Methods and Systems for Mapping Repair Orders within a Database

• US 20160034857A1
• Filed: 10/10/2015
• Published: 02/04/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Snap-On Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Snap-On Incorporated
• Inventors: Merg, Patrick S.
• Granted Patent: US 9,633,340 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/316 Indexing structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance

Abstract

Methods and systems for mapping repairs orders within a database are described. Mapping a repair order can include generating a searchable data record with multiple data record fields. Each data record field can include a term located on the repair order or a standard term associated with the term on the repair order. In order to retrieve repair orders from the database, the data records can be searched using search criteria that match standard terms storable in the data record fields. Although the repair orders can be searched to find repair orders with terms that match the search criteria, the search may be carried our more efficiently (e.g., quicker) by searching the data records instead of the repair orders. One or more repairs orders can be associated with real-fix tips. Phrases of the real-fix tips can be selected automatically based, for example, or RO terms recited on the repair orders.

Claims

1-27. -27. (canceled)

28. A method comprising:

storing, at a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, a first repair order (RO), phrase data, and a plurality of RO terms, wherein the first RO contains an identifier of a first individual vehicle and at least one RO term representing a service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle, and wherein the phrase data includes multiples phrases associated with one or more RO terms of the plurality of RO terms;

receiving, at a processor, the at least one RO term representing the service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle;

selecting, by the processor from the phrase data based on the at least one RO term, a first phrase for including within a real-fix tip pertaining to the service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle;

generating, by the processor, the real-fix tip pertaining to the service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle, wherein the real-fix tip includes the first phrase selected by the processor based on the at least one RO term; and

transmitting the real-fix tip.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein transmitting the real-fix tip includes at least one of transmitting the real-fix tip to the computer-readable storage medium and transmitting the real-fix tip to a data processing machine with a display configured to display the real-fix tip.

30. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

linking, by the processor, the real-fix tip to a group of RO,

wherein the group of RO includes the first RO and at least one other RO identified during a search of the computer-readable storage medium in which the first RO was discovered.

31. The method of claim 30, further comprising:

providing, by the processor for displaying on a display, a number indicating a quantity of RO within the group of RO.

32. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

selecting, by the processor from the phrase data based on the at least one RO term, a second phrase for including within the real-fix tip pertaining to the service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle,

wherein the real-fix tip includes the second phrase selected by the processor based on the at least one RO term.

33. The method of claim 32,

wherein the first phrase is included within one of the following defined fields of the real-fix tip:

title field, complaint field, cause field, and correction field, and

wherein the second phrase is included within one of the defined fields not including the first phrase.

34. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

selecting, by the processor from the phrase data based on the at least one RO term, a third phrase for including within the real-fix tip pertaining to the service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle,

wherein the real-fix tip includes the third phrase selected by the processor based on the at least one RO term.

35. The method of claim 34,

wherein the first phrase is included within one of the following defined fields of the real-fix tip:

title field, complaint field, cause field, and correction field,

wherein the second phrase is included within one of the defined fields not including the first phrase, and

wherein the third phrase is included within one of the defined fields not including the first phrase or the second phrase.

36. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

selecting, by the processor from the phrase data based on the at least one RO term, a fourth phrase for including within the real-fix tip pertaining to the service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle,

wherein the real-fix tip includes the fourth phrase selected by the processor based on the at least one RO term,

wherein the first phrase is included within one of the following defined fields of the real-fix tip;

title field, complaint field, cause field, and correction field,

wherein the second phrase is included within one of the defined fields not including the first phrase,

wherein the third phrase is included within one of the defined fields not including the first phrase or the second phrase, and

wherein the fourth phrase is included within one of the defined fields not including the first phrase, the second phrase, or the third phrase.

37. The method of claim 28, wherein the at least one RO term comprises one or more of a diagnostic trouble code (DTC), a vehicle component name, and a customer complaint.

38. The method of claim 37,

wherein the first phrase comprises a complete phrase including the one or more of the DTC, the vehicle component name, and the customer complaint, and

wherein the transmitted real-fix tip comprises the complete phrase.

39. The method of claim 37,

wherein the first phrase selected by the processor comprises an incomplete phrase,

wherein generating the real-fix tip includes generating a complete phrase by completing the incomplete phrase to include the one or more of the DTC, the vehicle component name, and the customer complaint, and

wherein the transmitted real-fix tip comprises the complete phrase.

40. The method of claim 28,

wherein the at least one RO term comprises a standard RO term;

the method further comprising;

receiving, at the processor, a second RO term pertaining to the service procedure already performed to the first individual vehicle;

wherein receiving the first RO term occurs after the processor selects, from a set of standard terms, the first RO term based on the first RO term being associated with the second RO term.

41. The method of claim 28, wherein the first RO term comprises a term of a first language and the second RO term comprises a term of a second language different than the first language.

42. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

storing, within the computer-readable storage medium, computer-readable program instructions executable by the processor to select the first phrase and to generate the real-fix tip,

wherein selecting the first phrase and generating the real-fix tip includes the processor executing the computer-readable program instructions to select the first phrase and to generate the real-fix tip, and

wherein selecting the first phrase and generating the real-fix tip occurs before the first RO is selected for displaying on a display at a data processing machine.

43. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

storing, within the computer-readable storage medium, computer-readable program instructions executable by the processor to select the first phrase and to generate the real-fix tip,

wherein selecting the first phrase and generating the real-fix tip includes the processor executing the computer-readable program instructions to select the first phrase and to generate the real-fix tip, and

wherein selecting the first phrase and generating the real-fix tip occurs after the first RO is selected for displaying on a display at a data processing machine.

44. The method of claim 28, wherein the identifier includes at least one of a vehicle identification number, a vehicle year identifier, a vehicle make identifier, a vehicle model identifier, a vehicle engine identifier, and a vehicle system identifier.

45. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

generating, by the processor, a graphical user interface (GUI);

displaying, by a display connected to the processor, the GUI, wherein the displayed GUI includes a selection interface for selecting at least one of a diagnostic trouble code number, a component name, and a symptom identifier.

46. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

storing, at the computer-readable storage medium, one or more other repair orders and one or more real-fix tips generated by the processor selecting one or more phrases from the phrase data.

47. The method of claim 28, wherein each phrase of the phrase data is associated with at least one real-fix tip field selected from the set of fields comprising a title field, a complaint field, a cause field, and a correction field.