Vehicle filter monitoring system and method

Abstract

Embodiments herein relate to a vehicle filter monitoring system and method. In one embodiment, the filter monitoring system is configured to have a filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of a filter, and the filter monitoring system is configured to have a geographic location information circuit configured to determine a current geographic location of the vehicle. The filter monitoring system may also include a system control circuit configured to generate or receive a local pollutant concentration value at the current geographic location, evaluate the data of the filter sensor device to determine at least one of the filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generate at least one of a maintenance recommendation and a routing recommendation based on the local pollutant concentration value, the time spent at the vehicle's geographic location, the vehicle's duty cycle, the filter condition value, and the change in the filter condition value. Other embodiments are included herein.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] [CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS] This application is in the name of applicant Donaldson Company, Inc., a U.S. corporation, with all country designations, and in the names of inventors Nathan D. Zambon, a U.S. citizen, Daniel E. Adamek, a U.S. citizen, Bradley G. Hauser, a U.S. citizen, Chad M. Goltzman, a U.S. citizen, and Michael J. Winblatt, a U.S. citizen, with all country designations, and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 227,198, filed on July 29, 2021, filed as a PCT international patent application on July 28, 2022, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0002] [Technical field] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments herein relate to a vehicle filter monitoring system and method. [Background technology]

[0003] Filtration systems help maximize the useful life of various automotive components. As such, a vehicle may typically include a number of different types of filtration systems, including, but not limited to, cabin air filtration systems, engine air intake filtration systems, oil filtration systems, fuel filtration systems, coolant filtration systems, power steering filtration systems, crankcase lubrication filtration systems, and transmission fluid filtration systems.

[0004] Filtration systems typically require periodic maintenance to replace filters at the end of their useful life. Improper maintenance can expose components to damage and deterioration, and in the case of air intake filters, can negatively impact fuel economy. In the case of fuel cells, improper maintenance can result in fuel cell degradation and reduced efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Embodiments herein relate to a vehicle filter monitoring system and method. In a first aspect, the filter monitoring system can be included having a filter sensor device that can be configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of a filter, the filter monitoring system can be included having a geolocation circuit that can be configured to determine a current geographic location of the vehicle, and the filter monitoring system can be included having a system control circuit. The system control circuitry may be configured to generate or receive local contaminant concentration values ​​at the present geolocation, evaluate the filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generate at least one of a maintenance recommendation and a routing recommendation based on the local contaminant concentration values, the time spent at the vehicle's geographic location, the vehicle's duty cycle, the filter condition value, and the change in the filter condition value.

[0006] In a second aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the system control circuitry may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​for past geolocations of the vehicle and durations of time spent at the past geolocations.

[0007] In a third aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter monitoring system may be an in-vehicle monitoring system.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter sensor device may include at least one selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, an optical sensor, an auditory sensor, an electrical property sensor, and a chemical sensor.

[0010] In a sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location information circuit may include a GPS receiver.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of the airborne particulate concentration.

[0012] In an eighth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or below aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0013] In a ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0014] In a tenth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include agriculturally harvested particulates.

[0015] In an eleventh aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include work site particulates.

[0016] In a twelfth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter replacement recommendation.

[0017] In a thirteenth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter type recommendation.

[0018] In a fourteenth aspect, a vehicle fleet monitoring system may be configured to have a filter status monitor that may be configured to receive data reflecting filter condition values ​​of filters of vehicles in the platoon, and the vehicle fleet monitoring system may be configured to have control circuitry that may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​at geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon, determine an impact on the filter condition of time spent at the geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon, and estimate and store pollutant impact values ​​for the geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon.

[0019] In a fifteenth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuitry may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​at geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon and durations of time spent at the geographic locations.

[0020] In a sixteenth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0021] In a seventeenth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of a particulate concentration in the air.

[0022] In an eighteenth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0023] In a nineteenth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0024] In a twentieth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include agriculturally harvested particulates.

[0025] In a twenty-first aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include work site particulates.

[0026] In a twenty-second aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuitry may be configured to determine a recommended vehicle route for an individual vehicle based in part on pollutant impact values ​​of geographic locations along the potential routes.

[0027] In a twenty-third aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuitry may be configured to estimate a type of contaminant present at the geographic location based on the determined effect on the filter condition of the time spent at the geographic location.

[0028] In a twenty-fourth aspect, a filter monitoring system may be configured to have a filter sensor device that may be configured to generate data reflecting a value of a filter condition of the filter, the filter monitoring system may be configured to have a geolocation circuit that may be configured to determine a geographic location of the vehicle, and the filter monitoring system may be configured to have a system control circuit that may be configured to evaluate data from the filter sensor device to determine at least one of a value of the filter condition and a change in the value of the filter condition, receive data regarding filter loading conditions at a plurality of geographic locations, and generate a recommended vehicle route based on the filter loading conditions at a starting geolocation, an ending geolocation, and geographic locations along possible routes between the starting geolocation and the ending geolocation.

[0029] In a twenty-fifth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the above aspects, the system control circuitry may be configured to receive data regarding fuel prices at a plurality of geographic locations corresponding to refueling stations, and calculate a vehicle route based on the start geographic location, the end geographic location, and the fuel prices at the refueling stations along possible routes between the start geographic location and the end geographic location.

[0030] In a twenty-sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter monitoring system may be an on-vehicle monitoring system.

[0031] In a twenty-seventh aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0032] In a twenty-eighth aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter sensor device may include at least one selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, an optical sensor, an auditory sensor, an electrical property sensor, and a chemical sensor.

[0033] In a twenty-ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or the following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location information circuit may include a GPS receiver.

[0034] In a thirtieth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the recommended vehicle route reflects the lowest estimated cost of vehicle operations based on parameters evaluated by the system.

[0035] In a thirty-first aspect, a fleet monitoring system may be configured to have a filter status controller that may be configured to receive data reflecting filter condition values ​​of filters for vehicles in the platoon, and the fleet monitoring system may be configured to have control circuitry that may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​at geographic locations of the vehicles in the platoon, calculate a predicted filter condition value based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​associated with each vehicle in the platoon, and compare the actual filter condition value with the predicted filter condition value.

[0036] In a thirty-second aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuitry may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​for past geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon and durations of time spent at the past geographic locations.

[0037] In a thirty-third aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuitry may be configured to transmit to a fleet operator information regarding a difference between expected filter condition values ​​and actual filter condition values.

[0038] In a thirty-fourth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuitry may be configured to schedule a maintenance visit for the vehicle when the actual filter condition value is less than the expected filter condition value by at least a threshold amount.

[0039] In a thirty-fifth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0040] In a thirty-sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of a particulate concentration in the air.

[0041] In a thirty-seventh aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0042] In a thirty-eighth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0043] In a thirty-ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include agriculturally harvested particulates.

[0044] In a fortieth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include work site particulates.

[0045] In a forty-first aspect, a filter monitoring system can be included having a filter sensor device that may be configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of the filter, and the filter monitoring system may be configured to have system control circuitry that may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​in a geolocation zone, evaluate the filter sensor device data to determine at least one of the filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generate routing recommendations around the geolocation zone if the local pollutant concentration value exceeds a threshold.

[0046] In a forty-second aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or the following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the vehicle may further include a geolocation circuit, which may be configured to determine a present geolocation of the vehicle.

[0047] In a forty-third aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or the following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location information circuit may include a GPS receiver.

[0048] In a forty-fourth aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter monitoring system may be an on-vehicle monitoring system.

[0049] In a forty-fifth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0050] In a forty-sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter sensor device may include at least one selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, an optical sensor, an auditory sensor, an electrical property sensor, and a chemical sensor.

[0051] In a 47th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of a particulate concentration in the air.

[0052] In a forty-eighth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0053] In a forty-ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0054] In a 50th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include construction site particulates.

[0055] In a fifty-first aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location area may include a mining site, a construction site, or an agricultural site.

[0056] In a fifty-second aspect, a vehicle cabin filter monitoring system can be included having a geolocation circuit configured to determine geolocations of a vehicle over time, and the vehicle cabin filter monitoring system can be configured with system control circuitry configured to generate or receive local contaminant concentration values ​​at geographic locations visited by the vehicle, and generate a cabin filter maintenance recommendation based on the local contaminant concentration values ​​at the geographic locations visited by the vehicle and the time spent at the geographic locations.

[0057] In a fifty-third aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or the following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location information circuit may include a GPS receiver.

[0058] In a 54th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of a particulate concentration in the air.

