Patent Application
20110231055
The present invention relates to the field of automotive fleet management methods and systems, and more specifically, to a telemetric system to facilitate maintenance of vehicles within a fleet.
Telemetry is broadly defined as the science of sending, receiving and storing information via telecommunication devices. The term later evolved to include automation in automobiles, such as emergency warning systems for vehicles. In this application, the term telemetry, and variations thereof, will refer generally to the use of the aforementioned technology in the automotive, and transportation fields. It is known in the art to collect various telemetric data for vehicles including odometer readings, global positioning systems (GPS) positions, diagnostic codes, and vehicle measurements. In the past, this data has been collected and used for statistical analyses for operations.
Historically, individual vehicles within fleets, for example fleets of commercial or public sector vehicles, were monitored and periodically manually checked to determine the appropriate times for scheduled or unscheduled maintenance, either by noting the odometer readings, or upon inspection of various parts of the vehicle. This often led to delays in ensuring proper maintenance and more of a reactive approaching to vehicle maintenance based on human-identified problems with the vehicle.
There is a need in the art for improved methods and systems related to fleet management in order to mitigate one or more of the aforementioned problems in the art.
In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, there is provided a system for managing a fleet of vehicles including a control unit on one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles, a data collection unit on one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles in communication with the control unit, a server having an operational database for receiving data from one of the control unit and the data collection unit, a telemetry module having access to the operational database for initiating an action based on an analysis of data on the server.
According to one aspect of the invention, the telemetry module is provided on the server. Alternatively, the telemetry module may be provided on a computer system in wireless communication with the server.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided one or more sensors on one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles. The sensors are preferably in communication with the control unit. Preferably, the sensors include means to measure at least one vehicle parameter selected from the group comprising an odometer reading, fuel level, engine status, vehicle speed, vehicle location, system pressure, vehicle emissions, vehicle power status, vehicle idle status, engine diagnostic trouble codes, vehicle acceleration and vehicle engine parameters.
According to another aspect of the invention, the system further includes one or more service provider modules on one or more service provider computer systems. The telemetry module is adapted to communicate with the one or more service provider computer systems, whereby a service provider carries out the action initiated by the telemetry module.
According to another aspect of the invention, the system includes a data collection terminal located proximate a location where the one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles is parked. The data collection terminal may include wireless data communication means for communication with the control unit, such as a radio frequency communication device. Preferably, the data collection terminal is adapted to collect data from the data collection unit.
Preferably, the action initiated by the telemetry module is a maintenance action, and more preferably, a conditional maintenance action.
According to another embodiment of the invention, there is provided a method for managing a fleet of vehicles including providing a control unit on one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles, providing a data collection unit on one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles in communication with the control unit, receiving data from one of the control unit and the data collection unit and storing the data on an operational database, accessing the operational database via a telemetry module, and initiating an action based on an analysis of data on said operational database.
According to one aspect of this embodiment, the telemetry module is provided on said server. According to another aspect, the telemetry module is provided on a computer system in wireless communication with said server.
According to another aspect of this embodiment, there is provided one or more sensors on the one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles. The one or more sensors are preferably in communication with the control unit. The method preferably further includes measuring at least one vehicle parameter with the at least one sensor, where the parameter may be selected from the group comprising an odometer reading, fuel level, engine status, vehicle speed, vehicle location, system pressure, vehicle emissions, vehicle power status, vehicle idle status, engine diagnostic trouble codes, vehicle acceleration and vehicle engine parameters.
According to another aspect of this embodiment, the method further includes providing one or more service provider modules on one or more service provider computer systems, and the telemetry module is adapted to communicate with the one or more service provider computer systems. In this aspect, the step of initiating is carried out by the one or more service provider modules.
According to another aspect of this embodiment, the method includes providing a data collection terminal proximate a location where the one or more vehicles in the fleet of vehicles is parked. Preferably, the data collection terminal includes wireless data communication means for communicating with the control unit, and the method further includes the step of collecting data at said data collection terminal from said data collection unit.
