Methods and Systems for Providing a Vehicle Repair Tip

• US 20170132854A1
• Filed: 11/11/2015
• Published: 05/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/11/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Snap-On Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Snap-On Incorporated
• Inventors: Merg, Patrick S., Foreman, Jacob G.
• Granted Patent: US 9,665,994 B1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2205/02 using a vehicle scan tool
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/02 Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/08 Registering or indicating performance data other than driving, working, idle, or waiting time, with or without registering driving, working, idle or waiting time
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005
• 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

Abstract

A method performed by a first computing system includes receiving, from a second computing system, a message identifying a symptom of a first vehicle; and sending a repair tip to the second computing system. The repair tip includes a first phrase describing a first procedure performed on a second vehicle that exhibited the symptom, wherein the first procedure performed on the second vehicle yielded a result insufficient to determine that a component of the second vehicle associated with the symptom is defective. The repair tip also includes a second phrase describing a second procedure performed on a given vehicle, wherein the given vehicle is either (i) the second vehicle or (ii) a third vehicle that also exhibited the symptom, wherein the second procedure performed on the given vehicle yielded a result sufficient to determine that a component of the given vehicle associated with the symptom is defective.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a first computing system, cause the first computing system to perform functions comprising:

receiving, from a second computing system, a message identifying a symptom of a first vehicle; and

sending a repair tip to the second computing system, wherein the repair tip comprises;

a first phrase describing a first procedure performed on a second vehicle that exhibited the symptom, wherein the first procedure performed on the second vehicle yielded a result insufficient to determine that a component of the second vehicle associated with the symptom is defective; and

a second phrase describing a second procedure performed on a given vehicle, wherein the given vehicle is either (i) the second vehicle or (ii) a third vehicle that also exhibited the symptom, wherein the second procedure performed on the given vehicle yielded a result sufficient to determine that a component of the given vehicle associated with the symptom is defective, and wherein the component of the given vehicle is equivalent to the component of the second vehicle.

2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, the functions further comprising:

generating the repair tip by generating (i) the first phrase and (ii) the second phrase,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the generated first phrase and the generated second phrase to the second computing system.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 2, the functions further comprising:

identifying first data that (i) is stored by the first computing system and (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the second vehicle, wherein generating the first phrase comprises inserting the first data into a first phrase template stored by the first computing system; and

identifying second data that (i) is stored by the first computing system and (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the given vehicle, wherein generating the second phrase comprises inserting the second data into a second phrase template stored by the first computing system.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 3,

wherein identifying the first data comprises determining that the first data corresponds to a given data field of the first phrase template, and

wherein inserting the first data into the first phrase template comprises inserting the first data into the given data field of the first phrase template.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 3,

wherein the first data comprises data identifying one or more of (i) the component of the second vehicle, (ii) the first procedure, (iii) the result yielded by the first procedure performed on the second vehicle, and (iv) a tool used to perform the first procedure.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 1,

determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure;

based on determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure, identifying third data that (i) is stored by the first computing system, (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the first vehicle, and (iii) is associated with a visual inspection procedure; and

generating a third phrase by inserting the third data into a third phrase template stored by the first computing system,

wherein sending the repair tip comprises sending the generated third phrase to the second computing system.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 1,

determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure,

wherein identifying the first data comprises identifying data that is associated with a visual inspection procedure.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the message identifies at least one of a make, a model, or a year of manufacture of the first vehicle, the functions further comprising:

identifying first data stored by the first computing system that is associated with at least one of (i) the make, the model, or the year of manufacture of the second vehicle, (ii) the symptom of the second vehicle, and (iii) the first procedure; and

determining that the first data corresponds to at least a predetermined amount of repair records stored by the first computing system,

wherein the first phrase includes the first data.

21. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, the functions further comprising:

identifying a first plurality of phrases stored by the first computing system that each (i) are associated with the symptom and the component of the second vehicle, (ii) convey information equivalent to information conveyed by each of the other phrases of the first plurality, and (iii) include syntax that differs from all other phrases of the first plurality;

selecting the first phrase from the first plurality;

identifying a second plurality of phrases stored by the first computing system that each (i) are associated with the symptom and the component of the given vehicle, (ii) convey information equivalent to information conveyed by each of the other phrases of the second plurality, and (iii) include syntax that differs from all other phrases of the second plurality; and

selecting the second phrase from the second plurality,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the selected first phrase and the selected second phrase.