[0059] In a fifty-fifth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0060] In a fifty-sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0061] In a fifty-seventh aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include agriculturally harvested particulates.

[0062] In a fifty-eighth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include work site particulates.

[0063] In a fifty-ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter change time recommendation.

[0064] In a 60th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter type recommendation.

[0065] In a sixty-first aspect, a filter monitoring system may be configured to have a filter sensor device, which may be configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of the filter, the filter monitoring system may be configured to have a geolocation circuit, which may be configured to determine a present geolocation of the vehicle, and a system control circuit may be configured to generate or receive a local pollutant concentration value at the present geolocation, evaluate the filter sensor device data to determine at least one of the filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generate a filter recommendation based on the local pollutant concentration value and the filter sensor device data.

[0066] In a 62nd aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the system control circuitry may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​for past geolocations of the vehicle and durations spent at the past geolocations.

[0067] In a 63rd aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the multiple aspects, the filter monitoring system may be an in-vehicle monitoring system.

[0068] In a 64th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0069] In a sixty-fifth aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter sensor device may include at least one selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, an optical sensor, an auditory sensor, an electrical property sensor, and a chemical sensor.

[0070] In a sixty-sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or the following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location information circuit may include a GPS receiver.

[0071] In a 67th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of a particulate concentration in the air.

[0072] In a sixty-eighth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0073] In a sixty-ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the above aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0074] In a seventieth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include construction site particulates.

[0075] In a 71st aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter recommendation may include a filter change time recommendation.

[0076] In a 72nd aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter recommendation may include a filter type recommendation.

[0077] In a seventy-third aspect, a vehicle fleet filtration maintenance system can be included having control circuitry configured to generate or receive pollutant concentration values ​​at future geographic locations of vehicles in the platoon based on routing data, and direct distribution of filter maintenance products to vehicle maintenance sites based on the pollutant concentration values.

[0078] In a 74th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of a particulate concentration in the air.

[0079] In a seventy-fifth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0080] In a seventy-sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0081] In a seventy-seventh aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include agriculturally harvested particulates.

[0082] In a seventy-eighth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include work site particulates.

[0083] In a seventy-ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuit may be configured to direct a number of filter maintenance products to the vehicle maintenance site based on the value of the contaminant concentration.

[0084] In an 80th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the control circuit may be configured to direct a type of filter maintenance product to the vehicle maintenance site based on the value of the contaminant concentration.

[0085] In an eighty-first aspect, the vehicle platoon monitoring system may be configured to have a filter state controller that may be configured to receive data reflecting filter limit values ​​of the filters of each vehicle in the platoon, and the vehicle platoon monitoring system may be configured to have control circuitry that may be configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​at a geographic location of each vehicle in the platoon, generate work orders for filter maintenance of the vehicles in the platoon based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​at each geographic location visited by the vehicles in the platoon, and / or check inventory for a recommended filter and order or initiate an order for the recommended filter if not found in inventory.

[0086] In an 82nd aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the work order may include a recommended filter type.

[0087] In an 83rd aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the local pollutant concentration may include a value of a particulate concentration in the air.

[0088] In an 84th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the above aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0089] In an 85th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0090] In an eighty-sixth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include agriculturally harvested particulates.

[0091] In an 87th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the airborne particulates may include work site particulates.

[0092] In an 88th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the above aspects, the control circuit may be configured to transmit work instructions for filter maintenance to a vehicle maintenance site along the vehicle's route.

[0093] In an eighty-ninth aspect, a filter monitoring system can be included having a filter sensor device that may be configured to generate data reflecting a value of a filter condition of the filter, the filter monitoring system can be configured to have a geolocation circuit that may be configured to determine a present geolocation of a vehicle, and the filter monitoring system can be configured to have system control circuitry that may be configured to generate or receive contaminant conditions data associated with the present geolocation, evaluate the data of the filter sensor device to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and calculate an expected loading rate associated with the presence of the vehicle at the present geographic location.

[0094] In a 90th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the system control circuitry may be configured to generate or receive contaminant conditions data at past geolocations and durations of time spent at the past geolocations.

[0095] In a 91st aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the multiple aspects, the filter monitoring system may be an in-vehicle monitoring system.

[0096] In a 92nd aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0097] In a 93rd aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter sensor device may include at least one selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, an optical sensor, an auditory sensor, an electrical property sensor, and a chemical sensor.

[0098] In a 94th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or the following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location information circuit may include a GPS receiver.

[0099] In a 95th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the multiple aspects, the pollutant condition data may include a value of particulate concentration in the air.

[0100] In a 96th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include smoke.

[0101] In a 97th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include pollen.

[0102] In a 98th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the particulates in the air may include particulates from a construction site.

[0103] In a ninety-ninth aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the system control circuitry may be configured to generate a maintenance recommendation based on an expected loading rate.

[0104] In a 100th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter change time recommendation.

[0105] In a 101st aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter type recommendation.

[0106] In a hundred-second aspect, a filter monitoring system may be configured with a filter sensor device, the filter sensor device may be configured to generate data reflecting a value of a filter condition of the filter, the filter monitoring system may be configured with a geolocation circuit, the geolocation circuit may be configured to determine a present geolocation of a vehicle, and the filter monitoring system may be configured with a system control circuit, the system control circuit may be configured to evaluate the data of the filter sensor device to determine at least one of a value of the filter condition and a change in the value of the filter condition, and generate at least one of a maintenance recommendation and a routing recommendation based on the value of the filter condition and / or the change in the value of the filter condition.

[0107] In a 103rd aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter monitoring system may be an in-vehicle monitoring system.

[0108] In a 104th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the value of the filter condition may include a filter limit value.

[0109] In a 105th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the filter sensor device may include at least one selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, an optical sensor, an auditory sensor, an electrical property sensor, and a chemical sensor.

[0110] In a 106th aspect, in addition to one or more of the above or following aspects, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the geographic location information circuit may include a GPS receiver.

[0111] In a 107th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter change time recommendation.

[0112] In a 108th aspect, in addition to one or more of the aspects above or below, or as an alternative to some of the aspects, the maintenance recommendation may include a filter type recommendation.

[0113] This Summary is an overview of some of the teachings of this application and is not intended to be an exclusive or exhaustive treatment of its subject matter. Further details are set forth in the specification, detailed description and appended claims. Other aspects will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon reading and understanding the following specification, detailed description and viewing the drawings that form a part hereof, each of which is not to be construed in a limiting sense. The scope thereof herein is defined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0114] Several aspects can be more fully understood in connection with the following figures. [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of components of a system according to various embodiments herein. [Diagram 2] 1 is a schematic diagram of an air filtration device according to various embodiments herein. [Diagram 3] 1 is a schematic diagram of an air filtration device and a device in communication with a filter monitoring system according to various embodiments herein. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of components of a system according to various embodiments herein. [Diagram 5] 1 is a graph illustrating normal and abnormal filter load curves in accordance with various embodiments herein. [Figure 6] 1 is a schematic diagram of a vehicle travel area according to various embodiments herein. [Figure 7] 1 is a diagram of two different vehicle routes and associated costs according to various embodiments herein. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of product distribution channels according to various embodiments herein. [Figure 9] 1 is a schematic diagram of a geographic location information device according to various embodiments herein. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of components of a filter monitoring system according to various embodiments herein.

[0115] While the embodiments are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, details of the embodiments have been shown by way of example and drawings and will be described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the scope of the specification is not limited to the particular aspects described. On the contrary, the intention is to cover modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the specification. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0116] Not replacing filters in a timely manner may risk damage and deterioration of vehicle / system components and, in the case of air intake or fuel cell filters, may negatively affect fuel economy. Thus, it is important to monitor the condition of those filters so that they can be replaced when necessary. Certain conditions that may shorten the normal service life of a filter may lead to increased loading of the filter. For example, high concentrations of pollutants such as airborne particulates may lead to a faster than normal loading of the engine's air intake filter.

[0117] Air normally contains a certain amount of solid matter, which comes from both natural sources such as soil, wind-blown dust (aeolian processes), seasonal processes, and fires, as well as human activities. Knowing the amount and / or type of airborne particles present in the air can provide a more accurate prediction of filter life. Furthermore, knowing the amount and / or type of airborne particles can provide a more accurate selection of the appropriate filter to use.

