Graphical user interface with vehicle scanned function

• US 9,613,469 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2013
• Issued: 04/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bosch Automotive Service Solutions, Inc. (Robert Bosch GmbH)
• Original Assignee: Bosch Automotive Service Solutions, Inc. (Robert Bosch GmbH), Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Fish, James, Moulton, David Richard, Gray, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): Olszewski, John R
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ziaeianmehdizadeh, Navid
• Application Number:
  US13/955,572
• Publication Number:
  US 20140277908A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,343 Days
• Field of Search: 701 314, 701 332, 701 296, 715771, 345589, 702123
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 1/025 concerning dedicated user interfaces, e.g. GUI, or dedicated keyboards G01R31/31912 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• 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

Abstract

A graphical user interface is provided that can be used on a diagnostic tool. The graphical user interface allows a technician to operate various functions of the diagnostic tool including searching for additional information on the Internet, receiving weather information that is relevant to certain diagnostic tests, and displaying in certain formats the retrieved vehicle data and when certain vehicles were last scanned or diagnosed.

Claims

1. A diagnostic tool, comprising:

a processor;

a display in communication with the processor;

a complex programmable logic device in communication with the processor, wherein the complex programmable logic device decodes inputs of the diagnostic tool;

a vehicle communication protocol interface operatively coupled to the processor and allows the processor to communicate with a vehicle under test;

a memory in communication with the processor, the memory containing instructions, that when executed by the processor causes the processor to;

generate, on the display, a graphical user interface (GUI) having a plurality of functionality, the graphical user interface comprising;

a plurality of icons corresponding to a plurality of vehicle diagnostic functions performable by the diagnostic tool; and

vehicle modules containing information corresponding to a plurality of vehicles, wherein each of the vehicle modules has a brightness level on the GUI based on when the corresponding vehicle was last scanned by the diagnostic tool, wherein the brightness level of the vehicle modules on the GUI is higher when the last scan is closer to a present time than vehicle modules whose last scan is farther from the present time, and wherein the vehicle modules are configured to indicate via a text on the GUI if a vehicle'"'"'s information was transferred from another diagnostic tool;

the display further including a plurality of panels, wherein at east one of the plurality of panels is located at an edge of the display such that the at least one of the plurality of panels is configured to display a portion of at least one additional icon available to a user, while another portion of the at least one additional icon remains hidden from the user, wherein the plurality of panels include a text indicator that indicates information about the at least one additional icon, wherein the GUI is further configured. to display selectable icons that correspond to vehicle data streams retrieved by the processor, and wherein the selectable icons are configured to be resizable, and placeable at different angles by a user of the diagnostic tool when data of the data streams changes from a predetermined data.

2. The diagnostic tool of claim 1, wherein the vehicle modules are arranged on the GUI based on the brightness level.

3. The diagnostic tool of claim 2, wherein the vehicle modules are arranged so that the brightest vehicle modules are at a corner of the GUI.

4. The diagnostic tool of claim 2, wherein the vehicle modules are arranged so that the brightest vehicle modules are at a right corner of the GUI.

5. The diagnostic tool of claim 1, wherein when one of the plurality of icons is pressed, the diagnostic tool performs an automatic identification of the vehicle under test.

6. The diagnostic tool of claim 1, wherein when one of the plurality of icons is pressed, a user is able to enter identifying information of the vehicle under test.

7. The diagnostic tool of claim 6, wherein the identifying information is entered by the user using a virtual keyboard.

8. The diagnostic tool of claim 1, wherein the vehicle modules'"'"' information indicates when the corresponding vehicle was last scanned by the diagnostic tool.

9. The diagnostic tool of claim 1, wherein the GUI is configured to display an icon at an angle in response to an interaction with the icon by a user.

10. The diagnostic tool of claim 1 further comprising a temperature sensor positioned on a surface of the diagnostic tool.

11. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising machine-readable instructions for causing a processor of a diagnostic tool to execute the method of:

generating, on a display, a graphical user interface (GUI) having a plurality of diagnostic functionality, the graphical user interface comprising;

a plurality of icons corresponding to a plurality of vehicle diagnostic functions performable by the diagnostic tool; and

vehicle modules containing information corresponding to a plurality of vehicles, wherein each of the vehicle modules has a brightness level on the GUI based on when the corresponding vehicle was last scanned by the diagnostic tool, wherein the brightness level of the vehicle modules on the GUI is higher when the last scan is closer to a present time than vehicle modules whose last scan is farther form the present time, and wherein the vehicle modules are configured to indicate via a text on the GUI if a vehicle'"'"'s information was transferred from another diagnostic tool;

wherein the display and a complex programmable logic device are in communication with the processor, and wherein the complex programmable logic device decodes inputs of the diagnostic tool, the display further including a plurality of panels, wherein at least one of the plurality of panels is located at an edge of the display such that the at least one of the plurality of panels is configured to display a portion of at least one additional icon available to a user, while another portion of the at least one additional icon remains hidden from the user, wherein the plurality of panels include a text indicator that indicates information about the at least one additional icon, wherein the GUI is further configured to display selectable icons that correspond to vehicle data streams retrieved by the processor, and wherein the selectable icons are configured to be resizable, and placeable at different angles by a user of the diagnostic tool when data of the data streams changes from a predetermined data.

12. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 11 further comprising:

arranging the vehicle modules on the GUI based on the brightness level.

13. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the vehicle modules are arranged so that the brightest vehicle modules are at a corner of the GUI.

14. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein the vehicle modules are arranged so that the brightest vehicle modules are at a right corner of the GUI.

15. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 11 further comprising:

performing a diagnostic test of the vehicle under test by the diagnostic tool when one of the plurality of icons is pressed.

16. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein

allowing a user to enter identifying information of the vehicle under test when one of the plurality of icons is pressed.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the identifying information is entered by the user using a virtual keyboard.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the vehicle modules'"'"' information indicate when the corresponding vehicle was last scanned by the diagnostic tool.

19. A computer-implemented method for displaying when a vehicle under test was last scanned by a diagnostic tool, the method comprising:

generating, on a display, a graphical user interface (GUI) having a plurality of diagnostic functionality, the graphical user interface comprising;

a plurality of icons corresponding to a plurality of vehicle diagnostic functions performable by the diagnostic tool; and

vehicle modules containing information corresponding to a plurality of vehicles, wherein each of the vehicle modules has a brightness level on the GUI based on when the corresponding vehicle was last scanned by the diagnostic tool, wherein the brightness level of the vehicle modules on the GUI is higher when the last scan is closer to a present time than vehicle modules whose last scan is farther from the present time, and wherein the vehicle modules are configured to indicate via a text on the GUI if a vehicle'"'"'s information was transferred from another diagnostic tool; and

performing an automatic identification of the vehicle under test when one of the plurality of icons is pressed;

wherein the display and a complex programmable logic device is in communication with a processor, and wherein the complex programmable logic device decodes inputs of the diagnostic tool, the display further including a plurality of panels, wherein at least one of the plurality of panels is located at an edge of the display such that the at least one of the plurality of panels is configured to display a portion of at least one additional icon available to a user, while another portion of the at least one additional icon remains hidden from the user, wherein the plurality of panels include a text indicator that indicates information about the at least one additional icon, wherein the GUI is further configured to display selectable icons that correspond to vehicle data streams retrieved by the processor, and wherein the selectable icons are configured to be resizable, and placeable at different angles by a user of the diagnostic tool when data of the data streams changes from a predetermined data.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 19 further comprising:

arranging the vehicle modules on the GUI based on the brightness level.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, wherein the vehicle modules are arranged so that the brightest vehicle modules are at a corner of the GUI.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, wherein the Vehicle modules are arranged so that the brightest vehicle modules are at a right corner of the GUI.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 19, further comprising:

performing a diagnostic test of the vehicle under test by the diagnostic tool when one of the plurality of icons is pressed.