Vehicle servicing and monitoring method and system

• US 10,112,447 B2
• Filed: 06/15/2017
• Issued: 10/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores Incorporated
• Inventors: Edwards, Matthew Thomas, Coyne, Kenneth Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): Maust, Timothy L
• Application Number:
  US15/624,449
• Publication Number:
  US 20170334251A1
• Time in Patent Office: 502 Days
• Field of Search: 73146, 731462, 152415, 141 2
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/001 Devices for manually or automatically controlling or distributing tyre pressure whilst the vehicle is moving
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 5/02 Supplying fuel to vehicles; General disposition of plant in filling stations apparatus for transferring measured quantities of petrol, oil, or the like from storage space to vehicles B67D
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 5/046 using electrical or electronical means
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2205/02 using a vehicle scan tool
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0825 using optical means

Abstract

A method and system for servicing a vehicle in accordance with pre-determined maintenance settings is provided. Maintenance settings can be communicated to a vehicle maintenance tool via a communication device and the vehicle maintenance tool can interact with the vehicle in accordance with the maintenance settings.

Claims

1. A method that allows for the capture of data related to the current air pressure of a tire and the correction of said air pressure using automatic tire measuring and tire inflation equipment for use at a tire inspection lane at an on-highway retail facility, comprising:

a. identifying a vehicle by receiving vehicle identifying information from a vehicle, wherein said vehicle identifying information is received in a communication device;

b. associating vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings with said vehicle;

c. receiving said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings through an electronic network, wherein said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings are received based on said vehicle identifying information received;

d. performing maintenance on said vehicle based on said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings, wherein said maintenance is performed by a maintenance tool;

e. interacting said maintenance tool with said vehicle and said communication device during the performance of maintenance so that the maintenance tool receives said pre-determined maintenance setting, interacts with the vehicle in accordance with the pre-determined maintenance settings and sends information on the maintenance to the communication device, and wherein maintenance includes correction of said air pressure of said tire, and said interaction includes measurement of the air pressure during said correction of said air pressure and transmittal of said measurement to said communication device; and

(f) updating a database with said information on the maintenance sent to the communications device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of performing maintenance includes correction of said air pressure of said tire in accordance with said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings and said method further comprises positioning a fuel pump so as to allow said fuel pump to pump fuel into said vehicle at the same time said tire of said vehicle is being inflated.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said fuel is diesel fuel.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings include tire pressure preferences.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said step of performing maintenance includes inflating a tire in accordance with said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising recording said tire pressure of said tire either before or while said tire is being inflated.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings include tread depth preferences.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising recording a tread depth of a tire.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said maintenance includes replacing said tire in accordance with said tread depth preferences.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings include data on tire pressure and include data on one or more of maintenance, condition or replacement of vehicle equipment.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising inflating a plurality of tires simultaneously.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the step of inflating a plurality of tires simultaneously comprises engaging a first tire inflation unit with at least one tire on a first side of said vehicle and engaging a second tire inflation unit with at least one tire on a second side of said vehicle such that said first tire inflation unit and said second tire inflation unit measure pressure and pressurize said at least one tire on said first side and said at least one tire on said second side simultaneously.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said first tire inflation unit is configured to interact with a first plurality of tires on said first side and said second tire inflation unit is configured to interact with a second plurality of tires on said second side such that the plurality of tire inflation units measure pressure and pressurize simultaneously all of said tires in said first plurality of tires and said second plurality of tires.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the step of inflating a plurality of tires simultaneously comprises engaging a plurality of tire inflation units with multiple sets of tires so as to measure pressure and pressurize said multiple sets of tires simultaneously.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein each set of said multiple sets of tires comprises multiple tires, and wherein said plurality of tire inflation units engage with each of said multiple sets of tires to measure the pressure and pressurize each tire of said multiple tires simultaneously.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein said vehicle has a radio frequency identifier and the step of identifying said vehicle comprises receiving said vehicle identifying information from said vehicle by said radio frequency identifier.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein said vehicle is labeled with a scannable bar code and the step of identifying said vehicle comprises receiving said vehicle identifying information from said vehicle by scanning said scannable bar code.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising inflating a plurality of tires simultaneously.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein said vehicle pre-determined maintenance settings include data on tire pressure and include one or more of data on maintenance, condition or replacement of vehicle equipment.