[0118] However, pollutant concentrations and types are not uniformly distributed over large geographic spatial regions. Rather, local concentrations and types of pollutants may vary substantially based on weather, drought conditions, wind currents, events such as forest fires, proximity to human activities such as road construction operations, etc. Such variations may make it difficult to accurately describe pollutant concentrations over large and potential vehicle travel areas, particularly in the context of vehicles that may travel hundreds or thousands of miles as part of their route.

[0119] In contrast, embodiments herein can identify and account for geo-spatial patterns of contaminants, such as particulates, in the air to enable more accurate estimation of filter life and more accurate selection of appropriate filter types. In various embodiments, a filter monitoring system herein may include a filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of the filter. A filter monitoring system herein may also include a geographic location information circuit configured to determine a current geographic location of the vehicle. A filter monitoring system herein may also include a system control circuit configured to generate or receive a local contaminant concentration value at the vehicle's geographic location, evaluate the filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generate at least one of a maintenance recommendation and a routing recommendation.

[0120] The maintenance and routing recommendations may be based on local pollutant concentration values, time spent at the vehicle's geographic location, time spent at other geographic locations previously having other pollutant concentrations, the vehicle's duty cycle, filter condition values, and changes in filter condition values. Maintenance recommendations may include, but are not limited to, filter change time recommendations and filter type recommendations. Other embodiments herein may include other types of filter monitoring systems, fleet monitoring systems, and fleet filtration maintenance systems, as described in more detail below.

[0121] In various embodiments, the filter condition value may be a filter restriction value. In some of the embodiments, the filter restriction value may be a pressure-based value, such as a pressure drop or differential pressure across the filter. In various embodiments, the filter condition value may be a filter loading value. In various embodiments, the filter condition value may be a measure of remaining filter life. It will be appreciated that a particular value, such as a filter restriction value, measured at a discrete point in the time domain will depend on the operating conditions of the vehicle or system. For example, a high flow rate will result in a high differential pressure and / or low chemical efficiency. Embodiments herein allow for normalization or adjustment of the filter restriction value or other filter condition value to account for the operating conditions of the vehicle or system by compensating for the operating conditions of the vehicle or system. In some cases, the normalization or adjustment can be performed using a standard curve. In some of the embodiments, the systems herein may be configured to utilize a peak value of the filter restriction value. In some of the embodiments, the systems herein may be configured to utilize an average value of the filter restriction value.

[0122] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring systems herein may specifically be "on vehicle" filter monitoring systems. As used herein, the term "vehicle" refers to any machine or device having an engine or motor that moves and burns or otherwise consumes fuel or energy. In other embodiments, the filter monitoring systems herein may be "off vehicle" systems or may be distributed with some components being "on vehicle" components and other components being "off vehicle" components.

[0123] Reference is now made to FIG. 1, which illustrates a schematic diagram of components of an exemplary system according to various embodiments herein. FIG. 1 illustrates a vehicle 102. The vehicle 102 includes a filter monitoring system 104. The vehicle 102 is illustrated as being at a vehicle geographic location 116. The vehicle geographic location 116 may have a certain amount of pollutants, such as particulates, in the air. The filter monitoring system 104 may generate and / or receive a value of a local pollutant concentration at the vehicle geographic location 116. For example, in some of the embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may include one or more sensors (described in more detail below) that provide data to derive information regarding the local pollutant concentration value. In some of the embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may receive data regarding the local pollutant concentration value from other systems or sensors on board the vehicle or from a remote data source (such as a remote system or database) based on the vehicle's current geographic location. In some of the embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may derive information regarding the local contaminant concentration and may receive information regarding the local contaminant concentration from other sensors and / or systems. The filter monitoring system 104 may then use the data regarding the local contaminant concentration values ​​to perform various actions (described in more detail below).

[0124] In some cases, the filter monitoring system 104 may have direct wireless data communication capability to the cloud 122 or other data network. For example, in some cases, the filter monitoring system 104 may interface with the cloud 122 or other data network to exchange data, such as providing a vehicle's geographic location and receiving data related to local pollutant concentration values ​​for the vehicle's geographic location. In some cases, the filter monitoring system 104 may have indirect wireless data communication capability to the cloud 122 or other data network. In some of the embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may communicate with a cellular communication tower 120, which may relay data communication in both directions between the cloud 122 and components of the cloud 122, such as a server 132 (real or virtual) and a database 134 (real or virtual).

[0125] Wireless communication herein may occur using a variety of protocols. For example, wireless communication / signals exchanged between the filter monitoring system 104 or components of the filter monitoring system 104 and the cloud 122 (or between components of the filter monitoring system 104) may follow many different communication protocol standards and, in some of the embodiments, may occur by radio frequency transmission, inductively, magnetically, optically, or via a wired connection. In some of the embodiments herein, IEEE 802.11 (e.g., WIFI), Bluetooth (e.g., BLE, Bluetooth 4.2 or 5.0), ZIGBEE, or cellular transmission protocols / platforms such as CDMA, cdmaOne, CDMA2000, TDMA, GSM, IS-95, LTE, 5G, GPRS, EV-DO, EDGE, UMTS, HSDPA, HSUPA, HSPA+, TD-SCDMA, and WiMAX may be used. In various embodiments, different standards or proprietary wireless communication protocols may be used.

[0126] As mentioned, resources of cloud 122 may include databases 134 and / or APIs. Such databases 134 and / or APIs may store and / or source a variety of information including, but not limited to, local pollutant concentration values ​​at various geographic locations, information related to local pollutant concentration values ​​such as locations of construction zones and locations of fires, weather information at various geographic locations such as wind direction, wind speed, precipitation, and humidity, local pollutant types, vehicle maintenance site data including locations of vehicle maintenance sites, vehicle routing data, vehicle filter condition data, vehicle filter type data, platoon data, vehicle data, and filtration system data, etc.

[0127] It will be appreciated that the contents of the database may be distributed across many different physical systems, devices, and locations. Additionally, although not shown in FIG. 1, it will be appreciated that the database records may also be stored at the level of the filter monitoring system 104 itself. In various embodiments, the database 134 or portions of the database 134 may be stored in a location that is remote from other components of a system, such as the filter monitoring system 104. In some of the embodiments, the database records or portions may be stored across multiple different physical locations, and in some of the embodiments, may be cached across multiple different physical locations for ready access.

[0128] In some of the embodiments, the mobile communication device 130 may also be associated with the vehicle 102 or an operator of the vehicle 102. In some cases, the mobile communication device 130 may be used to assist in communicating information to and from the filter monitoring system 104. In some of the embodiments, the mobile communication device 130 may be used to assist in determining the current geographic location of the vehicle. In some of the embodiments, the mobile communication device 130 may be used to assist in providing information and / or alerts to and / or receiving input from the vehicle operator. However, in some of the embodiments, the mobile communication device 130 is omitted.

[0129] Embodiments herein may also include a vehicle fleet monitoring system. In this regard, certain components illustrated in FIG. 1 may form part of a vehicle fleet monitoring system 142. For example, server 132 (real or virtual) and database 143 (real or virtual) may form part of a cloud-based vehicle fleet monitoring system 142 or a remote vehicle fleet monitoring system 142 and may be interfaced by an operator of the platoon, such as from operator workstation 128. A vehicle fleet herein may include vehicles of the same type, vehicles of different types, vehicles owned or managed by a common entity, vehicles owned or managed by multiple entities, a subset of the equipped vehicles, or all of the equipped vehicles, etc.

[0130] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may interface with a geographic location device to determine the geographic location of the vehicle. For example, in some of the embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may interface with a geographic location satellite 150 to provide coordinates of the geographic location. Other types of geographic location devices are described in more detail below.

[0131] As described above, the filter monitoring system may include a system control circuit configured to generate or receive local pollutant and / or concentration values ​​at the vehicle's geographic location. In various embodiments, the local pollutant concentration value may include an airborne particulate concentration value. In various embodiments, the local pollutant value may include an airborne particulate type. The airborne particulates referred to herein are not particularly limited. However, as one example, the airborne particulates may include, but are not limited to, smoke, pollen, agricultural harvest particulates, work site particulates, and the like.

[0132] In some embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may be specifically a monitoring system for an engine air filter system, however, the filter monitoring system 104 may also be used to monitor other types of fluid filtration systems including, for example, fuel filters, oil filters, power steering fluid filters, exhaust filters, cabin air filters, transmission filters, crankcase filters, etc. In this manner, the type of vehicle filtration system is not particularly limited.

