Patent Application
20160042668
The disclosed embodiments pertain to wiring installation in vehicles.
A motorized vehicle has to perform several functions, and to perform each of these functions a vehicle usually includes many electrical components such as a starter motor, headlights, cabin lights, an air conditioning compressor, a window motor, etc. A large vehicle, such as a commercial truck, therefore may include one or more power source(s), electrical controls and a variety of electrical components. A large number of wires may be required to allow the electrical components to be connected to the power sources and to the electrical controls. When a vehicle is assembled, the wires have to be laid and connected very accurately.
It is common for truck manufacturers to offer a variety of truck models, with each of the various truck models also allowing for customization such as by specifying certain unique components. Thus, a certain model truck may have a wide variety of variations which need to be produced to meet various customer requirements, and some or all of these variations may require different routing and/or connecting of wiring in the production process.
The operator in charge of the wire routing and connection operation has to make sure that the wires are laid out and connected in a proper way for each permutation of vehicle which may be presented to the operator for the wiring assembly portion of production. The operation of installing wires in a vehicle during the production process relies heavily on the skills and experience of the operator to ensure that the wires are routed and connected appropriately for each variation of vehicle which may be presented. Considering that, in a manufacturing line, the time dedicated for each operation is limited and that there may be a large number of variations of wiring configurations being presented to an operator in a given day, this may result in wiring being improperly laid and/or connected in a vehicle.
Trucks assembled with incorrect wiring configurations which may need to be re-wired before the truck can be shipped to a customer, that may result in lost profits due to reworking and/or there may be product failure issues associated with improper wiring. There is a desire to reduce the lost profits associated with improper wiring installations in vehicles.
In accordance with one embodiment, a device or apparatus is provided for facilitating correct installation of wiring by an operator into various vehicles having different wiring installation requirements. A first wireless data transmitting tag, such as an RFID tag, is attached to a first portion of the vehicle and contains information identifying the particular vehicle to which the wireless data transmitting tag is attached, and information identifying the portion of the vehicle to which the wireless data transmitting tag is attached. A wireless data receiving and reading device, such as an RFID reader, is provided which is suitable for reading the information on the first wireless data transmitting tag as the first wireless data transmitting tag comes into proximity with the wireless data reading device and generating a first visual display to the operator showing the proper wiring installation for the first portion of the particular vehicle in which wiring is to be installed. A second wireless data transmitting tag, such as a second RFID tag, may be attached to a second portion of the vehicle and contain information identifying the particular vehicle to which the wireless data transmitting tag is attached, and the portion of the vehicle to which the second RFID tag is attached. The wireless data reading device is suitable for reading the information on the second RFID tag as the second RFID tag comes into proximity with the RFID reading device and generating a second visual display to the operator showing the proper wiring installation for the second portion of the particular vehicle. Accordingly, the operator is automatically presented with a visual display showing the proper wiring configuration to be employed for each vehicle, and each portion of each vehicle, as those portions or sections of the vehicles come into the operator's workstation for wiring installation.
The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way.
The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application or uses. It should be understood that throughout the drawings, corresponding reference numerals indicate like or corresponding parts or features.
With initial reference to
By way of example to illustrate one potential application, the object 10 of
In some instances and applications, all of the objects 10 may have the same components, but the customer or manufacturer may desire that only certain components be electrically connected, as illustrated in comparing
A factory may operate with a variety of similar, but differing, objects coming down the same assembly line and it may not be readily apparent to an operator what components a given object has which require wire routing and connections, and therefore not readily apparent what the correct routing and connection pattern is for each respective vehicle.
To facilitate accurate wire routing and connections for each object 10, wireless data transmitting devices such as RFID tags or the like may be utilized for indicating the proper wire routing and connection pattern for each object 10. For instance, a wireless data transmitting device or tag 12 may be attached to the object 10 of
Accordingly, an RFID detector 16 and display device (which may be a hand-held display device, a heads-up display device, or a fixedly mounted display device) may be disposed in proximity to an operator situation on an assembly line, such that as a first object 10 and its associated RFID tag 12 attached thereto comes into sufficiently close proximity to the operator the display shows the correct routing and wiring pattern for that object to assist the operator with correct wiring installation. In the illustrated example of
Some applications require the same objects to have a large variety of permutations of auxiliary equipment, optional features, and the like which make for a wide variety of desired wiring assembly patterns and it may be difficult for an operator to accurately remember all of the different wire routing and connection requirements for each of the different permutations. And it may be undesirably time consuming to locate and place on each object the correct paper drawings for each such permutation of wiring installation requirements for each object. Utilizing the RFID tags and associated display(s) as disclosed herein may facilitate faster and more accurate and wiring of objects.
For instance, with reference to
With reference to
For instance, with reference to
The displays may be two-dimensional, three-dimensional, schematic, perspective, elevated or other views, or any combinations thereof. Some displays may just show the routing path for the wiring with other displays showing the connection points for the wiring, or displays may show both routing and connection points and may include specific details of the connection, such as type of fasteners to use at various connection points or torque specifications. The displays may also show locations where wiring is to be affixed to the object to hold the wiring in place, and may show which fasteners are to be used for affixing the wiring to the object at those locations. The displays may also show the particular type of wiring or wiring harnesses to use for each application.
