a particular condition factor on a given mai nte- nance instance is either raised or lowered depending on whether the condition factor is deemed to be relatively important or relatively unimportant for the wear of the component being the subject of the mai ntenance instance.
• the processor is configu red to compute the maintenance interval on the fu rther basis of the at least one weig ht factor, such that the influence of a particular condition factor on a given mai nte- nance instance is either raised or lowered depending on whether the condition factor is deemed to be relatively important or relatively unimportant for the wear of the component being the subject of the mai ntenance instance.
• the maintenance interval is associated with a minimal value below the nominal value and a maximal value above the nominal value.
• the minimal and maximal values express a shortest and a longest recommended interval respectively between two consecutive visits to the workshop in the maintenance prog ram.
• the processor is configured to assig n the maintenance interval to the minimal value if, based on the condition factors and weig ht factors, the maintenance interval is computed to a value below the minimal value.
• the processor is preferably configu red to assign the maintenance interval to the maxi mal value if, based on the condition factors and weight factors, the maintenance interval is computed to a value above the maximal value.
• the condition factors express : a weig ht of the motor ve- hide, a d river's d riving behavior, topog raphic data, traffic conditions, road conditions and/or climate conditions in an environment where the motor vehicle has been operated du ri ng the data collection period .
• the input interface is configured to collect the utilization da- ta via at least one communication network having a wireless interface towards the motor vehicle. Consequently, the maintenance entity may be located in a central node, and be arranged to produce respective maintenance programs for the individual vehicles in a fleet of vehicles.
• the object is achieved by the method described initially, wherein the utilization data contains a predefined set of condition factors. Additionally, the method involves computing the at least one maintenance inter- val on the further basis of at least one weig ht factor associated to each condition factor in the predefined set of condition factors.
• the weight factor reflects how the condition factor to which it is associated influences the wear of at least one component being the subject of a given maintenance instance.
• the object is achieved by a computer prog ram loadable into the internal me- mory of a computer, comprising software for controlling the above proposed method when said program is run on a computer.
• the object is achieved by a computer prog ram product, having a prog ram recorded thereon, where the prog ram is to make a computer control the above proposed method.
• Figure 1 shows a block diagram over a planning entity according to one embodiment of the invention
• FIG. 2 shows a flow diagram illustrating the general method accordi ng to the invention. DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
• the planning entity includes an input interface 110, a processor 120 and an output interface 130.
• the input interface 110 is configured to receive utilization data UD representing how the motor vehicle has been used during a data collection period.
• the utilization data UD contains a predefined set of condition factors d1, d2, dx.
• the condition factors d1, d2, dx may express the actual weight of the motor vehicle during the data collection period; or if the weight has varied, respective actual weights of the motor vehicle during each of a number of intervals within this period (preferably factored by the relative duration of each interval).
• condition factors d1, d2, dx may also express a driver's driving behavior during the data collection period, topographic data, traffic conditions, road conditions and/or climate conditions reflecting an environment wherein the motor vehicle has been operated during the data collection period.
• the data collection period may have any extension in time suitable for the implementation.
• the data collection period may be relatively short, say 24 hours, or relatively long, say six months depending what is deemed to be appropriate with regard to the ve- hide and its expected usage.
• the processor 120 is configured to derive a respective maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn for at least one maintenance instance MM , MI2, Mln of the motor vehicle.
• the maintenance intervals M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn may be arranged in a listing 150 in the processor 120.
• a maintenance interval M-INT for a maintenance instance MM is the time between two consecutive maintenance occasions for a component in the motor vehicle.
• a first maintenance interval M-INT1 reflects the interval from installing a new oil filter until this filter must be replaced.
• the maintenance intervals M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn are derived based on the utilization data UD.
• the processor 120 is configured to compute the maintenance intervals M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn based on the condition factors d1, d2, dx and at least one weight factor w1, w2, wx associated to each condition factor in the predefined set of condition factors d1, d2, dx.
• the weight factors w1, w2, wx are preferably stored in a data storage 140 accessible by the processor 120, and each weight factor reflects how the condition factor to which it is associated influences the wear of at least one component being the subject of a given maintenance instance MM, MI2, Mln.
• the processor 120 is also configured to set up a maintenance program MP describing recommended visits to a workshop.
• the output interface 130 is configured to present the maintenance program MP, for instance via a display, in the form of a document (electronic and/or in the form of a print-out) and/ or as an e-mail or any other type of electronic message to one or more predefined recipients.
• the maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn is expressed in terms of an operating time and/or a distance driven by the motor vehicle.