[0133] As one example, various embodiments herein may specifically include a vehicle cabin air filter monitoring system that may include a geolocation circuit configured to cooperate with a system control circuit to determine geolocations of a vehicle over time, the system control circuit configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​at geolocations visited by the vehicle, and generate a cabin filter maintenance recommendation based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​and the time spent at the geolocations visited by the vehicle.

[0134] Reference is now made to Figure 2, which shows a schematic diagram of an air filtration system 210 according to various embodiments herein. The air filtration device 210 may provide an interface between the filter monitoring system 104. In some embodiments, the air filtration device 210 and the filter monitoring system 104 may be physically integrated.

[0135] 2 specifically illustrates an exemplary air filtration system 210 including a filter housing and filter elements according to various embodiments herein. The illustrated air filtration system 210 includes a housing 212 and a removable and replaceable primary filter element 214. In the illustrated air filtration system 210, the housing 212 includes a housing body 216 and a removable service cover 218. The service cover 218 provides service access to the interior of the housing body 216 for servicing. For the general type of filtration system 210 illustrated in FIG. 2, servicing typically involves dismounting and removing at least one filter element, such as the illustrated filter element 214, from the housing 212 for either refurbishment or replacement.

[0136] The illustrated housing 212 includes an exterior wall 220 having an end 221, an air intake 222, and an air exhaust 224. In the illustrated embodiment, the air intake 222 and the air exhaust 224 are both present within the housing body 216. In other embodiments, at least one of the air intake 222 or the air exhaust 224 may be part of the service cover 218. During typical use, ambient or unfiltered air enters the filtration system 210 through the air intake 222. Within the filtration system 210, the air is passed through the filter element 214 to achieve a desired level of particulate removal. The filtered air then passes outwardly from the filtration system 210 through the air exhaust 224 and is directed by appropriate ductwork or conduits to an air intake for an associated engine, compressor, or other system.

[0137] It will be appreciated that although FIG. 2 illustrates a filter element for particle removal, embodiments herein may also include filter systems and / or filter elements for removing gas phase contaminants and / or liquid phase contaminants.

[0138] The particular filtration system 210 shown has an outer wall 220 that defines a barrel shape or generally cylindrical configuration. In this particular configuration, the air outlet 224 generally extends in the direction of and circumscribes a longitudinal central axis defined by the filter element 214, so the air outlet 224 may be described as an axial outlet. The service cover 218 generally fits over an open end 226 of the housing body 216. In the particular arrangement shown, the service cover 218 is secured in place over the end 226 by a latch 228.

[0139] Reference is now made to Figure 3, which illustrates a schematic diagram of an air filtration device 210 and devices in communication with a filter monitoring system 104 according to various embodiments herein. The filter monitoring system 104 may provide an interface between the air filtration system 210. The filter monitoring system 104 may also provide an interface between the vehicle and a CANBus network to obtain various data regarding the operation of the vehicle. The filter monitoring system 104 may also provide an interface between a pollutant sensor 306 and / or a particulate sensor 308. The pollutant sensor 306 and the particulate sensor 308 may be based on various detection principles, including but not limited to optical principles, acoustic principles, electrical principles, weight principles, and / or pressure principles, to detect pollutants.

[0140] Particulate sensors herein (which may be part of the filter monitoring system 104 and / or may be separate but provide an interface between the filter monitoring system 104) may include, but are not limited to, aerosol particulate sensors, solid particulate sensors, liquid particulate sensors, and the like. Particulate sensors may be referred to as particulate matter (PM) sensors. Some of the exemplary particulate sensors may be based on light scattering, light obscuration, Coulter principle sensing, and / or direct imaging. Some of the exemplary particulate sensors may include infrared optical particulate sensors, beta damped mass monitoring sensors, laser diffraction sensors, and the like. Several exemplary particle sensors are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,971,258, 7,275,415, 9,874,509, 10,006,883, and 10,330,579, the contents of which relating to particle sensors are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

[0141] The pollutant / particulate data may be derived and / or received from a variety of sources. Reference is now made to FIG. 4, which illustrates a schematic diagram of system components according to various embodiments herein. Similar to that shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 4 illustrates a vehicle 102 having a filter monitoring system 104 at the vehicle's geographic location 116. FIG. 4 also illustrates a fleet monitoring system 142 along with a pollution information source 402. The pollution information source 402 may include a weather API 404, an air pollutant API 406, and a database 408 of pollutant information indexed with geographic location. The weather API 404 data may include, but is not limited to, data relating to past, present, and / or future temperature, humidity, precipitation, wind speed, wind direction, ambient pressure, and cloud cover. The air pollutant API 406 data may include, but is not limited to, CO, NO, NO 2 , O 3 , S.O. 2 , N.H. 3 , PM2.5, PM10, pollen, and the like.

[0142] The database 408 may be constructed and / or maintained according to various embodiments herein. For example, in various embodiments, a vehicle and / or components of the vehicle, such as a filter monitoring system, may detect contaminant concentrations directly (such as by a sensor) or indirectly (such as by detecting anomalous filter loading rates). For example, abnormally fast filter loading rates observed by one or more vehicles in a particular geographic location may be inferred to be caused by contaminant concentrations within that geographic location and reported accordingly to the system maintaining the database.

[0143] Information regarding pollutant concentrations, along with the vehicle's geographic location data, may be transmitted to a remote system that can process and store the data in database 408. In some cases, an entire platoon of vehicles may report pollutant concentration data for storage in this manner. In some cases, multiple platoons of vehicles may report pollutant concentration data for storage in this manner, thereby allowing database 408 to be updated more frequently and therefore more accurate with respect to local conditions.

[0144] In various embodiments, the type of vehicle and its operating conditions may be a source of information regarding expected pollutant levels and pollutant types. For example, if a vehicle type is known to be a road construction related vehicle type and its operating conditions are consistent with active use, the expected pollutant levels and pollutant types may be inferred to be characteristic of the pollutant levels and pollutant types found in the road construction area during active use of the vehicle. This information may be used to more accurately characterize both the pollutant concentrations and types. In addition, this information may be used to establish expected load curve values ​​for individual vehicles herein, which may more accurately identify abnormal filter loading conditions. The information regarding the type of vehicle and its operating conditions may be transmitted to a remote system, whereby the information regarding the type of vehicle and its operating conditions may be utilized in updating the database and / or in evaluating local pollutant concentrations and pollutant types by the system.

[0145] Various embodiments herein may include a vehicle platoon monitoring system. The vehicle platoon monitoring system may include a filter condition monitor configured to receive data reflecting filter condition values ​​of filters of vehicles in the platoon. The vehicle platoon monitoring system may also include control circuitry configured to generate or receive local contaminant concentration values ​​at geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon, determine an impact on the filter condition of time spent at the geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon, and estimate and store contaminant impact values ​​for the geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon. As one example, the contaminant impact values ​​(and / or raw contaminant concentration data) may be stored in database 408.

[0146] In various embodiments, the platoon monitoring system may include a filter state monitor or controller configured to receive data reflecting values ​​of filter conditions of the filters for the vehicles in the platoon. The filter state controller may include data interface functionality for exchanging data with the vehicles and / or their filter monitoring systems. In some of the embodiments, the filter state controller may implement an application programming interface (API) to enable structured data exchange with the vehicles and / or their filter monitoring systems.

[0147] The platoon monitoring system may also include control circuitry configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​at the geographic locations of the vehicles in the platoon, calculate predicted filter condition values ​​based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​associated with each vehicle in the platoon, and compare the actual filter condition values ​​to the predicted filter condition values. In some of the embodiments, the control circuitry of the platoon monitoring system may include one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), or other processing devices. In some of the embodiments, the control circuitry of the platoon monitoring system may be integrated into a server (real or virtual).

[0148] The system may also take various actions based on the observed actual filter condition values. For example, in various embodiments, the control circuitry may be configured to send information about or issue a notification to the platoon operator regarding the difference between the expected and actual filter condition values. In various embodiments, the control circuitry may be configured to schedule a maintenance visit for the vehicle when the actual filter condition value is less than the expected filter condition value by at least a threshold amount. In some of the embodiments, scheduling the maintenance visit may also include creating a work order for vehicle maintenance. The work order may include various information, such as, for example, one or more filter types, an identification of the vehicle, and an expected service visit date and time.

[0149] Filter recommendations may be made according to various embodiments herein. As one example, the filter monitoring system may include a filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of the filter. The filter monitoring system may also include geographic location information circuitry configured to determine a current geographic location of the vehicle. The filter monitoring system may also include system control circuitry configured to generate or receive a local pollutant concentration value at the current geographic location, evaluate the filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generate a filter recommendation based on the local pollutant concentration value and the filter sensor device data.

