Machine fault monitoring apparatus and method

• US 6,256,594 B1
• Filed: 08/11/1998
• Issued: 07/03/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Bridgestone Sports Co Limited (Bridgestone Corporation), Komatsu Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Komatsu Ltd.
• Inventors: Hasegawa, Nobuki, Nagai, Takao, Akagi, Jiro, Akiyama, Sadachika, Murakami, Taku, Yamamoto, Shigeru, Kuromoto, Kazunori, Imanishi, Kunihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Assouad, Patrick
• Assistant Examiner(s): Barbee, Manuel L.
• Application Number:
  US09/131,997
• Time in Patent Office: 1,057 Days
• Field of Search: 702/35, 702/36, 702/81, 702/84, 702/113, 702/179, 702/180, 702/181, 702/182-186, 702/187, 702/188, 702/33, 702/34, 702/42, 702/43, 702/56, 702/75, 702/114, 702/115, 702/122, 702/141, 702/145-148, 702/FOR.107, 702/123-126, 702/135, 702/136, 702/170, 702/171, 701/29, 701/34, 701/35
• US Class Current: 702/185
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2223/06 Remote monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0264 Control of logging system, e.g. decision on which data to store; time-stamping measurements
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0808 Diagnosing performance data testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005

Abstract

Only snapshot data necessary for monitoring faults are collected from machine such as vehicles, allowing faults to be more accurately monitored, and the amount of data and the memory storage volume at a monitoring station to be reduced. The values of a plurality of (A), (B), (C), and (D) operating parameters (engine rotational speed, lever operating position, vehicle speed, and tractive force) which change during the operation of the machine are sequentially detected for each machine. The fault detection history data are thus updated every time a fault (drop in engine oil pressure, overheating) is detected during the operation of the machine. Thus, when a fault (drop in engine oil pressure) is detected during the operation of the machine, it is determined on the basis of the history data whether or not to send to the monitoring station the sequential values of the operating parameters ((A) engine rotational speed, (B) lever operating position, (C) vehicle speed, (D) tractive force) from within a prescribed period of time (from 10 min. before to 5 min. after) around the point in time t0 at which the fault was detected. When it is determined that they should be sent, the type of detected fault (0001 (drop in engine oil pressure)), the values detected ((A) 2, (B) 3, (C) 3, (D) 2) at the time the fault was detected, as well as the sequential values of the operating parameters from within a prescribed period of time (from 10 min. before to 5 min. after) around the time the fault was detected are transmitted to the monitoring station. When it is determined that they should not be sent, on the other hand, the type of detected fault (0001 (drop in engine oil pressure)) and the values detected ((A) 2, (B) 3, (C) 3, (D) 2) at the time the fault was detected are sent to the monitoring station.

Claims

1. A machine fault monitoring apparatus having, for each of a plurality of machines, fault detection means for detecting various faults occurring during the operation of the machines, and remote monitoring station for monitoring operating status of the plurality of machines by collecting fault detection data locally detected by the fault detection means of the plurality of machines, wherein each machine comprises:

operating parameter detection means for locally sequentially detecting various types of operating parameter values which change during the operation of said machine;

history data update means locally updating fault detection history data every time a fault is detected by said fault detection means during the operation of said machine;

determination means for locally determining, based on said history data and the value of the fault, whether or not to transmit to said monitoring station sequential values of the operating parameters within a specified period of time around a point in time at which the fault was detected, in cases where said fault was detected by said fault detection means during the operation of said machine;

transmission means for transmitting to said remote monitoring station, in cases where it has been determined locally by said determination means that a transmission should be made, a type of fault that was detected, a value detected by said operating parameter detection means at the point in time at which the fault was detected, as well as the sequential values of said operating parameters within the specified period of time around the point in time at which the fault was detected, and also for transmitting to said remote monitoring station, in cases where it has been determined by said determination means that no transmission should be made, the type of fault that was detected and the value detected by said operating parameter detection means at the point in time the fault was detected.

2. The machine fault monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmission means searches for a frequency of the detected fault based on said history data, and transmits data indicating the fault frequency to said remote monitoring stations.

3. A vehicle fault monitoring apparatus having, for each of a plurality of vehicles, fault detection means for locally detecting various faults occurring during the operation of the vehicles, and a remote monitoring stations for monitoring operating status of the plurality of vehicles by collecting fault detection data detected by the fault detection means of the plurality of vehicles, wherein each vehicle comprises:

operating parameter detection means for locally sequentially detecting various types of operating parameter values which change during the operation of said vehicle;

history data update means for locally updating fault detection history data every time a fault is detected by said fault detection means during the operation of said vehicle;

transmission determination means for locally determining based on said history data and the value of the fault, whether or not to transmit to said remote monitoring stations sequential values of the operating parameters within a specified period of time around a point in time at which the fault was detected in cases where said fault was detected by said fault detentions means during the operation of said vehicle; and

fault data transmission means for transmitting to said remote monitoring stations, in cases where it has been determined by said transmission determination means that a transmission should be made, a type of fault that was detected, a value detected by said operating parameter detection means at the point in time at which the fault was detected, as well as the sequential values of said operating parameters within the specified period of time around the point in time at which the fault was detected, and also for transmitting to said remote monitoring station, in cases where it as been determined by said transmission determination means that no transmission should be made, the type of fault that was detected and the value detected by said operating parameter detection means at the point in time the fault was detected; and

wherein said remote monitoring station comprises;

relation data generating means for accumulating the type of fault transmitted from each vehicle and the various operating parameter values at the time the fault was detected, so as to generate data that relate the types and values of the operating parameters with the fault;

relation determination means for collating said relation data with the type of fault transmitted from said vehicle and the values of the various parameters at the time the fault was detected to determine whether or not the fault is related to the types and values of the operating parameters; and

requested signal transmission means for transmitting to the vehicle, in cases where no relation was determined by said relation determination means, a signal requesting that values detected by said operating parameter detection means to be transmitted to said monitoring stations for a given period of time.

4. The vehicle fault monitoring apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said fault data transmission means searches for a frequency of the detected faults based on said history data, and transmits data indicating the fault frequency to said remote monitoring stations.