Systems of using vehicle system data to improve the operation of off-road vehicles

• US 10,169,929 B2
• Filed: 06/05/2018
• Issued: 01/01/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Freeport-Mcmoran Corporation (Freeport-Mcmoran Copper & Gold Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Freeport-Mcmoran Corporation (Freeport-Mcmoran Copper & Gold Incorporated)
• Inventors: Walker, Mary Amelia, Brown, D. Bradley, Manifee, Don Robert, Puckett, Connie DeeAnne
• Primary Examiner(s): Shriver, II, James A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Triggs, James J
• Application Number:
  US16/000,617
• Publication Number:
  US 20180286149A1
• Time in Patent Office: 210 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/40 Business processes related to the transportation industry shipping G06Q10/083
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles

Abstract

A system for operating a fleet of off-road vehicles may include a network. A plurality of sensors operatively associated with the fleet of off-road vehicles and connected to the network sense information related to the operation of a plurality of off-road vehicle systems. A processing system operatively connected to the network collects sensor data from the off-road vehicles; combines sensor data from the vehicle systems in accordance with a user-defined event; determines whether the collected and combined sensor data are inside or outside defined limits of the user-defined event; produces an alarm signal for a user when the collected and combined sensor data are outside the defined limits of the user-defined event; and recommends modification of the operation of vehicles for which an alarm signal has been produced. A display system operatively associated with the processing system displays at least information relating to the recommended modification.

Claims

1. A system for operating a fleet of off-road vehicles, comprising:

a network;

a plurality of sensors operatively associated with the fleet of off-road vehicles, said plurality of sensors sensing information related to the operation of a plurality of off-road vehicle systems, said plurality of sensors being operatively connected to said network;

a processing system operatively connected to said network, said processing system being configured to;

collect sensor data from the off-road vehicles, the sensor data being related to the operation of a plurality of vehicle systems;

combine sensor data from the vehicle systems in accordance with a user-defined event;

determine whether the collected and combined sensor data are within or without defined limits of the user-defined event;

produce an alarm signal for a user when the collected and combined sensor data are without the defined limits of the user-defined event; and

recommend modification of the operation of vehicles for which an alarm signal has been produced; and

a display system operatively associated with said processing system, said processing system displaying on said display system at least information relating to the recommended modification.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a library operatively associated with said processing system, said library comprising a plurality of user-defined events.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein each user-defined event in said library defines a combination of sensor data relating to at least two vehicle systems and defined limits for the sensor data, the defined limits and user-defined event being indicative of undesirable operation of the off-road vehicle.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the user defined events further comprise combinations of sensor data that are indicative of a mechanical deficiency of the off-road vehicles and combinations of sensor data that are indicative of an operational deficiency of the off-road vehicles.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein said processing system is further configured to produce an alarm signal that is indicative of a mechanical deficiency or a operational deficiency.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein said processing system is further configured to:

recommend a maintenance operation for the vehicle when the alarm signal is indicative of a mechanical deficiency; and

recommend operator training when the alarm signal is indicative of an operational deficiency.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the fleet of off-road vehicles comprises a vehicle information management system and wherein said processing system is further configured to collect data from the vehicle information management system.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions embodied thereon that, when executed by at least one computer processor cause the processor to:

collect sensor data from a fleet of off-road vehicles, the sensor data being related to the operation of a plurality of vehicle systems;

combine sensor data from the vehicle systems in accordance with a user-defined event;

determine whether the collected and combined sensor data are within or without defined limits of the user-defined event;

produce an alarm signal for a user when the collected and combined sensor data are without the defined limits of the user-defined event; and

recommend modification of the operation of vehicles for which an alarm signal has been produced.

9. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the user-defined event comprises combinations of sensor data that are indicative of a mechanical deficiency of the off-road vehicles and combinations of sensor data that are indicative of an operational deficiency of the off-road vehicles and wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions that cause the processor to produce an indication of whether the alarm signal is indicative of a mechanical deficiency or an operational deficiency.

10. The storage medium of claim 9, wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions that cause the processor to:

recommend a maintenance operation for the vehicles when the alarm signal is indicative of a mechanical deficiency; and

recommend operator training when the alarm signal is indicative of an operational deficiency.

11. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the computer-executable instructions further comprise instructions that cause the processor to collect data from a vehicle information management system provided on at least one of the off-road vehicles.