[0150] Filter loading rates may be observed and usefully applied by embodiments herein. A higher than normal filter loading rate may indicate an increased concentration of airborne contaminants, such as particulate matter, at the vehicle's geographic location. In this manner, the observation of a higher than normal filter loading rate at a particular geographic location may be used as a proxy for the contaminant concentration at that particular geographic location.

[0151] Reference is now made to FIG. 5, which shows a graph illustrating normal and abnormal filter load curves according to various embodiments herein. Specifically, FIG. 5 shows a normal load curve 502 along with an accelerated load curve 504. In some of the embodiments, a load curve may be considered to be an abnormal load curve if it reflects a load at a greater rate than a load curve typically observed under similar circumstances. In some of the embodiments, a load curve may be considered to be an abnormal load curve if the rate of change exceeds a threshold value. In some of the embodiments, a load curve may be considered to be an abnormal load curve if the rate of change deviates from a baseline or default value by more than 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 75, or 100%, or an amount ranging between any of the above.

[0152] In some cases, the empirically determined load curve may be compared to an expected load curve. The expected load curve may be generated by starting with a base or default load curve specific to a particular filter and then modifying the base or default load curve based on information such as airborne particulate matter at the vehicle's geographic location. For example, a faster load curve than the normal load curve would be expected if the concentration of pollutants was higher than normal. In some of the scenarios, a typical level of fine particulate matter in the air was about 8.15 (μg / m 3 However, in some cases of the embodiments herein, the normal level of particulate matter is 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, or higher (μg / m 3 In other embodiments, the normal level of particulates may be significantly higher. In various embodiments, the normal level of particulates may be 10, 15, 20, 30, 50, 100, 250, 500, 1,000, 2,500, 5,000, 7,500, 10,000 [μg / m 3Particulate levels exceeding 10 ... In some of the embodiments, the concentration of particulate matter may be measured in accordance with US 40 CFR § 50, Appendix B, which provides a measurement of the mass concentration of total suspended particulate matter (TSP) in the ambient air.

[0153] In various embodiments, the control circuitry may be configured to estimate the type of pollutant present at the geographic location based on information such as the determined effect of time spent at the geographic location on the filter conditions and / or the observed load curve. A number of different types of pollutants may result in a number of different types of characteristic load curves. In this manner, pattern matching techniques may be applied to determine the type of pollutant by determining the best match of the observed load curve to a number of predefined patterns that are characteristic of the different types of pollutants. For example, the system may store (as standards or templates) load curves associated with high smoke levels, high windblown dust levels, high mine particulate levels, high soot levels, etc. By matching the observed load curves with such standards or templates, it is possible to identify the type of particulates in the air. Exemplary pattern matching techniques are described in more detail below and may include methods such as Gaussian mixture models, clustering, Bayesian approaches, hidden Markov models, neural network models, and machine learning approaches such as deep learning. Binary classification approaches may utilize techniques including, but not limited to, logistic regression, k-nearest neighbors, decision trees, support vector machine approaches, and naive Bayes techniques. Multiclass classification approaches (e.g., for non-binary classification of gait) may include k-nearest neighbors, decision trees, naive Bayes approaches, random forest approaches, and gradient boosting approaches. Pattern similarity and dissimilarity may be measured directly by standard statistical metrics such as normalized Z-scores, or similar multidimensional distance measures (e.g., Mahalanobis distance measure or Bhattacharya distance measure), or similarity of the data being modeled and machine learning.

[0154] Calculating an expected load factor associated with the presence of a vehicle at a particular geographic location may be useful for estimating the remaining service life of a filter. In various embodiments, a filter monitoring system herein is capable of performing such calculations and may include a filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of the filter and a geographic location information circuit configured to determine a current geographic location of the vehicle. The filter monitoring system may also include system control circuitry configured to generate or receive contaminant condition data associated with the current geographic location, evaluate the filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and calculate an expected load factor associated with the presence of a vehicle at the current geographic location.

[0155] In various embodiments, the system control circuitry may be configured to generate maintenance recommendations based on the expected load factor. In various embodiments, the maintenance recommendations may include a filter change time recommendation. In various embodiments, the maintenance recommendations may include a filter type recommendation.

[0156] It will be appreciated that contaminants such as airborne particulates may be at different levels in different geographic locations, and that contaminants may be generated by different mechanisms. For example, particulates from a fire may be generated in a particular area, which may then typically be carried by wind currents, leading to an expanded area where smoke and other particulates can be found. A forest fire may lead to smoke potentially spreading over hundreds of square miles, whereas other scenarios may result in a much smaller area of ​​contaminant spread. Thus, in various embodiments herein, the system can account for meteorological information such as wind direction and speed to account for where contaminants may be encountered based on conditions such as a fire or other particulate generating event.

[0157] A dusty construction site with substantial earth moving equipment may also lead to areas with relatively high levels of particulates in the air, but typically not as great as areas experiencing forest fires. In some of the embodiments, a weather event such as precipitation may temporarily reduce the amount of particulates associated with a construction site or other source of airborne particulates. Thus, in some of the embodiments, the systems herein may use information about potentially mitigating conditions, such as precipitation, in determining the impact of time spent in areas where particulates are significant, such as a construction site or other work site.

[0158] In some cases, natural events, such as plants producing pollen at certain times of the year, may lead to areas having higher than normal levels of particulate matter in the air. In some cases, weather events, such as weather events involving high winds, may lead to areas having relatively high levels of airborne contaminants, such as particulate matter.

[0159] In some circumstances, a particular geographic location may have significantly different levels of airborne contaminants at different times of the day. For example, a construction site or work site may have significantly lower levels of airborne contaminants at times of reduced activity, such as during the night. In various embodiments herein, the system may account for time spent at a particular geographic location in the calculations herein. In various embodiments herein, the system may store and / or utilize records of time spent at particular geographic locations, including times of the day. In some of the embodiments, the system may value time spent at a geographic location during times without significant contaminant loading at a lower amount. In some of the embodiments, such time may be valued as a percentage of the amount of time spent in conditions with high amounts of airborne contaminants (for purposes of contaminant loading). In some of the embodiments, sensors or other sources of data, such as APIs, may be used to obtain values ​​of airborne contaminants at a particular time.

[0160] Reference is now made to FIG. 6, which illustrates a schematic diagram of a vehicle travel area 600 according to various embodiments herein. The vehicle travel area 600 includes a starting geolocation 602 and an ending geolocation 604. The vehicle travel area 600 illustrates a first route 606 and a second route 608 between the starting geolocation 602 and the ending geolocation 604. The vehicle travel area 600 also includes an airborne particulate zone 610. As one example, the airborne particulate zone 610 may result from a forest or grass fire. The vehicle travel area 600 also includes an airborne particulate site 612. As one example, the airborne particulate site 612 may result from an area of ​​road construction. The vehicle travel area 600 also includes several vehicle maintenance sites 620.

[0161] In various embodiments, the control circuitry may be configured to determine a recommended vehicle 102 route for an individual vehicle 102 based in part on pollutant impact values ​​for multiple geographic locations along the multiple possible routes. In particular, systems herein may provide route recommendations in terms of various parameters including one or more of contaminant levels (e.g., airborne particulates) at geographic locations along the multiple possible routes, distance traveled, time required for travel (speed), availability of maintenance sites along the route, etc. Providing the route recommendations may be performed in a variety of ways. Based on a given starting point and destination, a variety of techniques may be used to identify multiple possible routes, including, as just one example, utilizing an API such as the "Directions API" commercially available as part of the Google Maps platform. For each route, multiple geographic locations along the same route may be evaluated for contaminant levels in those locations, such that an optimal route in terms of filter loading can be identified.However, other factors may also be included / considered when calculating the optimal route, including but not limited to distance travelled, time required for travel (speed), weather, availability of maintenance sites, availability of parts, price of fuel at refueling locations along the route, etc.

[0162] As one example related to routing, in various embodiments herein, a filter monitoring system herein may include a filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a value of a filter condition of a filter. The filter monitoring system may also include a geographic location information circuit configured to determine a geographic location of the vehicle. The filter monitoring system may also include a system control circuit configured to evaluate data from the filter sensor device to determine at least one of a value of the filter condition and a change in the value of the filter condition, receive data regarding filter loading conditions at a plurality of geographic locations, and generate a recommended vehicle route based, at least in part, on the filter loading conditions at a start geographic location, an end geographic location, and geographic locations along a possible route between the start geographic location and the end geographic location. In various embodiments, the system control circuit may be configured to receive data regarding the availability and / or cost of replacement filters along a route. For example, a given route may only be recommended if it includes the availability of replacement filters and / or if the cost of taking the given route, including the cost of replacement filters, is optimized, although it will be appreciated that many other factors may also be considered when optimizing a route to minimize costs herein.