22. The computer-readable medium of claim 21, the functions further comprising:

determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure; and

wherein selecting the first phrase comprises selecting the first phrase based on determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure, wherein the first procedure described by the first phrase is a procedure that includes visual inspection of the component of the second vehicle.

23. The computer-readable medium of claim 21, the functions further comprising:

determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure;

based on determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure,

selecting a third phrase stored by the first computing system that is (i) associated with the symptom and the component of the first vehicle and (ii) describes a visual inspection procedure,

wherein sending the repair tip comprises sending the third phrase to the second computing system.

26. The computer-readable medium of claim 21, the functions further comprising:

determining that the first phrase was a least recently selected phrase of any of the first plurality of phrases,

wherein selecting the first phrase comprises selecting the first phrase based on determining that the first phrase was the least recently selected phrase of any of the first plurality of phrases.

30. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the message identifies at least one of a make, a model, or a year of manufacture of the first vehicle, the functions further comprising:

identifying a first plurality of phrases stored by the first computing system that are each associated with at least one of the make, the model, or the year of manufacture of the first vehicle and the symptom of the first vehicle, wherein the first plurality of phrases includes the first phrase; and

determining that the first phrase corresponds to at least a predetermined amount of repair records stored by the first computing system,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the first phrase based on determining that the first phrase corresponds to at least the predetermined amount of repair records stored by the first computing system.

31. The computer-readable medium of claim 30, wherein the first plurality of phrases describe respective procedures performed on respective vehicles that yielded a result insufficient to determine that a component of the respective vehicle associated with the symptom is defective.

4-12. -12. (canceled)

15-16. -16. (canceled)

20. (canceled)

24-25. -25. (canceled)

27-29. -29. (canceled)

32-34. -34. (canceled)

35. A method performed by a first computing system, the method comprising:

receiving, from a second computing system, a message identifying a symptom of a first vehicle; and

sending a repair tip to the second computing system, wherein the repair tip comprises;

a first phrase describing a first procedure performed on a second vehicle that exhibited the symptom, wherein the first procedure performed on the second vehicle yielded a result insufficient to determine that a component of the second vehicle associated with the symptom is defective; and

a second phrase describing a second procedure performed on a given vehicle, wherein the given vehicle is either (i) the second vehicle or (ii) a third vehicle that also exhibited the symptom, wherein the second procedure performed on the given vehicle yielded a result sufficient to determine that a component of the given vehicle associated with the symptom is defective, and wherein the component of the given vehicle is equivalent to the component of the second vehicle.

36. The method of claim 35, further comprising:

generating the repair tip by generating (i) the first phrase and (ii) the second phrase,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the generated first phrase and the generated second phrase to the second computing system.

37. The method of claim 36, further comprising:

identifying first data that (i) is stored by the first computing system and (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the second vehicle, wherein generating the first phrase comprises inserting the first data into a first phrase template stored by the first computing system; and

identifying second data that (i) is stored by the first computing system and (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the given vehicle, wherein generating the second phrase comprises inserting the second data into a second phrase template stored by the first computing system.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the message identifies at least one of a make, a model, or a year of manufacture of the first vehicle.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein identifying the first data comprises identifying data that is associated with at least one of the make, the model, or the year of manufacture of the first vehicle.

41. The method of claim 37, further comprising, prior to generating the first phrase, selecting the first phrase template from a plurality of phrase templates stored by the first computing system.

42. The method of claim 41, further comprising:

determining that the first phrase template was a least recently selected phrase template of any of the plurality of phrase templates,

wherein selecting the first phrase template comprises selecting the first phrase template based on determining that the first phrase template was the least recently selected phrase template of any of the plurality of phrase templates.

