U.S. patent application number 10/209157 was filed with the patent office on 2004-02-05 for method for remote monitoring equipment for an agricultural machine.
This patent application is currently assigned to Deere & Company. Invention is credited to Colvin, Steven L., Mahoney, Brian J., Sharma, Manish K..
Application Number | 20040021563 10/209157 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 30115217 |
Filed Date | 2004-02-05 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040021563 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Mahoney, Brian J. ; et
al. |
February 5, 2004 |
Method for remote monitoring equipment for an agricultural
machine
Abstract
A method of providing information from a plurality of fleet
machines located at a plurality of locations for purposes of
permitting a manager of fleet equipment to make management
decisions pertaining to a fleet comprised of such equipment,
monitoring functional operational data from individual machines in
a fleet of machines, conveying the monitored data to a remote
server, converting the monitored data into a first group pertaining
to current existing operational data, and into a second group
comprised of past historical data, and transmitting by wirelss
means to a person having responsibility for the fleet information
at least one of the groups of data.
Inventors: |
Mahoney, Brian J.; (Clive,
IA) ; Colvin, Steven L.; (Hawkeye, IA) ;
Sharma, Manish K.; (Alpharetta, GA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ZARLEY LAW FIRM P.L.C.
CAPITAL SQUARE
400 LOCUST, SUITE 200
DES MOINES
IA
50309-2350
US
|
Assignee: |
Deere & Company
Moline
IL
|
Family ID: |
30115217 |
Appl. No.: |
10/209157 |
Filed: |
July 31, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
340/521 ;
340/684 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G08G 1/20 20130101; G06Q
10/08 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
340/521 ;
340/684 |
International
Class: |
G08B 019/00 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A method of providing information from a plurality of fleet
machines located at a plurality of locations for purposes of
permitting a manager of fleet equipment to make management
decisions pertaining to a fleet comprised of such equipment,
comprising, monitoring functional operational data from individual
machines in a fleet of machines, conveying the monitored data to a
remote server, converting the monitored data into a first summary
group comprised of past historical data, and into a second snapshot
group pertaining to current existing operational data, and
transmitting to a person having responsibility for the fleet
information at least one of the groups of data.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the transmitted data is conveyed
by wireless means.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein the first summary group of data
includes historical data at least from one of the machine functions
related to machine location, area covered by the machine, engine
hours, ground speed, engine speed, fuel used, fuel used/hour, load
functions, current machine locations, engine coolant temperature,
and rear PTO speed.
4. The method of claim 3 wherein the first summary group of data
includes one or more of the past historical data relating to the
machine functions of the second snapshot group.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein data of the second snapshot group
is automatically transmitted whenever the step of monitoring senses
operational data predetermined to be an emergency condition.
6. The method of claim 3 wherein data of the second snapshot group
is automatically transmitted whenever the step of monitoring senses
operational data predetermined to be an emergency condition.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein the second snapshot group includes
current and instantaneous data at least from one of the machine
functions related to fuel tank level, ground speed, engine speed,
hydraulic oil temperatures, engine coolant temperature wheel slips
and gears, whether the machine is currently working, idling, or in
a transport mode.
8. The method of claim 1 wherein an information retrievable system
is used with the machine composed of remote monitoring equipment
comprising a communications controller/computer on the machine and
connected to data buses on the machine, and secondary controllers
on the machine are connected to further buses on the machine and to
further sensors which pass emergency information to the
communications controller computer.
9. The method of claim 5 wherein an information retrievable system
is used with the machine composed of remote monitoring equipment
comprising a communications controller/computer on the machine and
connected to data buses on the machine, and secondary controllers
on the machine are connected to further buses on the machine and to
further sensors which pass emergency information to the
communications controller computer.
10. The method of claim 7 wherein an information retrievable system
is used with the machine composed of remote monitoring equipment
comprising a communications controller/computer on the machine and
connected to data buses on the machine, and secondary controllers
on the machine are connected to further buses on the machine and to
further sensors which pass emergency information to the
communications controller computer.
11. The method of claim 3 wherein an information retrievable system
is used with the machine composed of remote monitoring equipment
comprising a communications controller/computer on the machine and
connected to data buses on the machine, and secondary controllers
on the machine are connected to further buses on the machine and to
further sensors which pass emergency information to the
communications controller computer.
12. The method of claim 8 wherein the informational system further
comprises a central information and communications server which
handles over-the-air information transmission to a remote machine
communications controller/computer and to a network communications
system, and to a data server.
13. The method of claim 12 wherein the data server accepts
operational data predetermined to be emergency conditions and
reports the same to a plurality of predetermined destinations.
