Apparatus and system for diagnosing devices included in working machine

• US 8,532,865 B2
• Filed: 08/11/2008
• Issued: 09/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Construction Machinery Company Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Construction Machinery Company Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Suzuki, Hideaki, Furuno, Yoshinori, Shibata, Kouichi, Watanabe, Hiroshi, Watanabe, Yutaka
• Primary Examiner(s): Tarcza, Thomas
• Assistant Examiner(s): Anwari, MacEeh
• Application Number:
  US12/532,001
• Publication Number:
  US 20100070130A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,856 Days
• Field of Search: 701/35
• US Class Current: 701/29.1
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2054 Fleet management
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/268 with failure correction follow-up actions
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 3/00 Registering or indicating the condition or the working of machines or other apparatus, other than vehicles

Abstract

A device diagnostic apparatus (201) comprising: data judgment means (101) for, when device information (121) including operating condition information and internal state information is inputted, comparing the operating condition information of the device information with operating condition information stored in a database (111) beforehand to judge whether or not both of the operating condition information agree with each other, and then outputting judgment result information; and state diagnosis means (103) for, when the judgment result information indicates that both of the operating condition information agree with each other, comparing the internal state information in the device information with internal state information stored in the database beforehand, and then outputting the result of the comparison. This makes it possible to reduce the possibility that false judgment result will be output, and to achieve the efficiency of maintenance work.

Claims

1. A device diagnostic apparatus for a working machine including a body and a work device provided on the body, the device diagnostic apparatus diagnosing at least one of a plurality of components, as a target device, included in the working machine, the apparatus comprising:

a data judgment unit configured to compare, when device information including operating condition information and internal state information is input, the operating condition information in the device information with operating condition information stored beforehand to judge whether or not both of the operating condition information agree with each other, and then output judgment result information,

the operating condition information including external environment information of the target device and operation information of the target device that indicates operating conditions including environment and way under which the target device has been operated, and

the internal state information including operation state information of the target device that indicates how the target device has been moved under the operating conditions of the operating condition information; and

a state diagnosis unit configured to compare, when the judgment result information indicates that both of the operating condition information agree with each other, the internal state information in the device information with internal state information stored beforehand and associated with the stored operating condition information, and then output a result of the comparison.

2. The device diagnostic apparatus for the working machine according to claim 1, wherein

said state diagnosis unit compares the internal state information in the device information with the internal state information stored beforehand to judge whether or not both of the internal state information agree with each other, and

when the judgment result information indicates that both of the internal state information agree with each other, said state diagnosis unit outputs a diagnostic result on the basis of maintenance information corresponding to the internal state information stored beforehand, whereas when the judgment result information does not indicate that both of the internal state information agree with each other, said state diagnosis unit outputs a diagnostic result indicating that an abnormal state has occurred.

3. The device diagnostic apparatus for the working machine according to claim 1,

wherein the operating condition information includes at least one of following information:

temperature data, humidity data, weather data, road surface data, operation data, maintenance person data, driver data, model data, work site data, an oil grade, an oil deterioration level, and operation information of related equipment.

4. The device diagnostic apparatus for the working machine according to claim 1,

wherein the internal state information includes at least one of following information:

engine speed data, radiator water temperature data, oil temperature data, an oil deterioration level, the amount of internal leakage, fuel consumption data, sound data of the target device, and vibration data of the target device.

5. The device diagnostic apparatus for the working machine according to claim 1, the device diagnostic apparatus further comprising:

a process learning unit configured to learn, when the judgment result information output by said data judgment unit indicates that both of the operating condition information disagree with each other, the device information, and then store the learned device information in a process database as process learning information.

6. The device diagnostic apparatus for the working machine according to claim 5, the device diagnostic apparatus further comprising:

a diagnostic database update unit configured to detect whether or not the process database has been updated, and to output, when it is detected that the process database has been updated, process database update request information.

7. The device diagnostic apparatus for the working machine according to claim 1, the device diagnostic apparatus further comprising:

a diagnostic database including an operating condition data storage unit in which the operating condition information is stored,

wherein said data judgment unit compares operating condition information in the input device information with the operating condition information stored in the operating condition data storage unit.

8. The device diagnostic apparatus for the working machine according to claim 1, the device diagnostic apparatus further comprising:

a diagnostic database including an internal state data storage unit in which the internal state information is stored,

wherein said state diagnosis unit compares internal state information in the input device information with the internal state information stored in the internal state data storage unit.

9. A device diagnostic system for a working machine, the device diagnostic system comprising:

a device diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1; and

a display unit for displaying the diagnostic result.

10. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 9, wherein

said device diagnostic apparatus includes a process learning unit configured to learn, when the judgment result information output by the data judgment unit indicates disagreement of the operating condition information, the device information, and then store the learned device information in a process database as process learning information, and

said display unit displays the process learning information stored in the process database.

11. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 10, wherein

the process database stores the process learning information, and date data of the date on which the process learning information has been learned, with both of them associated with each other, and

said display unit displays the process learning information, and the date data of the date on which the process learning information has been learned.

12. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 10, the device diagnostic system further comprising:

a maintenance information input unit configured to input maintenance information,

wherein said device diagnostic apparatus includes a diagnostic database update unit configured to the process learning information from the process database to judge whether or not the maintenance information has been input from the maintenance information input unit, and to add when it is judged that the maintenance information has been input, the maintenance information to the read process learning information before storing the process learning information in a maintenance information data storage unit of the diagnostic database.

13. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 12,

wherein the maintenance information indicates whether the target device is normal or abnormal.

14. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 13,

wherein, when maintenance information input from the maintenance information input unit indicates an abnormal state, the diagnostic database update unit instructs said display unit to display a maintenance information input screen which prompts a user to input a detailed description of the abnormal state.

15. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 14,

wherein the maintenance information input screen includes a field to be input by the user, as a failure period, a specified period starting from the time before a point of time at which abnormal change of the internal state information becomes largest, the specified period including the point of time in question.

16. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 9, wherein

when the judgment result information output by the data judgment unit indicates disagreement of the operating condition information, said device diagnostic apparatus outputs a detailed descriptions of the abnormal state and disagreement to said display unit, and

said display unit displays the detailed descriptions of the abnormal state and disagreement.

17. The device diagnostic system for the working machine according to claim 9, wherein

when the plurality of pieces of device information have been input, in a case where pieces of operating condition information in the plurality of pieces of device information include operating condition information which is uncomparable with the operating condition information stored beforehand, the data judgment unit of said device diagnostic apparatus outputs, to said display unit, a detailed description of the abnormal state, and the uncomparable operating condition information, and

said display unit displays the detailed description of the abnormal state and the uncomparable operating condition information.