Vehicle Component Fault Scoring for Fleet Maintenance Prioritization

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Solution Overview

Problem

Managing the maintenance and performance of a large fleet of vehicles is challenging due to the difficulty in tracking and prioritizing vehicle component faults across multiple vehicles and depots, which can lead to insufficient vehicles in good repair for revenue service.

Innovation Solution

A vehicle component fault scoring system that tracks faults, compiles attribute values, calculates fault scores based on preset categories, and displays them to users, allowing for quick risk assessment and workflow prioritization.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If manual tracking and monitoring of vehicle component faults across multiple vehicles and depots is performed, then comprehensive diagnostic information can be obtained, but the complexity and difficulty of sustaining the diagnostic maintenance and performance log increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvediagnostic information completenessVSAvoidmaintenance log complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the fleet management system into multiple hierarchical levels (individual vehicles, depots, vehicle types) and breaks down fault tracking into specific component categories. This segmentation allows comprehensive monitoring to be divided into manageable units, reducing the overall complexity while maintaining complete diagnostic information across the entire fleet.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intermediary computing system that automatically processes, aggregates, and analyzes fault data from multiple vehicles and depots. This intermediary system handles the complexity of data management, providing comprehensive diagnostic information without requiring manual tracking, thereby reducing the burden on maintenance personnel and systems.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Loss of information

If comprehensive fault tracking across all vehicles is implemented, then fleet-wide diagnostic information is available, but the time and resources required to assess risk and prioritize workflow increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefleet diagnostic informationVSAvoidrisk assessment time

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces manual mechanical processes of fault tracking and risk assessment with an automated computing system that electronically collects, processes, and analyzes fault data. This substitution eliminates time-consuming manual activities while providing comprehensive fleet-wide diagnostic information, significantly reducing the time required for risk assessment and workflow prioritization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements a feedback mechanism where fault data from vehicles is continuously collected, analyzed, and used to generate actionable insights for maintenance prioritization. The system provides real-time or near-real-time feedback on fleet health status, enabling rapid risk assessment and dynamic workflow adjustment without requiring extensive manual analysis time.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Measurement precision

If detailed monitoring of each vehicle component is maintained, then complete fault information is available, but the difficulty of managing and prioritizing maintenance across multiple vehicles increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefault detection precisionVSAvoidmaintenance management ease

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges detailed component-level fault data from multiple vehicles into aggregated views organized by vehicle type, depot, and component category. This merging allows precise fault detection at the component level while simultaneously providing summarized overviews that simplify maintenance management and prioritization across the entire fleet, making it easier to identify trends and allocate resources.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent adds dimensional organization to fault data by categorizing information across multiple dimensions (vehicle type, depot location, component type, fault severity). This multi-dimensional organization transforms complex detailed data into structured information that is easier to navigate and prioritize, allowing maintenance managers to view and manage faults from different perspectives without losing precision.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Data Source

PatentUS9802557B2Method and apparatus for providing vehicle component fault scoring

Publication Date: 2017.10.31 CLEVER DEVICES LTD

AI summary

A method and an apparatus are provided for providing a vehicle component fault score. Faults that occur on vehicle components in a plurality of vehicles are tracked. One or more sets of attribute values are compiled for the tracked faults. A set of attribute values is collected for each item within one or more preset vehicle categories. A fault score is calculated for each set of the compiled attribute values. A set of one or more items with respective fault scores is displayed based on a preset vehicle category selected by a user.