14. The method of claim 12 wherein the data pertaining to emergency
conditions is sent to a customer service destination.
15. The method of claim 14 wherein the data concerning the
emergency conditions is sent to the person having responsibility
for fleet information along with any report from the customer
service destination.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates to providing information to enhance
managers of fleet equipment to manage their fleets by receiving
data from a local server on one or more of the pieces of equipment
in order that they may react to immediate problems and to plan for
future utilization based upon the fleet's pasts performance and
utilization. The information is received in the form of either
snapshot reports on current conditions, or summary reports based on
data gathered over a period of time.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Current Fleet Management systems have proven to be
ineffective for Fleet Managers to manage their fleets. Fleet
Managers manage their fleets with outdated and hand collected data
that makes it hard for them to react to immediate problems and plan
for future fleet utilization based on their fleet's past
performance and utilization.
[0003] Further, the collected information may be a collection of
current conditions and past conditions which are cumbersome to
assimulate by the receiver of the information.
[0004] Therefore, the principal object of this invention is to
provide a method of collecting data from a plurality of machines in
a fleet of machines, wherein snapshot reports of current
conditions, or summary reports on the historical state of a
machine, can be generated and can be forwarded to the fleet manager
at a remote monitoring system.
[0005] A further object of this invention is to provide a method
for remote monitoring equipment for an agricultural machine which
will permit the capture of additional information about the machine
and its use without ever visiting the machine.
[0006] These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in
the art.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] FIG. 1 is a flow sheet showing internationalization of
machine data;
[0008] FIG. 2 is a flow sheet showing configuring the controllers
for different machine types;
[0009] FIG. 3 is a flow sheet showing machine settings and call-in
schedule;
[0010] FIG. 4 is a flow sheet showing monitor machine
information;
[0011] FIG. 5 is a flow sheet showing polling machine status;
and
[0012] FIG. 6 is a flow sheet showing stop engine alert
notification.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] The method of this invention offers a complete management
system composed of the remote monitoring equipment for an
agricultural machine (which is part of a fleet of agricultural
machines). The monitoring equipment comprises a communications
controller/computer provided on the agricultural machine, one or
more connections to the machine's data buses (CAN, CCD, RS232), and
other controllers on the machine. The controllers are connected to
a machine data bus and to sensors which pass alert information
derived from these sensors to the communications
controller/computer which automatically generates and sends
snapshot and summary reports to a central information server. A
central information server comprising a communications server
handles the over-the-air communications protocol to the remote
agricultural machines communications controller/computer and the
network communications to a data server. The data server accepts
the snapshots and summary reports from the agricultural machine and
when requested, generates fleet level snapshot reports, machine
level snapshot reports, fleet level summary reports and machine
level summary reports, which are sent to a customer service
application. The customer service application takes requests from a
fleet manager via network for a fleet level snapshot report, a
machine level snapshot report, or a fleet level summary report on a
machine level summary report, and passes the report requests to a
data service and then displays the report to the fleet manager.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0014] The invention proposes monitoring equipment that monitors
information about the historical state of the machine primarily
when it is working, transporting, idling or when it is not
operating at all. The information about the historical state of the
machine, also known as the summary report, can determine the
productivity of the machine or a fleet of machines over a period of
time. This report is capable of generating configurable utilization
information about which can include the area covered, engine hours,
ground speed, engine speed, fuel used, fuel used/hour, load Factor
and rear PTO speed. Advice given in the summary report is
automatically sent to the equipment manager for an immediate
response.
[0015] A second feature of the invention is its ability to provide
machine management snapshot reports to the user. This feature
functions in a similar way as the previous component with the main
difference being the users ability to request snapshot reports
about the current machine state. When an emergency or red alert
call occurs, a snapshot report is automatically sent transmitted. A
red alert is operational data predetermined to be an emergency
condition, such as fire, or an overturned machine, for example. The
snapshot capability provides a map with the current location of the
machine that enables the service personnel to locate the machine
once a problem occurs. The fleet level snapshot report includes a
map which is also capable of providing current locations of all
machines in the fleet, which could possibly be used by a fuel truck
operator to fuel the fleet. Another unique feature about this
report is its ability to poll the machine or the entire fleet of
machines for configurable current settings such as fuel tank level,
ground speed, engine speed, hydraulic oil temperature, engine
coolant temperature wheel slips and gears. The snapshot report is
capable of providing the current status of the machine or machines
indicating whether the machine is currently working, idling,
transporting in an "off" mode. The primary difference between the
snapshot and the summary reports is the time frame in which the
data is collected in the reports. The snapshot report contains
instantaneous data. The summary report contains data that was
collected over a period of time.
