SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DISTRIBUTED COMPUTER AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE EQUIPMENT

• US 20010007086A1
• Filed: 10/31/1997
• Published: 07/05/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/1997
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Snap-On Technologies Incorporated (Snap-On Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Snap-On Technologies Incorporated (Snap-On Incorporated)
• Inventors: DE BELLEFEUILLE, JEAN, GILL, GEORGE M., ROGERS, STEVEN W., BAIRD, MICHAEL, KLING, MICHAEL III
• Granted Patent: US 6,405,111 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/33
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/0315 using multiplexing techniques multiplexing for transmission of signals G08C15/00; multiplexing for electrical communication in general H04J
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 2210/26 Algorithms, instructions, databases, computerized methods and graphical user interfaces employed by a user in conjunction with the wheel aligner
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A computerized automotive service equipment system is adapted to access remotely located computer systems to retrieve or exchange data and/or software applications, or to undergo live or real-time and two-way interaction. The system and its components are dynamic with respect to both function and data, and can be easily updated or otherwise altered. The system of the present invention utilizes World Wide Web technology, which enables the use of universal and widely compatible programming tools and techniques for efficient and fast system development.

Claims

1. An automotive service equipment system for use in conducting a diagnostic analysis of vehicle components, the automotive service equipment system having at least one measurement device, a data input controller and at least one networked controller coupled to the data input controller over a data transmission network;

the measurement device being operatively coupled to the data input controller and configured to provide signals to the data input controller representative of a vehicle diagnostic state;

the data input controller comprising a first microprocessor, a first memory coupled to the first microprocessor and an output device coupled to the first memory;

the at least one networked controller comprising a second microprocessor and a second memory;

wherein the first microprocessor accesses the second memory through the second microprocessor over the data transmission network to convert the signals into an output at the output device indicative of the vehicle diagnostic state.

2. The system of

claim 1

wherein the signals comprise ISO 8879 syntax.

3. The system of

claim 1

wherein the data transmission network comprises hypertext transmission protocol (http).

4. The system of

claim 1

wherein the second microprocessor processes measurement data derived at least in part from the signals and transmits the processed measurement data to the data input controller over the data transmission network.

5. The system of

claim 1

, wherein the second memory comprises at least one software object, and wherein the first microprocessor accesses the at least one software object in the course of conducting a diagnostic analysis of vehicle components.

6. The system of

claim 5

wherein the at least one software object includes an object representative of one or more from the set of:

vehicle owner information, vehicle specifications, a diagnostic computational routine, an automotive service operator instruction, and customer account information.

7. The system of

claim 1

wherein the output device comprises a visual display.

8. The system of

claim 7

wherein the visual display comprises a CRT.

9. The system of

claim 1

wherein the output device comprises an audio output device.

10. The system of

claim 9

wherein the audio output device comprises a voice audio output device.

11. The system of

claim 1

wherein the automotive service equipment comprises a computerized wheel alignment system, the at least one measurement device comprises at least one wheel alignment sensor, the signals comprise signals representative of wheel alignment angles, and the output indicative of the vehicle diagnostic state comprises an output indicative of the difference between measured wheel alignment angles and a wheel alignment angle specification.

12. The system of

claim 1

wherein one of the following types of automotive service equipment comprises the data input controller:

engine analyzer, wheel alignment system, brake tester, suspension analyzer, wheel balancer; and

one of the following types of automotive service equipment comprises the at least one networked controller;

engine analyzer, wheel alignment system, brake tester, suspension analyzer, wheel balancer.

13. The system of

claim 12

wherein the type of automotive service equipment which comprises the data input controller is different from the type of automotive service equipment that comprises the at least one networked controller.

14. The system of

claim 1

wherein the data input controller comprises a browser and the at least one network controller comprises a server.

15. The system of

claim 5

wherein the data input controller and the at least one network controller communicate over the data transmission network using DCOM technologies.

16. The system of

claim 11

wherein the data input controller and the at least one network controller communicate over the data transmission network using DCOM technologies, and wherein the output indicative of the difference between measured wheel alignment angles and a wheel alignment angle specification comprises a real-time DCOM display showing the difference between measured wheel alignment angles and a wheel alignment angle specification.