[0163] In various embodiments, the system control circuitry may be configured to receive data regarding fuel prices at a plurality of geographic locations corresponding to refueling stations and calculate a vehicle route based on the start geographic location, the end geographic location, and also taking into account the fuel prices at the refueling stations along the possible route, as well as contaminant levels, such as particulates, in the air between the start geographic location and the end geographic location.

[0164] In some of the embodiments, it is possible to completely avoid particular sites or zones. In various embodiments, a filter monitoring system herein may include a filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a filter condition value of a filter in cooperation with a system control circuit configured to generate or receive a local pollutant concentration value in a geolocation zone, evaluate the filter sensor device data to determine at least one of the filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generate routing recommendations around a geolocation zone when the local pollutant concentration value in the geolocation zone exceeds a threshold value.

[0165] Information regarding particulates along the vehicle path can enable proactive determination of when service will be needed and / or action to make service visits quicker and / or more efficient. For example, in some embodiments, work orders can be automatically generated by the system to expedite the process of obtaining vehicle maintenance work as needed.

[0166] As one example of this, in various embodiments, the vehicle platoon monitoring system may include a filter state controller configured to receive data reflecting filter limit values ​​for the filters of each vehicle in the platoon. The vehicle platoon monitoring system may also include control circuitry configured to generate or receive local pollutant concentration values ​​at a geographic location of each vehicle in the platoon and generate work orders for filter maintenance for the vehicles in the platoon based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​at each geographic location visited by the vehicles in the platoon. In various embodiments, the work orders may include a recommended filter type.

[0167] In various embodiments, the recommended vehicle route provided by the system reflects the lowest estimated cost of vehicle operation. Referring now to FIG. 7, FIG. 7 illustrates a diagram of two different vehicle 102 routes and associated costs according to various embodiments herein. In this situation, when considering only fuel prices, route 1 may appear to be best. However, when considering the impact of pollutants such as particulates in the air, route 2 is determined to be best. Thus, in this scenario, the system may recommend route 2.

[0168] It may be important to ensure that an adequate inventory of parts (such as replacement filters) required for vehicle service is available when service is required. Knowing the level of contaminants, such as particulates, in the air may be useful in determining appropriate inventory levels. For example, if the level of pollutants in a particular area is relatively high, it may be possible to predict that the relatively high level of pollutants will result in accelerated filter loading and more required maintenance events at vehicle service sites along the route that a vehicle will travel after traveling through the area with higher particulates. In this manner, it may be beneficial to provide more inventory to such vehicle service sites to ensure that they have the appropriate replacement parts available when needed.

[0169] Reference is now made to FIG. 8, which illustrates a schematic diagram of product distribution channels according to various embodiments herein. FIG. 8 illustrates a factory 802 that may be a source of parts, such as replacement filters, required for vehicle service. Such parts may be shipped to a number of different distribution zones. In this regard, FIG. 8 illustrates a first distribution zone 804, a second distribution zone 806, and a third distribution zone 808. Within the first distribution zone 804, there is a first distribution site 814, a first vehicle maintenance site 824, and a second vehicle maintenance site 834. Similarly, the second distribution zone 806 includes a second distribution site 816, along with a third vehicle maintenance site 826 and a fourth vehicle maintenance site 836. The third distribution zone 808 includes a third distribution site 818, along with a fifth vehicle maintenance site 828 and a sixth vehicle maintenance site 838.

[0170] To the extent that a first traffic area 804 has a greater number of geographic locations therein that have high levels of contaminants, such as airborne particulates, a greater amount of inventory may be directed to that first traffic area 804 in anticipation of more vehicles being parked at vehicle maintenance sites within that first traffic area 804. Similarly, to the extent that a first traffic area 804 has a greater number of geographic locations therein that have a particular type of contaminant, such as airborne particulates, an inventory of the type of filter that is best suited for that particular type of contaminant may be directed to the first traffic area 804.

[0171] In various embodiments herein, a vehicle platoon filtration maintenance system may include a control circuit configured to generate or receive a contaminant concentration value at a future geographic location of a vehicle in the platoon based on the routing data, and direct distribution of filter maintenance products to the vehicle maintenance site based on the contaminant concentration value. For example, the control circuit may be configured to direct a number of filter maintenance products to the vehicle maintenance site based on the contaminant concentration value. Further, the control circuit may be configured to direct a type of filter maintenance product to the vehicle maintenance site based on the contaminant concentration value.

[0172] The geographic location may be determined by a number of different methods. In some of the embodiments, the geographic location may be determined by interfacing with a geolocation device. Referring now to FIG. 9, FIG. 9 shows a schematic diagram of geolocating equipment 902 interfacing with a vehicle 102 including a filter monitoring system 104 at the vehicle's geographic location 116. The geolocation equipment 902 may include a referential device 904 that is used during device-to-device geolocation determination. The geolocation equipment 902 may also include a beacon 906, such as a Bluetooth or other wireless communication location beacon. The geolocation equipment 902 may also include a cellular communication tower 120. The geolocation equipment 902 may also include a router or other WIFI device 910. The geolocation device 902 may also include a geolocation satellite 150 .

[0173] 9 also shows a mobile communications device 130, which may be used to assist in determining the geographic location. In some embodiments, the mobile communications device 130 may itself determine the geographic location and then communicate this information to the filter monitoring system.

[0174] It will be appreciated that the systems herein may include many different components. Reference is now made to Figure 10, which illustrates a block diagram of some of the components of a filter monitoring system 104 according to various embodiments herein. However, it will be appreciated that more or fewer components may be included according to various embodiments and this schematic diagram is merely exemplary.

[0175] Specifically, FIG. 10 illustrates a filter monitoring system 104. The filter monitoring system 104 may include a housing 1002 and a system control circuit 1004 or ("control circuit"). The control circuit 1004 may include various electronic components, including, but not limited to, a microprocessor, a microcontroller, an FPGA (field programmable gate array) chip, or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc. The control circuit 1004 may perform various operations described herein. However, it will be understood that the operations herein may be performed across multiple devices having separate physical circuits, processors, or controllers where different operations are performed redundantly or where different operations are split among different physical devices. In this manner, some of the operations may be performed (in whole or in part) at the edge by circuits / processors / controllers / etc associated with the filter monitoring system 104, while other operations may be performed (in whole or in part) by separate devices or in the cloud.

[0176] The filter sensor device may include an upstream pressure sensor 1074, which may be associated with an upstream portion of the air flow line 1042 and may be disposed upstream of and / or as part of the filter housing 1072, but may be disposed upstream of the filter in the filter housing 1072. The upstream pressure sensor 204 may be in communication with an upstream pressure sensor channel interface 1014. The filter sensor device may also include a downstream pressure sensor 1076, which may be associated with a downstream portion of the air flow line 1044 and may be disposed downstream of and / or as part of the filter housing 1072, but may be disposed downstream of the filter in the housing. The downstream pressure sensor 1076 may be in communication with a downstream pressure sensor channel interface 1018.

[0177] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may include and / or be capable of communicating with other types of sensors, such as a particulate sensor 1012 and a particulate sensor channel interface 1010. The particulate sensors 1012 herein may operate according to various principles, including pressure-based particulate sensors, optical particulate sensors, acoustic particulate sensors, electrical property-based particulate sensors, and the like. Other types of sensors herein may include vibration sensors, flow sensors, chemical concentration sensors, and the like.

[0178] The channel interface may include various components such as amplifiers, analog-to-digital converters (ADC), digital-to-analog converters (DAC), digital signal processors (DSP), and filters (high-pass, low-pass, band-pass). In some cases, the channel interface may not exist as a separate component, but rather may be integrated into the control circuitry 1004.

[0179] In some of the embodiments, a temperature sensor may be included herein. When used, the temperature sensor may be of various types. In some of the embodiments, the temperature sensor may be a thermistor, a resistance temperature device (RTD), a thermocouple, a semiconductor temperature sensor, or the like.