[0016] The data is obtained from the machines of the fleet through
an informational retrievable system.
[0017] The system is composed of a remote monitoring equipment for
an agricultural machine (which is part of a fleet of agricultural
machines) comprising a communications controller/computer provided
on the agricultural machine; one or more connections to the
machine's data buses (CAN, CCD, RS232); and other controllers on
the machine which are connected to a machine data bus and to
sensors which pass alert information derived from these sensors to
the communications controller/computer. The latter component
automatically generates and sends red alert and alert log reports
to a central information server. The system further includes a
central information Server comprising a communications server which
handles the over-the-air communications protocol to the remote
agricultural machines communications controller/computer and the
network communications to the data server. The data server accepts
the red alert and alert log reports from the agricultural machine
and automatically sends red alert emails to a list of email
addresses. When requested, it generates alert log reports and sends
the reports to the customer service application. The customer
service application takes requests from a fleet manager via a
network for an alert log report and passes the report request to
the data service and then displays the report that comes from data
service to the fleet manager.
[0018] The primary feature of this system is the way in which the
raw data is transferred throughout the system. Data, such as the
configuration file, is transferred throughout this system using a
method comprised of two different protocols: A low-level
communication protocol that allows the communication controller
(CC) to use a mobile asset management device to communicate to
communication services (CS) and a high level connection based
communication protocol, that transfers configuration data from the
CS to the CC. The advantage of this latter protocol is the ability
for both sides to actively communicate with each other as long as a
connection is maintained.
[0019] Once a user requests a customer service application
configuration selection for a specific machine, the machine is then
triggered causing information to be passed to data services
(Database) to create the configuration file. After the file is
created, it is then passed via a message to communications
services. Communications services (CS) then calls the CC on the
specific machine and transfers the configurations file to the
communications controller (CC) via an over-the-air protocol. An
over-the-air protocol allows for direct configuration of the asset
management device by CS.
[0020] When communication occurs between the CC and the CS a
Snapshot/machine status report and an alert log if necessary, are
then generated and sent to the user. This Snapshot/machine status
report is sent each time to make sure that the data coming from the
CC will be associated with the right configuration ID in the CC.
When this report is sent, the date, time and position of the data
become known. The configuration ID is essential at this point
because, it is unique to each CC; it is used by the CS to track the
configuration of the CC; and it is updated with each new
configuration download to the CC.
[0021] The primary structure of the configuration file consists of
different types of configuration records. These configuration
records are essential because they help the CC to monitor
information on the (CAN & CCD data) buses.
[0022] The configuration records that are sequentially transmitted
includes, broadcast parameters, query parameters, attributes,
utilization, snapshot, performance alert, machine state, call-in
schedule and system configuration. These records are used to define
to the CC how to acquire a parameter (data items which are
available on the bus such as GPS speed, hitch position, time, etc.)
that are being broadcast on the bus. The two types of parameters
(broadcast, query) are used to define the items that are monitored
on the CC, commonly known as "attributes". Attributes are monitored
for collecting performance data, for generating current machine
status (snapshot report/values) and for monitoring performance
alerts. The machine status consists of the machine position,
machine state (off, idle, working, transporting). Once attributes
are generated, they are then used to collect utilization reports,
which transmits all complete reporting period data for duration of
1 hour.
[0023] The distinct features of this invention exist for both the
individual machine and the entire fleet of machines. The ability to
produce a summary and snapshot report through remote monitoring
enables the user to get information about the historical and
current state of the machine (working, transporting, idling or
off), the current settings or utilization breakdowns as described
in 2A, a means to know how the machine or all machines within the
fleet have been operated over a period of time, a means to know how
productive the machine or fleet of machines have been over a period
of time and a real-time fleet schedule for refueling a machine.
Generating summary and snapshot reports about configurable aspects
of the machine greatly increases the users ability to track the
productivity of the machine in 1 hour increments, track the
productivity of the operator of the machine and track the current
location of each machine enabling the user to dispatch service
personnel immediately is a red alert code is given. These report
capabilities also enables the user to potentially increase output
of the machine and operator as well as immediately preserving
resources by knowing exactly where the machine is located and how
it is being utilized on an hourly, daily, weekly, monthly and
yearly basis. This invention is clearly a benefit because it
provides fleet managers and other users automatically collected
information which tells them if they are over or under equipped and
by ensuring them that their needs are being met at all times with
the equipment they have, it reduces the possible down-time of a
machine within the fleet and it keeps the user from expending
unnecessary resources to resolve the problem.
[0024] It is therefore seen that this invention will achieve at
least all of its stated objectives.
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