51. The method of claim 35, further comprising:

determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure;

based on determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure, identifying third data that (i) is stored by the first computing system, (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the first vehicle, and (iii) is associated with a visual inspection procedure; and

generating a third phrase by inserting the third data into a third phrase template stored by the first computing system,

wherein sending the repair tip comprises sending the generated third phrase to the second computing system.

52. The method of claim 35, further comprising:

determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure,

wherein identifying the first data comprises identifying data that is associated with a visual inspection procedure.

53. The method of claim 35, wherein the message identifies at least one of a make, a model, or a year of manufacture of the first vehicle, the method further comprising:

identifying first data stored by the first computing system that is associated with (i) the at least one of the make, the model, or the year of manufacture of the second vehicle, (ii) the symptom of the second vehicle, and (iii) the first procedure; and

determining that the first data corresponds to at least a predetermined amount of repair records stored by the first computing system,

wherein the first phrase includes the first data.

55. The method of claim 35, further comprising:

identifying a first plurality of phrases stored by the first computing system that each (i) are associated with the symptom and the component of the second vehicle, (ii) convey information equivalent to information conveyed by each of the other phrases of the first plurality, and (iii) include syntax that differs from all other phrases of the first plurality;

selecting the first phrase from the first plurality;

identifying a second plurality of phrases stored by the first computing system that each (i) are associated with the symptom and the component of the given vehicle, (ii) convey information equivalent to information conveyed by each of the other phrases of the second plurality, and (iii) include syntax that differs from all other phrases of the second plurality; and

selecting the second phrase from the second plurality,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the selected first phrase and the selected second phrase.

56. The method of claim 55, further comprising:

determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure; and

wherein selecting the first phrase comprises selecting the first phrase based on determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure, wherein the first procedure described by the first phrase is a procedure that includes visual inspection of the component of the second vehicle.

57. The method of claim 55, further comprising:

determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure;

based on determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure,

selecting a third phrase stored by the first computing system that is (i) associated with the symptom and the component of the first vehicle and (ii) describes a visual inspection procedure,

wherein sending the repair tip comprises sending the third phrase to the second computing system.

64. The method of claim 35, wherein the message identifies at least one of a make, a model, or a year of manufacture of the first vehicle, the method further comprising:

identifying a first plurality of phrases stored by the first computing system that are each associated with the at least one of the make, the model, or the year of manufacture of the first vehicle and the symptom of the first vehicle, wherein the first plurality of phrases includes the first phrase; and

determining that the first phrase corresponds to at least a predetermined amount of repair records stored by the first computing system,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the first phrase based on determining that the first phrase corresponds to at least the predetermined amount of repair records stored by the first computing system.

40. (canceled)

43-50. -50. (canceled)

54. (canceled)

58-63. -63. (canceled)

65-67. -67. (canceled)

68. A computing system comprising:

one or more processors; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, that when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing system to perform functions comprising;

receiving, from an additional computing system, a message identifying a symptom of a first vehicle; and

sending a repair tip to the second computing system, wherein the repair tip comprises;

a first phrase describing a first procedure performed on a second vehicle that exhibited the symptom, wherein the first procedure performed on the second vehicle yielded a result insufficient to determine that a component of the second vehicle associated with the symptom is defective; and

a second phrase describing a second procedure performed on a given vehicle, wherein the given vehicle is either (i) the second vehicle or (ii) a third vehicle that also exhibited the symptom, wherein the second procedure performed on the given vehicle yielded a result sufficient to determine that a component of the given vehicle associated with the symptom is defective, and wherein the component of the given vehicle is equivalent to the component of the second vehicle.

69. The computing system of claim 68, the functions further comprising:

generating the repair tip by generating (i) the first phrase and (ii) the second phrase,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the generated first phrase and the generated second phrase to the second computing system.

70. The computing system of claim 69, the functions further comprising:

identifying first data that (i) is stored by the computing system and (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the second vehicle, wherein generating the first phrase comprises inserting the first data into a first phrase template stored by the computing system; and

identifying second data that (i) is stored by the computing system and (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the given vehicle, wherein generating the second phrase comprises inserting the second data into a second phrase template stored by the computing system.