17. The system of

claim 1

wherein the output device comprises a display, the first memory comprises a Java Virtual Machine, the second microprocessor transmits Java applets to the first memory over the data transmission network, and the output device displays the Java applets utilizing the Java Virtual Machine.

18. The system of

claim 17

wherein the Java applets comprise operator instructional information.

19. The system of

claim 1

wherein the data input controller comprises a thin client and the at least one network controller comprises a server.

20. The system of

claim 1

wherein both the data input controller and the at least one network controller are located at the same vehicle servicing site.

21. The system of

claim 20

wherein the data transmission network comprises a local area network (LAN).

22. The system of

claim 1

wherein the data input controller is located at a vehicle servicing site and the at least one network controller is located remote from that vehicle servicing site.

23. The system of

claim 1

wherein the second memory comprises a set of vehicle diagnostic specifications.

24. The system of

claim 5

further comprising a second networked controller coupled to the at least one networked controller and the data input controller over the data transmission network, the second networked controller having a third microprocessor, wherein the third microprocessor is adapted to access the same software object in the second memory of the at least one networked controller at substantially the same time as the first microprocessor.

25. The system of

claim 24

wherein the second networked controller comprises an item of automotive service equipment.

26. The system of

claim 24

wherein the second networked controller comprises a customer accounting database.

36. The system of

claim 15

wherein the DCOM technologies comprise ActiveX technologies.

37. The system of

claim 15

wherein the DCOM technologies comprise ActiveX technologies.

27. A computerized wheel alignment system comprising a plurality of alignment angle sensors adapted to be mounted on vehicle wheels to sense wheel alignment angles, a computer coupled to the plurality of sensors and adapted to receive therefrom signals indicative of wheel alignment angles, a display coupled to the computer and adapted to display the respective wheel alignment angles, the improvement comprising:

a connection to a data network;

the computer coupled to the connection to the data network and adapted to execute a web browser for receiving information thereon;

the information comprising wheel alignment procedure instructions,

whereby the web browser assists an operator in completing a vehicle wheel alignment procedure.

28. The system of

claim 27

wherein the information comprises help files.

29. The system of

claim 28

wherein the information comprises the HTML file format.

30. The system of

claim 27

wherein the web browser comprises an ActiveX control.

31. A web browser/server system for use as a diagnostic wheel alignment service system, the web browser comprising:

a browser computer having means for connection to a data transmission network,

a plurality of alignment angle sensors adapted to be mounted on vehicle wheels to sense wheel alignment angles,

the browser computer coupled to the plurality of sensors and adapted to receive therefrom raw signals indicative of wheel alignment angles and to place the raw signals on the data transmission network for transmission to the web server;

the web server comprising;

a server computer having means for connection to the data transmission network and for receiving the signals,

the server computer further comprising means for computing from the raw signals the difference between the sensed wheel alignment angles and values representing wheel alignment angle specifications,

the server computer adapted to return to the browser computer over the data transmission network processed signals representative of the difference between the sensed wheel alignment angles and values representing wheel alignment angle specifications,

the browser computer further comprising a display, the browser computer adapted to receive the processed signals and place on the display an image representative of the difference between the sensed wheel alignment angles and values representing wheel alignment angle specifications.

32. The system of

claim 31

wherein the image comprises a graphically generated meter.

33. The system of

claim 32

wherein the processed data returns to the browser computer sufficiently soon after the raw data is transmitted to the server computer whereby the graphically generated meter displays the difference between the sensed wheel alignment angles and values representing wheel alignment angle specifications in real-time.

34. The system of

claim 31

wherein the web browser comprises a second at least one sensor, the browser computer coupled to the second at least one sensor and adapted to receive therefrom a second raw signal indicative of non-alignment-related vehicle diagnostic information and to place the second raw signals on the data transmission network for transmission to the web server;

the server computer further comprising means for computing from the second raw signals a second processed value indicative of a vehicle diagnostic result;

the server computer adapted to return to the browser computer over the data transmission network second processed signals representative of the second processed value indicative of a vehicle diagnostic result;

the browser computer adapted to receive the second processed signals and place on the display an image representative of the second processed value indicative of a vehicle diagnostic result.

35. The system of

claim 34

wherein the non-alignment-related vehicle diagnostic information comprises at least one from the set of:

engine diagnostic information, vehicle suspension information and vehicle wheel balance information.