System and process for monitoring and scheduling maintenance on mechanical equipment

• US 8,854,226 B2
• Filed: 06/02/2010
• Issued: 10/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Trane International Inc. (Trane Technologies plc)
• Original Assignee: Trane International Inc. (Trane Technologies plc)
• Inventors: Wilson, David C.
• Primary Examiner(s): GIRMA, FEKADESELASS
• Application Number:
  US12/792,405
• Publication Number:
  US 20110298629A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,588 Days
• Field of Search: 340/679, 340/5.1, 340/683, 340/506, 340/539.24
• US Class Current: 340/679
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0283 Predictive maintenance, e.g. involving the monitoring of a system and, based on the monitoring results, taking decisions on the maintenance schedule of the monitored system; Estimating remaining useful life [RUL] preventive maintenance, i.e. planning maintenance according to the available resources without monitoring the system G06Q10/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance

Abstract

A method of scheduling maintenance on mechanical equipment includes monitoring the mechanical equipment with a sensor and collecting diagnostic information provided by the sensor with a local controller associated with the mechanical equipment. The diagnostic information relates to an operational characteristic of the mechanical equipment. The method also includes generating an alarm with the local controller in response to the collected diagnostic information, transferring the alarm from the local controller to a remote monitoring system, assigning an alarm value to the alarm using one of the local controller and the remote monitoring system, referencing a maintenance schedule for the mechanical equipment to ascertain a scheduled maintenance timeframe, and one of generating a work order and not generating the work order for the mechanical equipment based on the alarm value and the scheduled maintenance timeframe.

Claims

1. A method of scheduling maintenance on mechanical equipment, the method comprising:

monitoring the mechanical equipment with a sensor;

collecting diagnostic information provided by the sensor with a local controller associated with the mechanical equipment, the diagnostic information relating to an operational characteristic of the mechanical equipment;

generating an alarm with the local controller in response to the collected diagnostic information;

transferring the alarm from the local controller to a remote monitoring system;

assigning an alarm value to the alarm using one of the local controller and the remote monitoring system;

referencing a maintenance schedule for the mechanical equipment to ascertain a scheduled maintenance timeframe; and

one of generating a work order and not generating the work order for the mechanical equipment based on the alarm value and the scheduled maintenance timeframe, wherein the alarm value comprises a base value and a first scalar multiplier, and wherein assigning the alarm value includes assigning a product of the base value, the first scalar multiplier and a second scalar multiplier.