Distributed expert diagnostic service and system

• US 7,209,860 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2003
• Issued: 04/24/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Snap-On Technologies Incorporated (Snap-On Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Snap-On Incorporated
• Inventors: Trsar, Dale A., Moritz, Tyrone J., Davis, Neil, Siddons, Mary Beth, Harbin, Randall S., Petersen, Mark H., Maron, Edward A., Shepherd, Richard H., Lewis, Brad R., Ellingen, David R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoff; Marc S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Charioui; Mohamed
• Application Number:
  US10/613,230
• Publication Number:
  US 20050021294A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,387 Days
• Field of Search: 702/19, 702/32, 702113-115, 702182-185, 702/187, 702/188, 701/29, 701/33, 700/26, 707/6, 705/3, 600/300, 600/508
• US Class Current: 702/183
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/2257 using expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems

Abstract

An expert diagnostic service system using a distributed architecture for generating expert diagnostic suggestions based on input received from a plurality of diagnostic systems. The expert service system collects data related to effective diagnostic results, such as effective fixes, corresponding to various symptoms/faults from a plurality of diagnostic systems via a data transmission network, and accumulates the number of each effective fix corresponding to each of the various symptoms. The expert service system then assigns at least one effective fix to one of the various symptoms based on a result of the accumulating step, such as the rank of the accumulated number of each fix. The expert service system uses the assigned fix corresponding to a symptom as expert suggestions.

Claims

1. An expert diagnostic service method comprising the steps of:

collecting data related to fixes corresponding to various symptoms from a plurality of diagnostic systems via a data transmission network;

accessing a validation result of validated fixes corresponding to each of the various symptoms, wherein the validation result is generated by performing a validation process to screen out invalid fixes from the collected data; and

assigning at least one effective fix to one of the various symptoms based on an accumulated number of each of the validated fixes corresponding to the one of the various symptoms.

2. The method of claim 1, further generating data including the at least one effective fix assigned to the one of the various symptoms.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising the steps of:

receiving a request to access to the data including the at least one effective fix assigned to the one of the various symptoms from one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network;

transmitting the data including the at least one effective fix assigned to the one of the various symptoms to the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network; and

receiving data related to effective fixes corresponding to various symptoms from the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network.

4. The method of claim 1 further rendering a result of the assigning step available to at least one of the plurality of diagnostic systems.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of diagnostic systems are selected from the group consisting of an engine analyzer, an aligner, a balancer, and a battery tester.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the data related to fixes results includes at least one of attributes related to an apparatus under diagnosis, a cause of a fault, a test for finding a cause of a fault, and a fix to cure a cause of a fault.

7. An expert diagnostic method comprising the steps of:

collecting data related to diagnostic results corresponding to various faults from a plurality of diagnostic systems via a data transmission network;

accessing a validation result of validated diagnostic results corresponding to each of the various symptoms, wherein the validation result is generated by performing a validation process to screen out invalid diagnostic results from the collected data; and

assigning at least one effective diagnostic result to one of the various symptoms based on an accumulated number of each of the validated effective results corresponding to the one of the various symptoms;

wherein the data related to diagnostic results includes at least one of a test for finding a cause of a fault and a fix to cure a cause of a fault.

8. The method of claim 7 further generating data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising the steps of:

receiving a request to access to the data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms from one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network;

transmitting the data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms to the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network; and

receiving data related to diagnostic results corresponding to various symptoms from the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network.

10. The method of claim 7, further rendering a result of the assigning step available to at least one of the plurality of diagnostic systems.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the diagnostic systems are configured to diagnose a vehicle or a patient.

12. A data processing system for providing expert diagnostic services comprising:

a data processor for processing data;

a data communication port for connecting to a data transmission network;

a data storage device for storing instructions; and

a data transmission path coupled to the data processor, the data communication port, and the data storage device;

wherein the instructions, when executed by the data processor, control the data processing system to perform the machine-implemented steps of;

receiving data related to diagnostic results corresponding to various symptoms from a plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network;

accessing a validation result of validated diagnostic results corresponding to each of the various symptoms, wherein the validation result is generated by performing a validation process to screen out invalid diagnostic results from the collected data; and

assigning at least one effective diagnostic result to one of the various symptoms based on an accumulated number of each of the validated diagnostic results corresponding to the one of the various symptoms;

wherein the data related to diagnostic results includes at least one of a test for finding a cause of a fault and a fix to cure a cause of a fault.

13. The system of claim 12, the storage device further stores instructions, when executed by the data processor, control the data processing system to generate data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the storage device further stores instructions that, when executed by the data processor, control the data processing system to perform the machine-implemented steps of:

receiving a request to access to the data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms from one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network;

transmitting the data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms to the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network; and

receiving data related to diagnostic results corresponding to various symptoms from the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the storage device further stores instructions that, when executed by the data processor, control the data processing system to render a result of the assigning step available to at least one of the plurality of diagnostic systems.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the diagnostic systems are configured to diagnose a vehicle or a patient.

17. A machine-readable medium bearing instructions for providing expert diagnostic services, the instructions upon execution by a data processing system causing the data processing system to perform the steps of:

receiving data related to diagnostic results corresponding to various faults from a plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network;

accessing a validation result of validated diagnostic results corresponding to each of the various symptoms, wherein the validation result is generated by performing a validation process to screen out invalid diagnostic results from the collected data; and

assigning at least one effective diagnostic result to one of the various symptoms based on an accumulated number of each of the validated diagnostic results corresponding to the one of the various symptoms;

wherein the data related to diagnostic results includes at least one of a test for finding a cause of a fault and a fix to cure a cause of a fault.

18. The medium of claim 17 further bearing instructions upon execution by a data processing system causing the data processing system to generate data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms.

19. The medium of claim 18 further bearing instructions that, upon execution by a data processing system, cause the data processing system to perform the machine-implemented steps of:

receiving a request to access to the data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms from one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network;

transmitting the data including the at least one effective diagnostic result assigned to the one of the various symptoms to the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network; and

receiving data related to effective diagnostic results corresponding to various symptoms from the one of the plurality of diagnostic systems via the data transmission network.

20. The medium of claim 17, further bearing instructions that, upon execution by a data processing system, cause the data processing system to render a result of the assigning step available to at least one of the plurality of diagnostic systems.

21. The medium of claim 17, wherein the diagnostic systems are configured to diagnose a vehicle or a patient.

22. An expert diagnostic service method comprising the steps of:

collecting data related to fixes corresponding to various symptoms from a plurality of diagnostic systems via a data transmission network;

accessing a validation result of validated fixes corresponding to each of the various symptoms, wherein the validation result is generated by performing a validation process to screen out invalid fixes from the collected data;

generating an index for each of the validated fixes corresponding to each of the various symptoms based on an accumulated number of each of the validated fixes corresponding to each of the various symptoms; and

assigning at least one effective fix to one of the various symptoms based on the index for each of the validated fixes corresponding to the one of the various symptoms.