Operator alerting system using a vehicle fault condition prioritization method
First Claim
1. A method for alerting an operator of a vehicle to a highest priority vehicle fault condition of a plurality of vehicle fault conditions, the method comprising:
- detecting a plurality of operating conditions of the vehicle;
comparing each of the detected operating conditions of the vehicle to a corresponding predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of operating conditions;
detecting more than one vehicle fault condition when the comparison between each of the detected operating conditions of the vehicle and the corresponding predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of operating conditions results in more than one vehicle operating condition exceeding its predetermined threshold; and
identifying a priority level for each of the detected vehicle fault conditions when more than one vehicle fault condition is detected;
wherein each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions has a predetermined operator action associated therewith;
wherein the priority level for each of the plurality of detected vehicle fault conditions is designated based on the predetermined operator action associated with each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions; and
wherein, when more than one vehicle fault condition is detected, the operator action that is associated with the detected vehicle fault condition having the highest priority among the plurality of detected vehicle fault conditions is the only operator action output to the operator of the vehicle.
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Accused Products
Abstract
In a system for alerting an operator of a vehicle to a highest priority fault condition, the operating conditions of the vehicle are obtained and compared to predetermined values in order to identify the fault conditions of the vehicle. Each of the fault conditions of the vehicle has a corresponding operator action associated therewith which identifies the actions that must be performed by the operator in order to manage the fault condition. By prioritizing the fault conditions on the basis of the operator actions that are necessary to manage the faults, the system is able to output to the operator only the operator action associated with the highest priority fault condition, without any compromise in safety or additional risk of damage to the vehicle, while providing the ability for the operator of the vehicle to manage all of the active fault conditions by performing only the operator action associated with the highest priority fault condition.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A method for alerting an operator of a vehicle to a highest priority vehicle fault condition of a plurality of vehicle fault conditions, the method comprising:
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detecting a plurality of operating conditions of the vehicle; comparing each of the detected operating conditions of the vehicle to a corresponding predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of operating conditions; detecting more than one vehicle fault condition when the comparison between each of the detected operating conditions of the vehicle and the corresponding predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of operating conditions results in more than one vehicle operating condition exceeding its predetermined threshold; and identifying a priority level for each of the detected vehicle fault conditions when more than one vehicle fault condition is detected; wherein each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions has a predetermined operator action associated therewith; wherein the priority level for each of the plurality of detected vehicle fault conditions is designated based on the predetermined operator action associated with each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions; and wherein, when more than one vehicle fault condition is detected, the operator action that is associated with the detected vehicle fault condition having the highest priority among the plurality of detected vehicle fault conditions is the only operator action output to the operator of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method for prioritizing fault conditions of a vehicle, the method comprising:
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identifying a plurality of vehicle fault conditions that can be sensed based on operating conditions of the vehicle; associating, with each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions, a required operator action that is necessary to manage the corresponding vehicle fault condition; and prioritizing the plurality of vehicle fault conditions based on the required operator action associated with each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions; wherein said identifying the plurality of fault conditions comprises; identifying a first fault condition of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions, the first vehicle fault condition having a first operator action associated therewith, wherein the first operator action includes one or more actions that are necessary to be performed by the operator in order to manage the first vehicle fault condition; and identifying a second fault condition of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions, the second fault condition having a second operator action associated therewith, wherein the second operator action includes one or more actions that are necessary to be performed by the operator in order manage the second vehicle fault condition; and wherein said prioritizing the plurality of vehicle fault conditions comprises comparing the one or more actions of the first operator action associated with the first vehicle fault condition to the one or more actions of the second operator action associated with the second vehicle fault condition. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A system for alerting an operator of a vehicle to a highest priority vehicle fault condition of a plurality of vehicle fault conditions, the system comprising:
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a controller operable to receive information regarding a plurality of operating conditions of the vehicle from one or more sensors; a memory table for storing data regarding a predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of operating conditions of the vehicle; and a comparator operable to compare the information regarding each of the operating conditions of the vehicle received by the controller to the corresponding predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of operating conditions; wherein the controller detects more than one vehicle fault condition when the comparison between the information regarding each of the detected operating conditions of the vehicle and the corresponding predetermined threshold for each of the plurality of operating conditions results in more than one vehicle operating condition exceeding its predetermined threshold; wherein the controller identifies a priority level for each of the detected vehicle fault conditions when more than one vehicle fault condition is detected; wherein each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions has a predetermined operator action associated therewith; wherein the priority level for each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions is designated based on the predetermined operator action associated with each of the plurality of vehicle fault conditions; and wherein, when more than one vehicle fault condition is detected, the controller causes the operator action that is associated with the detected vehicle fault condition having the highest priority among the plurality of detected vehicle fault conditions to be the only operator action output to the operator of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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Specification