Method and surveillance system for surveilling the state of work machines

• US 20060020402A1
• Filed: 08/05/2005
• Published: 01/26/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Deere & Company
• Original Assignee: Deere & Company
• Inventors: Beck, Folker, Braunhardt, Klaus, Bischoff, Lutz, Herlitzius, Thomas
• Application Number:
  US11/198,585
• Publication Number:
  US 20060020402A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/34
• CPC Class Codes: A01D 41/127 Control or measuring arrangements specially adapted for combines
• CPC Class Codes: G01H 1/00 Measuring characteristics of vibrations in solids by using direct conduction to the detector G01H9/00, G01H11/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01H 1/003 of rotating machines G01H1/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 3/00 Registering or indicating the condition or the working of machines or other apparatus, other than vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers

Abstract

A method and a surveillance system for surveilling the state of work machines including the steps of the making available sensors for detecting the operating state of the work machines; the making available of a first work machine specific databank with construction data; the making available of a second work machine specific databank with evaluation specific reference data; and analyzing of the measured values of the sensors regarding possible faults of a work machine using the first and the second databank. If the analysis of the measured values indicates a fault in the work machine, then a presentation of information to an operator is accomplished regarding the presence of a possible fault and the determined fault location. Inputs of the operator are received regarding faults that are found by him. The measured values and/or of analyzed results derived from them and of operator inputs are transmitted to a central damage databank and the central damage databank is updated. The second databank is updated based on the updated damage databank.

Claims

1. A method for surveilling the state of work machines, comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of work machines including a first work machine;

positioning a plurality of sensors in each of said plurality of work machines for detecting operating states of each of said work machines, including the detection of at least one of noises and vibrations produced by movable elements of each said work machine;

providing a first work machine specific databank with construction data for each of said plurality of work machines;

associating a second work machine specific databank having evaluation specific reference data with each of said work machines;

detecting measured values from at least one of said plurality of sensors in said first work machine;

analyzing said measured values regarding possible faults of said first work machine using said first databank and said second databank;

depending on said analyzing step if said measured values indicate a fault in said first work machine then executing the step of outputting of information to an operator regarding the presence of a possible fault and a determined fault location;

providing an input device to receive inputs of the operator regarding any fault of said first work machine that is found by the operator;

transmitting data containing at least one of said measured values, analyzed results derived from said measured results and operator inputs to a central damage databank, and updating of said central damage databank using said data; and

updating of said second databank based on data in said central damage databank.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

inputting information regarding carrying out of a repair of said first work machine in one of said first databank and said second databank; and

analyzing measured values of said sensors.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of updating said first work machine specific databank after carrying out of at least one of a repair and a modification of said first work machine.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said transmitting step takes place intermittently.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein in said transmitting step takes place upon a servicing of said first work machine in a workshop.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said second databank contains information about the frequency with which a fault type was found in the past, and upon the occurrence of a fault for which similar measured values with different causes are present, the fault type that has the greater frequency is indicated to the operator.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein a fault course is only input into said central damage databank if the fault course occurrence number exceeds a threshold value.

8. A surveillance system for surveilling the state of work machines, arranged to be carried out by a surveillance method of:

providing a plurality of work machines including a first work machine;

positioning a plurality of sensors in each of said plurality of work machines for detecting operating states of each of said work machines, including the detection of at least one of noises and vibrations produced by movable elements of each said work machine;

providing a first work machine specific databank with construction data for each of said plurality of work machines;

associating a second work machine specific databank having evaluation specific reference data with each of said work machines;

detecting measured values from at least one of said plurality of sensors in said first work machine;

analyzing said measured values regarding possible faults of said first work machine using said first databank and said second databank;

depending on said analyzing step if said measured values indicate a fault in said first work machine then executing the step of outputting of information to an operator regarding the presence of a possible fault and a determined fault location;

providing an input device to receive inputs of the operator regarding any fault of said first work machine that is found by the operator;

transmitting data containing at least one of said measured values, analyzed results derived from said measured results and operator inputs to a central damage databank, and updating of said central damage databank using said data; and

updating of said second databank based on data in said central damage databank.

9. An agricultural work machine system, comprising:

a frame;

a plurality of devices coupled to said frame, said plurality of devices including movable elements;

a plurality of sensors associated with said plurality of devices for detecting operating states of the agricultural work machine, including the detection of at least one of noises and vibrations produced by said movable elements;

an input device to receive inputs of an operator regarding any fault of the agricultural work machine that is found by the operator;

a data storage computing device containing a first work machine specific databank with construction data for the agricultural work machine and a second work machine specific databank having evaluation specific reference data, said data storage computing device executing the steps of;

detecting measured values from at least one of said plurality of sensors;

analyzing said measured values regarding possible faults of the agricultural work machine using said first databank and said second databank;

depending on said analyzing step if said measured values indicate a fault in the agricultural work machine then executing the step of outputting of information to the operator regarding the presence of a possible fault and a determined fault location;

transmitting data containing at least one of said measured values, analyzed results derived from said measured results and operator inputs to a central damage databank, and updating of said central damage databank using said data; and

updating of said second databank based on data in said central damage databank.

10. The agricultural work machine system of claim 9, wherein the agricultural work machine is a harvesting machine.