80. The computing system of claim 70,

wherein identifying the first data comprises determining that the first data corresponds to a given data field of the first phrase template, and

wherein inserting the first data into the first phrase template comprises inserting the first data into the given data field of the first phrase template.

81. The computing system of claim 70,

wherein the first data comprises data identifying one or more of (i) the component of the second vehicle, (ii) the first procedure, (iii) the result yielded by the first procedure performed on the second vehicle, and (iv) a tool used to perform the first procedure.

84. The computing system of claim 68, the functions further comprising:

determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure;

based on determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure, identifying third data that (i) is stored by the computing system, (ii) is associated with the symptom and the component of the first vehicle, and (iii) is associated with a visual inspection procedure; and

generating a third phrase by inserting the third data into a third phrase template stored by the computing system,

wherein sending the repair tip comprises sending the generated third phrase to the second computing system.

85. The computing system of claim 68, the functions further comprising:

determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure,

wherein identifying the first data comprises identifying data that is associated with a visual inspection procedure.

86. The computing system of claim 68, wherein the message identifies at least one of a make, a model, or a year of manufacture of the first vehicle, the functions further comprising:

identifying first data stored by the computing system that is associated with (i) the at least one of the make, the model, or the year of manufacture of the second vehicle, (ii) the symptom of the second vehicle, and (iii) the first procedure; and

determining that the first data corresponds to at least a predetermined amount of repair records stored by the computing system,

wherein the first phrase includes the first data.

88. The computing system of claim 68, the functions further comprising:

identifying a first plurality of phrases stored by the computing system that each (i) are associated with the symptom and the component of the second vehicle, (ii) convey information equivalent to information conveyed by each of the other phrases of the first plurality, and (iii) include syntax that differs from all other phrases of the first plurality;

selecting the first phrase from the first plurality;

identifying a second plurality of phrases stored by the computing system that each (i) are associated with the symptom and the component of the given vehicle, (ii) convey information equivalent to information conveyed by each of the other phrases of the second plurality, and (iii) include syntax that differs from all other phrases of the second plurality; and

selecting the second phrase from the second plurality,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the selected first phrase and the selected second phrase.

89. The computing system of claim 88, the functions further comprising:

determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure; and

wherein selecting the first phrase comprises selecting the first phrase based on determining that the second procedure is not a visual inspection procedure, wherein the first procedure described by the first phrase is a procedure that includes visual inspection of the component of the second vehicle.

90. The computing system of claim 88, the functions further comprising:

determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure;

based on determining that neither the first procedure nor the second procedure is a visual inspection procedure,

selecting a third phrase stored by the computing system that is (i) associated with the symptom and the component of the first vehicle and (ii) describes a visual inspection procedure,

wherein sending the repair tip comprises sending the third phrase to the second computing system.

93. The computing system of claim 88, the functions further comprising:

determining that the first phrase was a least recently selected phrase of any of the first plurality of phrases,

wherein selecting the first phrase comprises selecting the first phrase based on determining that the first phrase was the least recently selected phrase of any of the first plurality of phrases.

97. The computing system of claim 68, wherein the message identifies at least one of a make, a model, or a year of manufacture of the first vehicle, the functions further comprising:

identifying a first plurality of phrases stored by the computing system that are each associated with the at least one of the make, the model, or the year of manufacture of the first vehicle and the symptom of the first vehicle, wherein the first plurality of phrases includes the first phrase; and

determining that the first phrase corresponds to at least a predetermined amount of repair records stored by the computing system,

wherein sending the repair tip to the second computing system comprises sending the first phrase based on determining that the first phrase corresponds to at least the predetermined amount of repair records stored by the computing system.

98. The computing system of claim 97, wherein the first plurality of phrases describe respective procedures performed on respective vehicles that yielded a result insufficient to determine that a component of the respective vehicle associated with the symptom is defective.

71-79. -79. (canceled)

82-83. -83. (canceled)

87. (canceled)

91-92. -92. (canceled)

94-96. -96. (canceled)

99-100. -100. (canceled)