Fault management method for a vehicle engine control system

• US 10,249,107 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2016
• Issued: 04/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vitesco Technologies GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive France (Continental AG), Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Eloy, Stephane, Cailler, Lionel
• Primary Examiner(s): Antonucci, Anne M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Taveras, Kenny A.
• Application Number:
  US15/198,113
• Publication Number:
  US 20170011567A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,006 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: F02D 41/22 Safety or indicating devices for abnormal conditions in air/fuel ratio feedback systems F02D41/1495, in electric control linkage F02D11/107, in purge control systems F02M25/0809
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/006 Indicating maintenance
• 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: G07C 5/0841 Registering performance data recording measured values G01D; information storage G11B
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/40 Engine management systems

Abstract

A method of managing faults for a vehicle engine control system, includes a plurality of monitoring or observation strategies monitoring a plurality of components and using diagnostics to detect the presence of faults in the plurality of components. For each monitoring or observation strategy, referred to as a diagnosis, if it diagnoses the presence of a fault in a component, the fault detected in the diagnosed component is stored and all the monitoring or observation strategies continue to detect the presence of faults in all of the components that they respectively monitor, but the presence of the fault in the diagnosed component is ignored so as to enable the detection of the presence of other faults, if any, in components other than the diagnosed component.

Claims

1. A method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components, such method implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system, said method including a plurality of monitoring or observation strategies, each monitoring or observation strategy monitoring said plurality of components and using diagnostics to detect the presence of faults in said plurality of components,

wherein, for each monitoring or observation strategy, referred to as a diagnosis, if said monitoring or observation strategy diagnoses the presence of a fault in a component, therefore referred to as a diagnosed component, said fault detected in the diagnosed component is stored and all the monitoring or observation strategies continue to detect the presence of faults in all of the components that they respectively monitor, except in that the detection of the presence of a fault in the diagnosed component is taken into consideration so that the presence of the fault in the diagnosed component is ignored so as to enable the detection of the presence of other faults, if any, in components other than the diagnosed component.

2. The method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system as claimed in claim 1, which includes the following steps:

i. the activation of an investigation operating mode to perform an advanced diagnosis of the engine control system,

ii. in the event of detection of the presence of a fault in a component, therefore referred to as the diagnosed component, by a monitoring or observation strategy, referred to as a diagnosis, the deactivation of all the monitoring or observation strategies only in so far as they monitor the diagnosed component.

3. The method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system as claimed in claim 2, which includes the reiteration of the second step until the presence of a fault is no longer detected.

4. The method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system as claimed in claim 3, which includes the proposition of a fault considered the most probable, corresponding to the last fault detected as present.

5. The method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system as claimed in claim 1, which includes the following steps:

i. the activation of an investigation operating mode to perform an advanced diagnosis of the engine control system,

ii. in the event of detection of the presence of a fault in a component, therefore referred to as the diagnosed component, by a monitoring or observation strategy, referred to as a diagnosis, all of the monitoring or observation strategies continue to monitor all of the components, including the diagnosed component, the presence of the fault already detected in the diagnosed component being ignored.

6. The method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system as claimed in claim 5, which includes the reiteration of the second step until the presence of a fault is no longer detected.

7. The method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system as claimed in claim 6, which includes the proposition of a list of faults considered plausible, corresponding to the list of faults detected as present.

8. The method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components implemented by a motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the list of faults considered plausible includes information relating to the chronological order in which said faults considered plausible were detected as present.

9. A motor vehicle engine control on-board diagnostic system configured for implementing a method of detection of faults on a plurality of vehicle components, said method including a plurality of monitoring or observation strategies, each monitoring or observation strategy monitoring said plurality of components and using diagnostics to detect the presence of faults in said plurality of components,

wherein, for each monitoring or observation strategy, referred to as a diagnosis, if said monitoring or observation strategy diagnoses the presence of a fault in a component, therefore referred to as a diagnosed component, said fault detected in the diagnosed component is stored and all the monitoring or observation strategies continue to detect the presence of faults in all of the components that they respectively monitor, except in that the detection of the presence of a fault in the diagnosed component is taken into consideration so that the presence of the fault in the diagnosed component is ignored so as to enable the detection of the presence of other faults, if any, in components other than the diagnosed component.