For vehicles such as trucks, an array of wireless data transmitting tags may be placed across a frame system which can allow wireless location and identification of specific points on the object. Each wireless data transmitting tag may be programmed with VIN and physical location information. An wireless data transmitting reader may work in conjunction with a tablet PC or other display device to read the wireless data transmitting tags and call up from a database (which may be located on a network or truck body controller for instance) a photo/image detail that is specific to the wireless data transmitting/frame viewing region. The photo images may be initially created from a certification pilot build, for instance, then loaded into a database to be accessed for use on each subsequent build. With the programmability of the tags, every job built can be identified as unique, as well as the specific frame locations on that job to accommodate the specific features of that particular truck. The disclosed concepts may also support field service to confirm proper installation of parts and wire harnesses on any part of the truck.
On a moving production line, with different job orders for line set in sequential order, assembly line and process engineers can access relevant data to each exact job, install, check, and adjust the installation in real time. The concepts of the disclosure may also be used to allow quick field inspection of commercial and military vehicles for safety, unauthorized alterations, and general condition.
The wireless data transmitting tags, or other wireless data transmitting devices, may be applied in a variety of ways. They may be temporarily applied to an object during production, and then removed at the end of production, for re-use in a subsequent production. The wireless data transmitting tags may be programmed in advance of being applied to the object, or may be programmed after being applied to the object. A plurality of wireless data transmitting tags may be programmed for each specific design to be built. For instance, a first plurality of wireless data transmitting tags may be programmed for the “standard version” of the object to be produced and placed on each object (or section of each object) to be built to the “standard version” specification. A second plurality of wireless data transmitting tags may be programmed for a “variation 1” version of the object to be produced, and placed on each object (or section of each object) to be built to the “first variation” design specification. A third plurality of wireless data transmitting tags may be programmed for a “variation 2” version of the object to be produced, and placed on each object (or section of each object) which is to be built to the “second variation” of the object to be built to the “third variation” version of the object to be produced. The wireless data transmitting tags may remain on the object which is to be sold commercially, or may be removed after production and re-used in subsequent productions.
The wireless data transmitting tags may be permanently attached to the object, such as by embedding the wireless data transmitting devices in bolts or the like which are connected to the object. Wireless date transmitting devices of the passive type, active type, or batter-assisted type may be utilized in various embodiments.
A wireless data reading and display system may be utilized in which a data reading device communicates with a separate display device, or a wireless data reading and display system may be utilized in which a single device both receives the wireless data information from the wireless data transmitting device and also displays an image or images. A wide variety of systems for reading and displaying wireless information are well known in the art and may be suitable for carrying out various embodiments.
While the embodiments disclosed in the specification mostly pertain to wire routing and connections in a truck or other vehicle, the disclosure is not limited to wire routing and connections on a vehicle and may be used in a wide variety of applications such as routing and connecting air hoses, pneumatic lines, fluid hoses, etc. and a wide variety of objects such as airplanes, motorcycles, dishwashers, refrigerators, etc.
Also, while the disclosure is set forth in terms of using wireless data transmitting tags, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that any wireless data transmitting devices may be used instead of, or in addition to, wireless data transmitting tags for carrying out the concepts and disclosures set forth herein. Also, the display may be a head-up display, hologram, or other imaging devices.
The wireless data transmitting reader and the display may be a single combined device or may be two separate devices interconnected with one another either wirelessly or with wires.
The wireless data transmitting device need not contain or convey all of the information regarding proper wiring installation, and in fact it need not even contain any information regarding proper wiring installation. That is, in some embodiments, a library or map of various wiring installation information specific to different vehicles and/or different sections of vehicles, may be stored with the wireless data transmitting device sending a signal which is specifically assigned to one or more of the wiring installation instructions stored, so that when a given wireless data transmitting device comes into proximity with a wireless data receiving system it triggers the pulling up or displaying of suitable stored wiring information from the library or map on which it is stored, and this is displayed to the operator. So, for instance the wireless data transmitting device may merely transmit a unique signal (which may be, for instance a digit such as a 1, 2, 3, etc.) which is particular to a specific pre-stored diagram, such that when the wireless data transmitting reader receives say a “2” signal from the wireless data transmitting device it pulls up a predetermined image corresponding to the “2” signal; and when the wireless data transmitting reader receives say a “3” signal from the wireless data transmitting device it pulls up a different predetermined image corresponding to the “3” signal; and so on. Therefore, it is not necessary that any data other than some varying triggering signals be emitted from the respective wireless data transmitting devices and received by the wireless data transmitting readers.
Although the embodiments have been discussed with regard to electrical wiring, alternative embodiments and applications pertaining to installation of hoses, air lines, hydraulic lines, etc. may be carried out as well. This may be carried out at different stations along the production line. For instance, a given wireless data transmitting device may transmit a signal “4” and this signal brings up a wiring diagram on the wireless data receiving and display system at the wiring installation station to facilitate proper wiring installation; with the same “4” signal of the wireless data transmitting device triggering the bringing up of a hose installation diagram on the wireless data receiving and display system at the hose installation station to facilitate proper hose installation.
It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous variations and modifications may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope of the disclosure being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents.