The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present invention, as to its structure, organization, use and method of operation, together with further objectives and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following drawings in which a presently preferred embodiment of the invention will now be illustrated by way of example. It is expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only, and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. In the accompanying drawings:
Referring now to
The control unit 30 is preferably an onboard computer system provided on each vehicle. Such a computer system may include, as shown in
The data collection unit 40 may also be computer system in accordance with that described above and adapted to receive and store data from one or more sensors on each vehicle, or from other vehicle data sources, as will be described in more detail below. The server 50 preferably includes non-volatile storage means on where the operational database 60 is stored to maintain data from each of the vehicles in the fleet. The telemetry module 70 may also be located on the server, but may, alternatively, be located on another computer system having communication access to the server 50. Various other elements of the preferred embodiments of the invention as will be described in more detail hereinbelow may be implemented on a computer system having some or all of the components described with respect to
Referring now to
Communication means provided on the control unit 30 may preferably operate in active and passive modes, depending on the location and use of a particular vehicle in the fleet. In the active mode, as shown in
In the passive mode, communication occurs via Wi-Fi, 900 MHz or RFID based networks, for example. Communication is transmitted on an event-based arrangement, such as vehicle on/off, scheduled transmissions, driver triggered communication or proximity to a receiver. Two-way communication is limited in passive mode. On-demand mode functions when there is a direct connection to the vehicle, for example, when used with vehicle diagnostic tools. It is also contemplated that a combination of active and passive communication modes may be used, depending on the nature of the communication. In the passive mode, it is further contemplated that a data collection terminal 110, shown in
The telemetry module 70 is adapted to receive, or otherwise access, data from the control unit and provides for various functions and abilities as will be described in more detail further below. In one embodiment, shown in
The telemetry module 70 can be used to initiate a number of actions, such as maintenance actions. In the preferred embodiments, the telemetry module 70 further provides the ability for maintenance personnel, for example, to review data from any particular vehicle in the fleet, a group of vehicles in the fleet, or of the fleet as a whole and to further analyze the data or initiate specific actions based on this analysis. The results achieved by the system as herein described allows for improved efficiencies in the management of a large number of vehicles in a fleet.
It will be appreciated by one skilled in the art that the availability of telemetry data and use according to the present invention generally improves fleet management. More specifically, a better picture of vehicle usage and demand may be provided. For example, the telemetry module may analyze the fuel consumption of a particular vehicle in the fleet, a group of vehicles in the fleet and of the entirety of the fleet. In this regard, vehicle performance and driving habits may be optimized to reduce fuel consumption, by, for example, identifying vehicles and driving habits where fuel consumption is above particular benchmark numbers.
In the preferred embodiment, the telemetry module has access to sensor data measure various operating parameters of each and every vehicle, as described above. The telemetry module also has access to vehicle diagnostic codes as output by the engine of each vehicle. With regards to maintenance, unreported problems may be identified before becoming failures, by way of these sensor measurement. Therefore, maintenance schedules and actions can be predicted and performed on a preventative schedule based on an overall fleet schedule. It is also possible to establish condition-based maintenance programs in addition to preventative maintenance programs and to use vehicle performance data to improve warranty coverage and vehicle component selection. The present invention also allows for additional monitoring or driver actions and behavior, for example in monitoring route deviations or collecting operating data to identify poor driving habits. When accidents do occur, collected parameter data may be used to analyze and interpret the vehicle state at the time of the accident. For insurance and regulatory purposes, a log is easily created to show times of service, pre-trip inspections, emissions monitoring and fuel tax reporting.
Furthermore, better operational management of vehicles in the fleets is possible by using GPS tracking and meter data to present a truer picture of vehicle use and demand. Frequent and accurate meter readings are made possible, as are hourly and daily readings to confirm use. The number of vehicle starts and stops and trips made per day may also be monitored.
With such overall fleet management, it will be possible to identify opportunities for vehicle trip sharing, monitoring of unauthorized vehicle use and send alerts when vehicles deviate from a work zone or route.
In terms of fuel management, the system herein described may be used for tracking and tracing of leakage points in fuel consumption, including monitoring engine idle time, monitoring emission/engine parameters to improve performance, monitoring driver behaviour related to an increase in fuel consumption, including high acceleration, speed and hard braking and allows for the tracking of unnecessary miles. This information may then be used to anticipate when a vehicle may be ready for it's next scheduled maintenance and to account for and plan for this maintenance at appropriate times.
The maintenance management functions use vehicle parameters and diagnostic trouble codes to drive maintenance procedures for individual vehicles. Accordingly, immediate action may be taken to fault code alerts and a condition-based maintenance approach may be implemented. For example, alerts may be monitored to schedule service to avoid unreported problems, and the fault codes may be linked to maintenance records. Using a condition-based maintenance approach involves monitoring operating parameter thresholds to trigger maintenance activities and incorporating parameter data into failure analysis to establish flags for future failures. The parameter data may also be incorporated into warranty claims and both parameter and performance data may be used for vehicle and/or component selection purposes.
Accordingly, the complete maintenance cycle of vehicles in a fleet may be monitored, controlled, and documented using the system and method herein described. Various telemetric applications have been described using passive, active or on-demand communication to transmit data relevant for maintenance purposes including generating work requests, viewing historical data and collecting operational data for all vehicles in the fleet.
As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, various modifications and variations to the system and method herein described will be possible, without departing from the spirit of the invention. It will also be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be used for vehicle rental purposes, vehicle sharing purposes, organizational vehicle control, and provide information and data as required and adapted to each of these types of business.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/315,244, the contents of which are herein expressly incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61315244 | Mar 2010 | US |
