DETECTION OF VEHICLE OPERATION UNDER ADVERSE CONDITIONS

• US 20100087985A1
• Filed: 10/06/2008
• Published: 04/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Boss, Gregory J., Finn, Peter G., Hamilton, Rick A. II, O'Connell, Brian M., Seaman, James W., Walker, Keith R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,140,213 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/35
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0816 Indicating performance data, e.g. occurrence of a malfunction
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers

Abstract

Details relating to the operation of a vehicle under adverse conditions are recorded and collected. This data is particularly useful to forestall catastrophic failures, and to provide valuable information for potential buyers of used vehicles. Among the operating conditions that are considered are high levels of air contaminants, operation in extreme hot or cold temperatures, hauling heavy loads, as well as hard braking, turning and acceleration. In addition to the detection and recording of data, prorated maintenance schedules are recalculated and adjusted to accommodate for the operation of the vehicle under these adverse or less than ideal conditions. Typically, the data is stored in the on-board computers present in most vehicles. Periodic off loading of the data to the dealer and service providers is also provided.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring the operation of a vehicle under adverse conditions, comprising:

a detection sensor installed on or in association with a vehicle component, or an operating fluid, that may be subject to use or abuse under an adverse operating condition;

means for transmitting a signal from said sensor to a receiver upon detection of such use or abuse; and

a circuit module for determining whether the adverse operating condition is outside of an acceptable range.

2. The system according to claim 1 wherein said detection sensor monitors one or more of the following detectable adverse conditions:

High levels of contaminants;

Vehicle operation in extreme temperatures (hot or cold);

Strenuous driving patterns, such as mountain driving or city driving;

Towing and hauling loads, such as a trailer or a boat;

Hard braking;

Hard acceleration;

Loss of liquid or gaseous fluids; and

Under inflation or over inflation of tires.

3. The system according to claim 2 wherein the adverse condition is the presence of high levels of particulate matter in the air entering an air filter, and the sensor is installed upstream from the air filter to measure the amount of particulate contamination in the air.

4. The system according to claim 3 including an air diverter upstream from the air filter that is activated at predetermined intervals to sample the incoming air.

5. The system according to claim 1 wherein the adverse condition is the property of a vehicle operating fluid selected from among a group consisting of brake fluid, coolant, motor oil, transmission fluid, differential fluid, and tire air pressure.

6. The system according to claim 5 wherein the vehicle operating fluid is brake fluid, and the sensor is capable of detecting and reporting the percent of water contamination in the fluid.

7. The system according to claim 1 wherein the adverse condition is the ambient temperature of the air outside of the vehicle, and the sensor is able to detect and report operation of the vehicle at ambient temperatures above or below preset acceptable thresholds.

8. The system according to claim 1 wherein the sensor includes a driving pattern recognition module capable of detecting one or more of the following driving patterns:

stop and go driving;

short trips;

hard acceleration;

hard stops and excessive periods of idling.

9. The system according to claim 1 further including means for transmitting data corresponding to the signal from the receiver to a computer system for subsequent handling of the information relating to possible abusive operation of the vehicle.

10. The system according to claim 9 further including a reporting module for aggregating and publishing adverse operating conditions.

11. A method of monitoring the operation of a vehicle under adverse conditions comprising the steps of:

installing a detection sensor on or in connection with a vehicle component or an operating fluid that may be subject to use or abuse under adverse operating conditions;

installing means for transmitting a signal from the sensor;

installing an integrated circuit module for receiving a signal from the sensor reporting the adverse operating conditions that are outside of an acceptable range; and

detecting and signaling an occurrence of an adverse condition relating to the operation of the vehicle.

12. The method according to claim 11 wherein the detection sensor monitors one of the following detectable adverse conditions:

High levels of air contaminants

Vehicle operation in extreme temperatures (hot or cold)

Strenuous driving patterns, such as mountain driving or city driving;

Towing and hauling loads, such as a trailer or a boat;

Hard braking

Hard acceleration

Under inflation or over inflation of tires.

13. The method according to claim 12 wherein the adverse condition is the presence of high levels of particulate matter in the air entering an air filter, and the sensor is installed upstream from the air filter to measure the amount of particulate contamination in the air.

14. The method according to claim 13 wherein an air diverter upstream from the air filter is activated at predetermined intervals to sample the incoming air.

15. The method according to claim 12 wherein the adverse condition is the property of a vehicle operating fluid selected from among a group consisting of brake fluid, coolant, motor oil, transmission fluid and differential fluid.

16. The method according to claim 15 wherein the vehicle operating fluid is brake fluid, and the sensor detects and reports the percent of water contamination in the fluid.

17. The method according to claim 12 wherein the adverse condition is the temperature of the air outside of the vehicle, and the sensor detects and reports temperatures outside of preset acceptable thresholds.

18. The method according to claim 11 wherein the sensor comprises a driving pattern recognition module capable of detecting any of the following diving patterns:

stop and go driving;

short trips;

hard acceleration;

hard stops and excessive idling.

19. The method according to claim 11 further including the step of transmitting data corresponding to the signal to a computer system for subsequent handling of the information relating to the possible abusive operation of the vehicle.

20. The method according to claim 19 further providing a reporting module for aggregating and publishing adverse operating conditions.

21. A method, comprising:

producing computer executable program code;

storing the code in a computer readable medium installed on a motor vehicle; and

providing the program code to be deployed and executed on a computer system;

the program code comprising instructions which, when executed on the computer system, causes the computer system to;

read input obtained from a detector associated with the motor vehicle relative to the occurrence of a condition determined to be a potential adverse operating condition of the vehicle;

transfer data from said detector to said computer system;

make adjustments in the maintenance schedule with respect to said condition; and

store the updated schedule in database storage.

22. The method according to claim 21 wherein the program code causes the input noted by the detector relating to the adverse condition to be converted into a data stream that can be read by the computer system.

23. The method according to claim 22 wherein the program code causes a service logic module within the computer system to update the vehicle maintenance record with respect to the data transmitted to the computer.

24. The method according to claim 22 wherein the program code causes a notification module to transmit a message with respect to the updated record.

25. A method for deploying an application for detecting the operation of a motor vehicle under adverse driving conditions, comprising providing a computer system being operable to:

receive information indicative of an adverse operating condition of the vehicle;

generate data indicative of the adverse condition, including its nature and extent; and

store the data indicative of the adverse operating condition.