[0180] The pressure sensors herein may be various types of pressure sensors. The pressure sensors 204 and 206 may include, but are not limited to, strain gauge type pressure sensors, capacitive type pressure sensors, piezoelectric type pressure sensors, and the like. In some of the embodiments, the pressure sensors herein may be MEMS-based pressure sensors. In various embodiments, the pressure sensors may be high-speed pressure sensors (e.g., having a high sample rate). In various embodiments, the high speed pressure sensor may sample at a sampling rate of 1,000 Hz, 1,500 Hz, 2,000 Hz, 2,500 Hz, 3,000 Hz, 5,000 Hz, 10,000 Hz, 15,000 Hz, 20,000 Hz, or greater, or any range therebetween. In various embodiments, the high speed pressure sensor may have a response time of less than 10 ms, 5 ms, 2.5 ms, 1 ms, 0.5 ms, 0.25 ms, 0.1 ms, 0.05 ms, or 0.01 ms, or any range therebetween.

[0181] The processing capabilities of the control circuit 1004 and its components may be sufficient to perform a variety of operations, including, but not limited to, averaging, time averaging, statistical analysis, normalization, aggregating, sorting, deleting, traversing, transforming, condensing (e.g., eliminating selected data and / or converting data to a less granular form), compressing (e.g., using a compression algorithm), merging, inserting, time-stamping, filtering, discarding outliers, and multiplication (linear, logarithmic, polynomial, power, exponential, moving average, etc.). The techniques include various operations on the signals / data from the sensors, including calculating trends and trendlines (e.g., average), and normalizing data / signals. Fourier analysis allows for the decomposition of a physical signal into multiple discrete frequencies or into a spectrum of frequencies over a continuous range. In various embodiments herein, operations on the signals / data may include a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to convert the data / signals from the time domain to the frequency domain.Other operations on the signals / data herein may include spectral estimation, frequency domain analysis, calculation of root mean square acceleration value (GRMS), calculation of acceleration spectral density, calculation of power spectral densities, calculation of Fourier series, Z transform, determination of resonant frequency, and harmonic frequency determination, etc. While a general purpose microprocessor may perform the various operations described herein (such as fast Fourier transform), it will be appreciated that in some of the embodiments the various operations may be more efficiently performed by a digital signal processor (DSP), which may be integrated with the control circuitry 1004 or may exist as a separate discrete component.

[0182] In various embodiments herein, machine learning algorithms may be used to derive relationships between pollutant concentration values ​​at particular geographic locations and their impact on filter loading behavior. Also, in various embodiments herein, machine learning algorithms may be used to match observed filter load curves against previously stored filter load curves (e.g., pattern matching against archetype curves) to identify the type of observed load curve and / or predict the future impact of such load curves. Machine learning algorithms used herein may include, but are not limited to, supervised and unsupervised learning algorithms.

[0183] Machine learning algorithms as used herein include, but are not limited to, classification algorithms (which are supervised algorithms predicting categorical labels), clustering algorithms (which are unsupervised algorithms predicting categorical labels), ensemble learning algorithms (which are supervised meta-algorithms for combining multiple learning algorithms together), general algorithms for predicting arbitrarily-structured sets of labels, multilinear subspace learning algorithms (which predict labels for multidimensional data using tensor representations), real-valued sequence labeling algorithms (which predict sequences of real-valued labels), regression algorithms (which predict real-valued labels), and so on. These algorithms may include sequence labeling algorithms (which predict a sequence of category labels), and sequence labeling algorithms (which predict a sequence of category labels).

[0184] Machine learning algorithms herein may also include parametric algorithms (such as linear discriminant analysis, quadratic discriminant analysis, and maximum entropy classifiers) and non-parametric algorithms (such as decision trees, kernel estimation, naive Bayes classifiers, neural networks, perceptrons, support vector machines, etc.). Clustering algorithms herein may include categorical mixture models, deep learning methods, hierarchical clustering, K-means clustering, correlation clustering, and kernel principal component analysis. Ensemble learning algorithms herein may include boosting, bootstrap aggregating, ensemble averaging, and mixture of experts. Common algorithms for predicting arbitrarily-structured sets of labels herein may include Bayesian networks and Markov random fields. Multilinear subspace learning algorithms herein may include multilinear principal component analysis (MPCA). Real-valued sequence labeling algorithms may include Kalman filters and particle filters.Regression algorithms herein may include both supervised approaches (such as Gaussian process regression, linear regression, neural networks, and deep learning methods) and unsupervised approaches (such as independent component analysis and principal components analysis). Sequence labeling algorithms herein may include both supervised approaches (such as conditional random fields, hidden Markov models, maximum entropy Markov models, recurrent neural networks, etc.) and unsupervised approaches (such as hidden Markov models and dynamic time warping).

[0185] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may include a power supply circuit 1022. In some of the embodiments, the power supply circuit 1022 may include various components including, but not limited to, a battery 1024, a capacitor, a power receiver such as a wireless power receiver, a transformer, a rectifier, and the like.

[0186] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may include an output device 1026. The output device 1026 may include a variety of components for visual and / or audio output, including, but not limited to, lights (such as LED lights), a display screen, and a speaker. In some of the embodiments, the output device may be used to provide notifications or alerts to a system user of the current system status, an indication of a problem, required user intervention, or the appropriate time to perform a maintenance action, etc.

[0187] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may include a memory 1028 and / or a memory controller. The memory may include various types of memory components, including dynamic RAM (D-RAM), read only memory (ROM), static RAM (S-RAM), disk storage, flash memory, EEPROM, battery backed RAM such as S-RAM or D-RAM, and any other type of digital data storage component. In some of the embodiments, the electronic circuit or electronic component includes volatile memory. In some of the embodiments, the electronic circuit or electronic component includes non-volatile memory. In some of the embodiments, the electronic circuit or electronic component may include transistors interconnected to provide positive feedback to act as a latch or flip-flop, providing a circuit that has two or more metastable states and remains in one of these two or more metastable states until changed by an external input. The data storage device may be based on a circuit including such a flip-flop. The data storage device may also be based on storing charge in a capacitor or by other principles. In some embodiments, the non-volatile memory 1028 may be integrated with the control circuitry 1004 .

[0188] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may include a clock circuit 1030. In some of the embodiments, the clock circuit 1030 may be integrated with the control circuit 1004. Although not shown in FIG. 10, it will be understood that various embodiments herein may include a data / communication bus that provides for transport of data between components, such as an I2C, a serial peripheral interface (SPI), or a universal asynchronous receiver / transmitter (UART). In some of the embodiments, an analog signal interface may be included. In some of the embodiments, a digital signal interface may be included.

[0189] In various embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may include communications circuitry 1032. In various embodiments, the communications circuitry may include components such as an antenna 1034, an amplifier, a filter, and a digital-to-analog converter and / or an analog-to-digital converter. In some of the embodiments, the filter monitoring system 104 may also include a wired input / output interface 1036, which is an input / output interface for wired communications with one or more vehicle ECUs or other systems / components, including, but not limited to, a CANBus network (which is a controller area network), etc.

[0190] The filter monitoring system 104 may also include a geographic location circuit 1038. In various embodiments, the geographic location circuit 1038 may be configured to generate or receive geographic location data. In various embodiments, the geographic location circuit 1038 may receive geographic location data from a separate device. In various embodiments, the geographic location circuit 1038 may infer a geographic location based on detection of a wireless signal (e.g., a WIFI signal or a cell tower signal). In various embodiments, the geographic location circuit 1038 may include a satellite communication circuit.

[0191] The system and / or system control circuitry 1004 may be configured to perform various calculations described herein. For example, in various embodiments, the system control circuitry 1004 may be further configured to estimate an expected loading rate associated with a contaminant at a particular geographic location based on previously observed filter loading. In various embodiments, the system control circuitry 1004 may be further configured to calculate a cost associated with a particular geographic location based on the estimated expected filter loading rate.

[0192] In various embodiments, the system control circuitry 1004 is configured to distinguish between normal and abnormal filter load curves. In various embodiments, the system control circuitry 1004 may be configured to identify a geographic location visited just prior to the onset of an abnormal filter load curve. In various embodiments, the system control circuitry 1004 may be configured to identify a geographic location visited just prior to a filter load curve change to indicate a more rapid load. In various embodiments, the system control circuitry 1004 classifies the identified location information as a source of contaminants (such as airborne particulates) and stores the classification in a geographic location database. In various embodiments, the system control circuitry 1004 may be further configured to generate a service parts inventory recommendation based on the geographic location database.

[0193] In various embodiments, the system control circuit 1004 may be further configured to evaluate at least one of the weather data, temperature data, pressure data, humidity data, fuel filter model number, engine model number, driver ID, and detected refueling time to identify the effect of a particular geographic location on the filter load.

