Detecting wear through use of information-transmitting devices

• US 20060273148A1
• Filed: 06/06/2005
• Published: 12/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines SA (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines SA (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: Karstens, Christopher K.
• Granted Patent: US 7,367,496 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 11/24 Wear-indicating arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: F16D 65/12 Discs; Drums for disc brakes
• CPC Class Codes: F16D 66/021 using electrical detection or indication means

Abstract

Detecting wear through use of information-transmitting devices. At least one information-transmitting wireless device is provided for each of one or more wear positions of an item, wherein each of the devices is adapted for transmitting information to a reader, such that each of the devices can transmit information usable for detecting wear of the item as the item wears. When using a plurality of devices for a particular wear position, the devices may be stacked or placed in a depth-wise, end-to-end arrangement. As another alternative, a single device having a plurality of separable areas may be provided for each of one or more wear positions. As yet another alternative, a single device may be provided for each of one or more wear positions such that its failure to transmit indicates wear at the corresponding wear position. An information-transmitting device may become damaged or missing, due to item wear, and an RFID reader may therefore be unable to scan (i.e.., receive data from) the device.

Claims

1. A method of detecting wear through use of information-transmitting devices, comprising a step of:

providing at least one information-transmitting wireless device for each of one or more wear positions of an item, wherein each of the devices is adapted for transmitting information to a reader, such that each of the devices can transmit information usable for detecting wear of the item as the item wears.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein each of the devices is a radio-frequency identification (“

RFID”

) tag and the reader is an RFID reader.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein each of the devices is a transponder.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of devices is provided, at one or more selected ones of the wear positions, in a stacking arrangement.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the wear at each selected wear position is detected by determining which of the devices transmits the information to the reader.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein more deeply-stacked ones of the plurality of devices in the stacking arrangement correspond to an increased degree of wear.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the wear at each selected wear position is detected by determining a most-relevant one of the devices in the stacking arrangement that transmits the information to the reader.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of devices is provided, for one or more selected ones of the wear positions, in a depth-wise, end-to-end arrangement.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the wear at each selected wear position is detected by determining which of the devices transmits the information to the reader.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein at least one more-deeply-stacked one of the plurality of devices in the depth-wise, end-to-end arrangement corresponds to an increased degree of wear.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the wear at each selected wear position is detected by determining a most-relevant one of the devices in the depth-wise, end-to-end arrangement that transmits the information to the reader.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein a single device is provided for one or more selected ones of the wear positions, the single device comprising a plurality of separable areas.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the wear at each selected wear position is detected by determining which of the separable areas transmits the information to the reader.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein at least one of the separable areas corresponds to an increased degree of wear as compared to a neighboring one of the separable areas.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the wear at each selected wear position is detected by determining a most-relevant one of the separable areas that transmits the information to the reader.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein a single device is provided for one or more selected ones of the wear positions, and wherein the wear at each of the selected wear positions is detected by failure of the single device to transmit the information to the reader.

17. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of placing the reader in proximity of at least one selected one of the at least one devices, thereby causing the at least one selected device to transmit the information to the reader.

18. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of using the information transmitted to the reader to generate at least one wear-related message, the message reflecting the wear of the item as indicated by the transmitted information.

19. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of providing at least one information-transmitting wireless device for each of one or more wear positions of a second item, wherein each of the devices provided for the second item is adapted for transmitting information to the reader, such that each of the devices provided for the second item can transmit information usable for detecting wear of the second item as the second item wears.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the information transmitted by the devices provided for the item and the information transmitted by the devices provided for the second item is usable for detecting whether the item and the second item are wearing in concert at an expected rate.

21. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transmitted information for each of the wear positions comprises a percentage of wear of the item at the wear position.

22. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transmitted information for each of the wear positions comprises an amount of remaining usable material of the item at the wear position.

23. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transmitted information for each of the wear positions is usable for determining a rate of wear of the item.

24. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transmitted information for each of the wear positions is usable for determining wear patterns of the item.

25. The method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the devices are positioned such that wear is not detected if a first number of the plurality of the devices transmits the information to the reader, but is detected if at least one more than the first number of the devices transmits the information to the reader.

26. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of using the information transmitted to the reader, upon determining that the transmitted information indicates abnormal wear, to alter characteristics of the item.

27. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

a plurality of devices is provided, for one or more selected ones of the wear positions, in a depth-wise, end-to-end arrangement; and

at least one more-deeply-stacked one of the plurality of devices in the depth-wise, end-to-end arrangement corresponds to a decreased amount of remaining usable material of the item at the wear position.

28. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

at least one of the devices provided for a particular wear position functions as a base tag; and

at least one corresponding device is provided, for the device functioning as a base tag, wherein each of the at least one corresponding devices functions as a child tag of the base tag for the particular wear position.

29. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the devices provided for a particular wear position comprises a plurality of separable areas, wear-related information from each of the separable areas being reportable by the device as the device transmits the information to the reader.

30. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the devices provided for a particular wear position is positioned independently of the item.

31. A system for detecting wear through use of information-transmitting devices, comprising:

at least one information-transmitting wireless device provided for each of one or more wear positions of an item, wherein each of the devices is adapted for transmitting information to a reader, such that each of the devices can transmit information usable for detecting wear of the item as the item wears.

32. The system according to claim 31, wherein at least one of the information-transmitting devices is attached to the item.

33. A computer program product for detecting wear through use of information-transmitting devices, the computer program product comprising computer-readable code embodied on one or more computer-usable media, the computer-readable code comprising instructions that when executed on a computer cause the computer to:

detect wear-related information from at least one information-transmitting wireless device provided for each of one or more wear positions of an item, each of the devices adapted for transmitting wear-related information to a reader; and

use the wear-related information for detecting wear of the item.

34. The computer program product according to claim 33, wherein at least one of the information-transmitting devices is embedded in the item.