Vehicle diagnosis system and method
First Claim
1. A vehicle diagnosis system for determining one or more actual vehicle faults, said system comprising:
- a data storage medium having a sortable list of probable component faults for vehicle systems of multiple vehicles organized by vehicle year, make and model;
a diagnostic program linked to the data storage medium that generates probable component faults from the sortable list based on a particular vehicle year, make and model;
an interface having data fields adapted to receive information from a user that relates to fault information retrieved from a vehicle, vehicle fault information provided by a vehicle owner as well as year, make and model information;
data output including probable component faults;
an assistance program that allows information entered by a user to be observed by a third party for the purpose of assisting the user to diagnose an actual vehicle fault; and
a tracking program that updates the probability associated with each probable component fault based on information provided by the user.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method of diagnosing a vehicle fault includes receiving information on a vehicle from a customer regarding an actual vehicle fault and accessing data regarding the actual vehicle fault from the vehicle. A diagnostic program is initiated based on identifying vehicle information, the information received from the customer, and the data accessed from the vehicle. A specific vehicle system is selected for diagnosis and includes a particular vehicle component that may be associated with the actual vehicle fault. A list of diagnostic program results is received that defines multiple probable vehicle component faults for the specific vehicle system that may be associated with the actual vehicle fault. A determination on how to proceed with correcting the actual vehicle fault is made based on the list of diagnostic program results that define multiple probable vehicle component faults. A probable vehicle component fault is selected to evaluate whether it is the source of the actual vehicle fault.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A vehicle diagnosis system for determining one or more actual vehicle faults, said system comprising:
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a data storage medium having a sortable list of probable component faults for vehicle systems of multiple vehicles organized by vehicle year, make and model; a diagnostic program linked to the data storage medium that generates probable component faults from the sortable list based on a particular vehicle year, make and model; an interface having data fields adapted to receive information from a user that relates to fault information retrieved from a vehicle, vehicle fault information provided by a vehicle owner as well as year, make and model information; data output including probable component faults; an assistance program that allows information entered by a user to be observed by a third party for the purpose of assisting the user to diagnose an actual vehicle fault; and a tracking program that updates the probability associated with each probable component fault based on information provided by the user. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A method of diagnosing a vehicle fault comprising:
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receiving information on a vehicle from a customer regarding an actual vehicle fault; accessing data regarding the actual vehicle fault from the vehicle; initiating a diagnostic program based on identifying vehicle information, the information received from the customer, and the data accessed from the vehicle; selecting for diagnosis a specific vehicle system that includes at least one particular vehicle component that may be associated with the actual vehicle fault; receiving a list of diagnostic program results that define multiple probable vehicle component faults for the specific vehicle system that may be associated with the actual vehicle fault; making a determination on how to proceed with correcting the actual vehicle fault based on the list of diagnostic program results that define multiple probable vehicle component faults; and selecting one probable vehicle component fault from the list of diagnostic program results to evaluate whether the probable vehicle component is the source of the actual vehicle fault. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of diagnosing a vehicle fault comprising:
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obtaining vehicle system data from a vehicle data information system on a vehicle; obtaining vehicle fault information from the customer; interpreting the customer information and the vehicle data information; determining whether an actual vehicle fault can be readily detected; implementing a system diagnostic program to determine the actual vehicle fault; initiating the diagnostic program based on the vehicle information, the data obtained from the vehicle, and the information obtained from the customer; receiving prioritized diagnosis output in the form of a list of probable component faults for a vehicle system program, wherein the list is organized by likelihood of fault; selecting one probable component fault to evaluate based on the prioritized diagnosis options; validating that the vehicle system associated with the probable component fault that is being evaluated is not functioning properly; and correcting the vehicle component fault if the vehicle system associated with the vehicle component fault is not functioning properly. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification