Drive Cycle Script Guidance for ECU Repair Verification
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Solution Overview
Problem
The complexity of electronic control unit (ECU) controlled systems in mobile machines requires technicians to carry tools that communicate with ECUs during test drives, making it difficult to efficiently control and verify the repair of these systems without additional guidance.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that determine and output a test drive script with an ordered sequence of drive cycle procedures, allowing technicians to monitor and control mobile machines during test drives, providing status information to ensure proper repair verification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a technician carries a tool that communicates with the ECU during test drives, then the technician can monitor the electronic system, but the ease of operation deteriorates due to the complexity of controlling the mobile machine without additional guidance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a portable computing device as an intermediary between the technician and the ECU-controlled system. This device receives data from the ECU via the communication tool and presents it in an easily interpretable format, mediating the complex interaction between the technician and the electronic control system, thereby maintaining reliability while improving ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service by allowing the mobile machine's ECU to automatically generate and transmit diagnostic data to the portable computing device during the test drive. The system serves itself by autonomously providing the information needed for verification without requiring the technician to manually query or interpret complex ECU data
2Measurement precision
If a technician uses a tool to communicate with the ECU during test drives, then the measurement precision of electronic system status is improved, but the device complexity increases due to the need for additional equipment and procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The portable computing device is designed to perform multiple functions: it serves as the interface for ECU communication, the display for diagnostic data, the analysis engine for interpreting sensor readings, and the recording device for test results. This multi-functional approach consolidates what would otherwise require multiple separate devices, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining measurement precision
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the communication tool, data display, and diagnostic analysis capabilities into a single integrated portable computing device. This consolidation combines multiple previously separate functions into one device, reducing the number of components the technician must carry and manage while preserving the ability to accurately monitor ECU system status
3Productivity
If a technician performs manual test drives without structured guidance, then the ease of operation is maintained, but the productivity decreases due to the time required to verify repairs in complex ECU-controlled systems
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements continuous feedback by automatically monitoring ECU data streams during the test drive and immediately presenting relevant diagnostic information to the technician. This real-time feedback allows the technician to quickly identify whether repairs are successful without manually checking multiple parameters, significantly improving productivity while minimizing time loss
Solution Approach 2:
The portable computing device is prepared in advance with the necessary communication protocols and diagnostic parameters configured before the test drive begins. This preliminary setup eliminates the need for time-consuming configuration during the actual test drive, allowing the technician to immediately start verifying repairs and thereby improving productivity while reducing the time required
Data Source
AI summary
A method includes determining a test drive script (TDS) to perform while a tool monitors an electronic system in a mobile machine during a test drive of the mobile machine. The TDS includes an ordered sequence of drive cycle procedures (DCPs). The ordered sequence of DCPs begins with an initial DCP and ends with a final DCP. Each DCP is indicative of a respective mobile machine state. The TDS includes a first particular DCP associated with both a first particular mobile machine state and a first condition pertaining to the first particular mobile machine state. The method also includes outputting a representation of at least a portion of the TDS. Additionally, the method includes determining and outputting one or more of: status information corresponding to achieving the first particular mobile machine state or status information corresponding to achieving the first condition pertaining to the first particular mobile machine state.