Service providing method and system

• US 6,754,570 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2002
• Issued: 06/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Iihoshi, Akira, Kameoka, Yuji
• Primary Examiner(s): Marc-Coleman, Marthe Y.
• Application Number:
  US10/207,875
• Publication Number:
  US 20030028297A1
• Time in Patent Office: 692 Days
• Field of Search: 701/33, 701/29, 701/35, 340/438
• US Class Current: 701/33
• 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 vehicle 2 performs fault diagnosis of the vehicle and calculation of the service life of parts using information obtained from sensors and control units, and when the necessity for repair work of the vehicle arises, makes a repair request to an information center 1. The information center 1 having received the repair request notifies terminals of outlets 4 of the repair request, to request the outlets 4 to transmit a service condition of their shop. The outlets 4 transmit the service conditions of the shop to the information center 1, in response to the repair request. The information center 1 relays the received service condition of each outlet 4 to the user, so that the user can select a desired service condition. The information center 1 then transmits contract completion information to the outlet 4 having proposed the service condition selected by the user, to mediate an agreement between the user and the outlet 4.

Claims

1. A service providing method using a service control system;

said service control system comprising;

a determination apparatus which is mounted on a vehicle and determines a condition of repair parts;

an information center which controls determination information output from the determination apparatus;

outlets which manage stock of the repair parts and a repair work of the vehicle; and

a communication network which connects the vehicle, the outlets and the information center,

the service providing method comprising the steps of;

transmission processing in which the determination information is transmitted from the determination apparatus to the information center;

service condition selection processing in which service conditions related to the outlets transmitted from the information center are offered to an administrator of the vehicle in response to the transmission of the determination information so as to allow the administrator to select a desired service condition from the service conditions;

service condition notification processing in which the desired service condition selected by the administrator is transmitted to the information center; and

service confirmation processing in which the outlet corresponding to the desired service condition or the information center transmits confirmation information with respect to the desired service condition to the administrator.

2. The service providing method according to claim 1, wherein the information center comprises a server, the vehicle comprises a client terminal including the determination apparatus, the outlets respectively comprise client terminals, and the server, the client terminal of the vehicle, and the client terminals of the outlets are connected by the communication network so as to construct a Point of Sale (POS).

3. The service providing method according to claim 1, wherein the determination apparatus performs fault diagnosis of the vehicle and calculation of service life of parts of the vehicle using information obtained from sensors and control units mounted on the vehicle so as to obtain the determination information, and transmits the determination information to the information center at predetermined intervals.

4. The service providing method according to claim 3, wherein the information center performs prediction of demands for parts based on the fault diagnosis of the vehicle and the calculation result for the service life of parts, and informs results of the prediction of demands to a component facility which supplies parts to the outlets.

5. The service providing method according to claim 1, wherein the information center comprises a customer database storing information related to the administrator, a parts control database storing information related to parts for at least one model of a plurality of vehicles, and an outlet database storing information related to the outlets, the information center selects at least one of the outlets based on the determination information and information stored in the databases.

6. A service providing method using a service control system;

said service control system comprising;

a determination apparatus which is mounted on a vehicle and determines the a condition of repair parts;

an information center which controls determination information output from the determination apparatus;

outlets which manage stock of the repair parts and a repair work of the vehicle; and

a communication network which connects the vehicle, the outlets and the information center,

the service providing method comprising the steps of;

transmission processing in which the determination information from determination apparatus and identification information of the vehicle are transmitted from the vehicle to the information center;

outlet selection processing in which at least one outlet capable of providing repair work correspond to the determination information for an administrator of the vehicle corresponding to the identification information is selected;

service information providing processing in which a repair request for the vehicle is transmitted to selected outlets;

service condition relay processing in which the information center receives service conditions of the selected outlets transmitted from the selected outlets in response to the transmission of the repair request, and transmits the service conditions to the administrator so as to allow the administrator to select a desired outlet; and

service mediation processing in which contract completion information for the repair work is transmitted to the desired outlet.

7. The service providing method according to claim 6, wherein the information center transmits a notification of replacement time for parts and sales information of recommended parts to the vehicle, and, when the vehicle has received the notification, the vehicle transmits a repair request for parts together with a vehicle number of the vehicle to the information center.

8. The service providing method according to claim 6, wherein the information center comprises a server, the vehicle comprises a client terminal including the determination apparatus, the outlets respectively comprise client terminals, and the server, the client terminal of the vehicle, and the client terminals of the outlets are connected by the communication network so as to construct a Point of Sale (POS).

9. The service providing method according to claim 6, wherein the determination apparatus performs fault diagnosis of the vehicle and calculation of service life of parts of the vehicle using information obtained from sensors and control units mounted on the vehicle so as to obtain the determination information, and transmits the determination information to the information center at predetermined intervals.

10. The service providing method according to claim 9, wherein the information center performs prediction of demands for parts based on the fault diagnosis of the vehicle and the calculation result for the service life of parts, and informs results of the prediction of demands to a component facility which supplies parts to the outlets.

11. The service providing method according to claim 6, wherein the information center comprises a customer database storing information related to the administrator, a parts control database storing information related to parts for at least one model of a plurality of vehicles, and an outlet database storing information related to the outlets, and the information center selects at least one of the outlets based on the determination information and information stored in the databases.

12. A service providing method using a service control system which comprises vehicles, outlets, an information center, and a communication network which connects the vehicles, the outlets, and the information center,

the service providing method comprising the steps of:

transmitting, from one of the vehicles to the information center, determination information regarding result of fault diagnosis of the vehicle or calculation result of service life of parts in the vehicle;

transmitting repair parts information regarding repair parts corresponding to the determination information from the information center to the vehicle;

transmitting a repair request input in response to the repair parts information from the vehicle to the information center;

transmitting service condition information regarding service conditions of the outlets corresponding to the repair request from the information center to the vehicle;

transmitting a selected service condition selected from the service conditions in the vehicle, from the vehicle to the information center; and

transmitting confirmation information which is issued by at least one of the information center and the selected outlets corresponding to the selected service condition to the vehicle.

13. A service providing system comprising vehicles, outlets, an information center, and a communication network which connects the vehicles, the outlets, and the information center,

each of the vehicles transmitting, to the information center, determination information regarding result of fault diagnosis of the vehicle or calculation result of service life of parts in the vehicle;

the vehicle receiving repair parts information regarding repair parts corresponding to the determination information from the information center;

the vehicle transmitting a repair request input in response to the repair parts information to the information center;

the vehicle receiving service condition information regarding service conditions of the outlets corresponding to the repair request from the information center;

the vehicle transmitting a selected service condition selected from the service conditions to the information center; and

the vehicle receiving confirmation information which is issued by at least one of the information center and the selected outlets corresponding to the selected service condition.