[0194] method

[0195] Many different methods are contemplated herein, including but not limited to monitoring methods, routing methods, inventory distribution methods, etc. Aspects of system / device operation described elsewhere herein may be implemented as operations of one or more methods according to various embodiments herein.

[0196] In one embodiment, a method for monitoring a filter may include generating or receiving a local pollutant concentration value at a current geographic location, evaluating filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generating at least one of a maintenance recommendation and a routing recommendation based on the local pollutant concentration value, the time spent at the vehicle's geographic location, the vehicle's duty cycle, the filter condition value, and the change in the filter condition value.

[0197] One embodiment includes a method for monitoring a platoon of vehicles, which may include generating or receiving local pollutant concentration values ​​at geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon, determining an impact on filter criteria of time spent at the geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon, and estimating and storing the pollutant impact values ​​for the geographic locations visited by vehicles in the platoon.

[0198] In one embodiment, a method for providing vehicle routing information may include evaluating data from a filter sensor device to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the value of the filter condition, receiving data regarding filter load conditions at a plurality of location information, and generating a recommended vehicle route based on the filter load conditions at a start geographic location, an end geographic location, and geographic locations along possible routes between the start geographic location and the end geographic location.

[0199] One embodiment includes a method for monitoring a platoon of vehicles that may include generating or receiving local pollutant concentration values ​​at geographic locations of vehicles in the platoon, calculating predicted filter condition values ​​based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​associated with each vehicle in the platoon, and comparing the actual filter condition values ​​to the predicted filter condition values.

[0200] In one embodiment, a method for monitoring a filter may include generating or receiving a local pollutant concentration value in a geographic location area, evaluating filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generating routing recommendations around the geographic location area if the local pollutant concentration value exceeds a threshold.

[0201] In one embodiment, a method for monitoring a vehicle cabin filter may include generating or receiving local pollutant concentration values ​​at geographic locations visited by a vehicle, and generating a cabin filter maintenance recommendation based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​and time spent at the geographic locations visited by the vehicle.

[0202] In one embodiment, a method for monitoring a filter may include generating or receiving a local contaminant concentration value at a current location, evaluating filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and generating a filter recommendation based on the local contaminant concentration value and the filter sensor device data.

[0203] In one embodiment, a method for maintaining a vehicle fleet may include generating or receiving pollutant concentration values ​​at future geographic locations of vehicles in the platoon based on the routing data, and directing distribution of a filter maintenance product to a vehicle maintenance site based on the pollutant concentration values.

[0204] In one embodiment, a method for monitoring a platoon of vehicles may include generating or receiving local pollutant concentration values ​​at a geographic location of each vehicle in the platoon and generating work orders for filter maintenance for the vehicles in the platoon based on the local pollutant concentration values ​​at each geographic location visited by the vehicles in the platoon.

[0205] In one embodiment, a method for monitoring a filter may include generating or receiving a pollutant concentration value associated with a current geographic location, evaluating filter sensor device data to determine at least one of a filter condition value and a change in the filter condition value, and calculating an expected load factor associated with the presence of a vehicle at the current geographic location.

[0206] It should be noted that as used in this specification and the appended claims, singular forms such as "a," "an," and "the" include plural references unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. It should also be noted that the word "or" is generally used in its sense to include "and / or" unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.

[0207] It should also be noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the term "configured" describes a system, device, or other structure that is constructed or configured to perform a particular task or adopt a particular configuration. The term "configured" may be used interchangeably with other similar terms, such as arranged and configured, constructed and arranged, constructed, manufactured, and arranged, etc.

[0208] All publications and patent applications in this specification are indicative of the level of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains. All publications and patent applications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated by reference.

[0209] As used herein, reference to numerical ranges by multiple endpoints is intended to include all numbers subsumed within that range (e.g., 2 to 8 includes 2.1, 2.8, 5.3, 7, etc.).

[0210] The headings used herein are provided for consistency with suggestions under 37 CFR 1.77 or to provide organizational guidance. These headings should not be construed as limiting or characterizing the invention(s) recited in any claims that may issue from this disclosure. As one example, the headings refer to a "Field," but such claims should not be limited by the language selected within this heading to describe the so-called technical field. Furthermore, the description of a technology in the "Background" is not an admission that the technology is prior art to any invention in this disclosure. A "Summary" should also not be construed as a feature of the invention(s) recited in the claims that will issue.

[0211] The embodiments described herein are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed in the above detailed description. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and described so as to enable those skilled in the art to appreciate and understand the principles and practical applications. Thus, aspects have been described with reference to various specific and preferred embodiments and techniques. However, it should be understood that many variations and modifications may be made while remaining within the spirit and scope of the present specification.

Claims

1. A filter monitoring system, the filter monitoring system comprising: A filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a value of a filter condition of a filter; A geographical location information circuit configured to determine a current geographical location of a vehicle; A system control circuit, wherein the system control circuit generates or receives a value of a local pollutant concentration at the current geographical location, evaluates data of the filter sensor device to determine at least one of the value of the filter condition and a change in the value of the filter condition, and generates at least one of a maintenance recommendation and a route designation recommendation based on one or more of the value of the local pollutant concentration, the time spent at the geographical location of the vehicle, the duty cycle of the vehicle, the value of the filter condition, the change in the value of the filter condition, and the value of the pollutant concentration for a duration of the past geographical location of the vehicle and the time spent at the past geographical location of the vehicle; A system control circuit configured as such; and A filter monitoring system.

2. The filter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the filter monitoring system is an in-vehicle monitoring system.

3. The filter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the value of the filter condition includes a filter limit value.

4. The filter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the filter sensor device includes at least one selected from the group consisting of a pressure sensor, an optical sensor, an auditory sensor, an electrical property sensor, and a chemical sensor.

5. The filter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the geographical location information circuit includes a GPS receiver.

6. The filter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein the value of the local pollutant concentration includes a value of a particulate matter concentration in the air.

7. The filter monitoring system according to claim 6, wherein the value of the particulate matter concentration in the air includes at least one selected from the group consisting of smoke, pollen, agricultural harvest particles, and work site particles.

8. The maintenance advice included in the filter monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 7 includes at least one selected from the group consisting of filter replacement timing advice and filter type advice.

9. A vehicle fleet monitoring system, wherein the vehicle fleet monitoring system A filter status monitor configured to receive data reflecting a value of a filter condition of a filter of a vehicle in a queue; A control circuit, The control circuit Generates or receives a value of a local pollutant concentration at a geographical location visited by a vehicle in the queue, Determines the impact on the filter condition of the time spent at the geographical location visited by the vehicle in the queue, and Estimates and stores a value of the impact of pollutants at the geographical location visited by the vehicle in the queue. A control circuit configured as described above; Including A vehicle fleet monitoring system.

10. The vehicle fleet monitoring system according to claim 9, wherein the value of the local pollutant concentration includes a value of the concentration of fine particles in the air.

11. The vehicle fleet monitoring system according to claim 10, wherein the value of the concentration of fine particles in the air includes at least one selected from the group consisting of smoke, pollen, agricultural harvest particles, and work site particles.

12. The vehicle fleet monitoring system according to claim 9, wherein the control circuit is configured to determine a recommended vehicle route for an individual vehicle based at least in part on a value of the impact of pollutants at geographical locations along a possible route.

13. The vehicle fleet monitoring system according to any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein the control circuit is configured to estimate the type of pollutant present at the geographical location based on the determined impact on the filter condition of the time spent at the geographical location.

14. A filter monitoring system, wherein the filter monitoring system A filter sensor device configured to generate data reflecting a value of a filter condition of a filter; A geographical location information circuit configured to determine the geographical location of a vehicle; A system control circuit, The system control circuit Evaluating the data of the filter sensor device to determine at least one of the value of the filter condition and the change in the value of the filter condition, Receiving data regarding filter load conditions at a plurality of geographical locations, and Generating a recommended vehicle route based on the start geographical location, the end geographical location, and the filter load conditions at geographical locations along a possible route between the start geographical location and the end geographical location, A system control circuit configured as such, Including, A filter monitoring system.

15. The system control circuit of the filter monitoring system according to claim 14, wherein the system control circuit is configured to receive data regarding fuel prices at a plurality of geographical locations corresponding to fueling stations, and calculate the vehicle route based on the fuel prices at the fueling stations along the start geographical location, the end geographical location, and a possible route between the start geographical location and the end geographical location.

Images