• the processor 120 is further preferably configured to compute the maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn based on the condition factors d1, d2, dx, such that the maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn is either decreased/shortened or increased/prolonged from a nominal value depending on whether the data reflected by a particular condition factor is expected to intensify or reduce the wear of a component being the subject of the maintenance instance MM, MI2, Mln.
• the respective correlations between the condition factors d1, d2, dx and the maintenance intervals M-INT1, M- INT2, M-INTn are assigned manually by an expert who enters his/her knowledge into a computer program comprising soft- ware for controlling the processor 120.
• the processor 120 is configured to com- pute each maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn on the further basis of the at least one weight factor w1 , w2, wx, such that the influence of a particular condition factor d1, d2, dx on a given maintenance instance MM, MI2, Mln is either raised or lowered depending on whether the condition factor is deemed to be relatively important or relatively unimportant for the wear of the component being the subject of the maintenance instance MM, MI2, Mln.
• the weight factors w1 , w2, wx may be assigned manually by an expert in the form of parameters in a computer program for controlling the processor 120.
• each maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M- INTn is associated with a minimal value and a maximal value.
• the minimal value represents a value below the nominal value for the maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn, and correspondingly, the maximal value represents a value above the nominal value.
• the minimal and maximal values express a shortest and a longest recommended interval respectively between two consecutive visits to the workshop in the maintenance program MP. I.e. the minimal and maximal values may be expressed in terms of driving distance and/or operating time for the motor vehicle.
• the minimal and maximal values may be used as follows. If, based on the condition factors d1, d2, dx and weight factors w1, w2, wx, a given maintenance interval M-INT1, M- INT2, M-INTn is computed to a value below the minimal va- lue, the processor 120 is configured to assign the maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn to the minimal value.
• the processor 120 is configured to assign the maintenance interval M-INT1, M-INT2, M-INTn to the maximal value.
• the mainte- nance program M P will contai n reasonable maintenance intervals.
• the input interface 1 1 0 is connected to at least one commu nication network, which, in tu rn, has at least one wireless interface towards the motor vehicle.
• the input interface 1 1 0 is further configu red to collect the utilization data U D via the at least one interface, preferably wi reless. Consequently, utilization data U D in respect to a large number of vehicles may be fed into the processor 1 20 in very convenient manner.
• the above proceedu re implemented by the processor 1 20 is preferably controlled by a computer prog ram loaded into a memory 1 60 of the processor 1 20, or an external memory unit accessible by the processor 1 20 (not shown) .
• the computer prog ram in tu rn, contains software for controlling the steps of the proceedu re when the prog ram is ru n on the processor 1 20.
• a step 21 it is checked if utilization data have been received , and if so, a step 220 follows. Otherwise, the proceedu re loops back and stays in step 21 0.
• the utilization data are presumed to contai n a predefined set of condition factors representing how the motor vehicle has been used duri ng a data collection period.
• step 220 the received condition factors are retrieved , where after in a step 230, a respective maintenance interval is computed for at least one maintenance instance of the motor vehicle.
• the maintenance intervals are derived based on the condition factors and a respective weig ht factor associated to each condition factor.
• a given weight factor reflects how the condition factor to which it is associated influences the wear of at least one component being the subject of a particular maintenance.
• a maintenance program is presented in a step 240.
• the maintenance prog ram describes recommended visits to a workshop, and is based on at least one of the mai ntenance intervals computed in step 230. Then, the proceedu re ends.
• the process steps, as well as any sub-sequence of steps, described with reference to the figure 2 above may be controlled by means of a programmed computer apparatus.
• the embodiments of the invention described above with reference to the drawings comprise computer apparatus and processes per- formed in computer apparatus, the invention thus also extends to computer programs, particularly computer programs on or in a carrier, adapted for putting the invention into practice.
• the program may be in the form of source code ; object code, a code intermediate source and object code such as in partially compiled form, or in any other form suitable for use in the implementation of the process according to the invention.
• the carrier may be any entity or device capable of carrying the program.
• the carrier may comprise a storage medium, such as a Flash memory, a ROM (Read Only Memory), for example a CD (Compact Disc) or a semiconductor ROM, an EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), or a magnetic recording medium, for example a floppy disc or hard disc.
• the carrier may be a transmissible carrier such as an electrical or optical signal, which may be conveyed via electrical or optical cable or by radio or by other means.
• the carrier may be constituted by such cable or device or means.
• the carrier may be an integrated circuit in which the program is embedded, the integrated circuit being adapted for performing, or for use in the performance of, the relevant processes.

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• 2013
  • 2013-03-19 EP EP13716078.4A patent/EP2828808A1/de not_active Withdrawn
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