METHOD AND DEVICE FOR REPORTING FAULT STATES RELATING TO COMPONENTS OF A PASSENGER TRANSPORT SYSTEM IN A MACHINE-SUPPORTED MANNER AND INFORMING A MONITORING DEVICE ON REPORTED FAULT STATES IN A MACHINE-SUPPORTED MANNER

Abstract

A method for reporting component fault states of a passenger transport system includes the steps: detecting identity information and/or fault state information of a component being examined using a reporting device; automatically transmitting the detected information to an analysis device; automatically selecting a selection of possible causes of the fault from a list based on the identity information and/or the fault information and transmitting corresponding selection information to the reporting device; automatically outputting the selection information from the reporting device and receiving sub-selection information describing a sub-selection selected by a reporter from the selection of possible causes of the fault; and automatically transmitting the sub-selection information to the analysis device. Possible causes of the fault states are reported and collected in a simple and standardized manner. A monitoring device is informed of possible causes of faults that arise frequently so that components can be further developed in a targeted manner.

Claims

1-14. (canceled)

15. A method for reporting, in a machine-supported manner, fault states related to components of a passenger transport system, the method comprising the steps of: selecting one of the components to be examined and operating a reporting device to acquire component information about the component being examined, the component information including at least one of identity information and fault information, wherein the identity information describes an identity of the component being examined, and wherein the fault information describes a fault state in the component being examined; automatically transmitting the component information from the reporting device to an analysis device in a first data transmission process; automatically selecting a selection of possible causes of a fault state of the component being examined from a list of possible causes of faults stored in the analysis device based on the component information and transmitting corresponding selection information that describes the selection of possible causes of the fault state to the reporting device in a second data transmission process; automatically outputting the selection information to a display of the reporting device and receiving sub-selection information that describes a sub-selection possible cause selected by a reporter from the displayed selection information using the reporting device; and automatically transmitting the sub-selection information from the reporting device to the analysis device in a third data transmission process.

16. The method according to claim 15 wherein the identity information is acquired by reading out machine-readable information stored on the component being examined.

17. The method according to claim 16 wherein the identity information is stored on the component being examined as an optically readable code and including reading out the code with a scanner integrated into the reporting device to acquire the identity information.

18. The method according to claim 15 including outputting the selection information to the reporting device in a language that can be preset by the reporter.

19. The method according to claim 15 including transmitting usage site information in the first transmission process, wherein the usage site information describes a usage site of the component being examined.

20. The method according to claim 15 including collecting the sub-selection information representing the possible causes of the fault state by performing the method steps multiple times, and automatically informing a monitoring device about the collected sub-section information related to any of the possible causes when a frequency of the related sub-section information exceeds a predefined frequency threshold value.

21. The method according to claim 20 including predefining the frequency threshold value with consideration of at least one of physical properties and functionalities of the component being examined.

22. The method according to claim 20 including predefining the frequency threshold value with consideration of a frequency of use of the component being examined.

23. The method according to claim 20 including collecting usage site information when the sub-selection information is collected, wherein the usage site information describes a usage site of the component being examined, and wherein the frequency threshold value is predefined with consideration of the usage site of the certain component type.

24. The method according to claim 20 including transmitting correction information from the analysis device to the reporting device as a proposal for correcting the fault state represented by the sub-selection information.

25. A report generating device for reporting fault states relating to components of a passenger transport system in a machine-supported manner, wherein the report generating device is adapted to carry out or control the method according to claim 15, the report generating device comprising: a reporting device with a display; and an analysis device in data communication with the reporting device.

26. A report generating device for reporting fault states relating to components of a passenger transport system in a machine-supported manner, wherein the report generating device is adapted to carry out or control the method according to claim 21, the report generating device comprising: a reporting device with a display; an evaluating device in data communication with the reporting device and including an analysis device that receives the component information and the sub-section information from the reporting device; wherein the evaluating device evaluates the component information for the fault states relating to components of the passenger transport system in a machine-supported manner; and wherein the evaluating device informs a monitoring device in a machine-supported manner of the fault states that have occurred in the components.

27. A computer program product comprising non-transitory machine-readable instructions that prompt a processor to carry out or to control the method according to claim 15.

28. A machine-readable medium with a computer program product according to claim 27 stored thereon.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0080] FIG. 1 shows an arrangement of devices, by means of which the methods proposed herein can be implemented, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0081] The FIGURE is merely schematic and not true-to-scale. Identical or identically acting characteristics are identified by the same reference symbols.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0082] FIG. 1 shows a report generating device 1, by means of which fault states relating to different components 11′, 11″, 11′″ of a passenger transport system can be reported in a machine-supported manner in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The report generating device 1 comprises at least one reporting device 5 and an analysis device 7. The analysis device 7 may be simultaneously considered to be part of an evaluating device 3, by means of which reports reported with the aid of the report generating device 1 can be evaluated and a monitoring device 9 optionally can be informed on a cumulative occurrence of reported fault states in a suitably automated manner.

[0083] The reporting device 5 comprises a scanner 17 that is realized, for example, in the form of a camera 27. When a technician detects a fault state in a component 11 of the passenger transport system, the technician can read in machine-readable information 13 arranged on the component 11′, 11″, 11′″, e.g. in the form of a QR code 15, with the aid of this scanner 17. The machine-readable information 13 may comprise identity information that may contain, for example, information on the component type of the component being examined, its specific properties, a serial number, a usage site and/or other information.

[0084] The technician may additionally or alternatively also record fault information that makes it possible to draw conclusions on the fault state of the component 11′, 11″, 11′″ being examined. To this end, the technician can record an image of faulty parts 31′ among parts 31 of the component 11′, 11″, 11′″, e.g. with the camera 27 of the reporting device 5.

[0085] The identity information and/or fault information acquired by the reporting device 5 is then automatically transmitted to the analysis device 7 as component information in a first data transmission process 19. The analysis device 7 or the evaluating device 3 implemented thereby may be realized in the form of multiple computers that jointly form a data cloud. The analysis device 7 may alternatively be formed by a central computer. The analysis device 7 or the evaluating device 3 may respectively be linked to and receive information from a plurality of different reporting devices 5.

[0086] A list 33 of possible causes 37 of faults is stored in the analysis device 7. In this case, occurring problems (P) and possible causes 37 of faults that are causative for the occurring problems may be listed for each identity information (ID) 35, i.e. for each component type. Options for correcting the occurring problems could potentially also be included in the list 33. The frequency (H) 39, with which a possible cause of a fault occurs, is also recorded for each possible cause 37 of a fault in this case.

[0087] A selection of possible causes of faults is automatically selected based on the received component information, that includes the identity information and/or fault information, in the analysis device 7 by using the list 33 and then transmitted back to the reporting device 5 in the form of selection information in the course of a second data transmission process 21.

[0088] The selection information therefore represents a selection of possible causes of faults F1, F2, F3, F4, etc., which could be causative for the observed fault state. For example, the cause of the fault F1 may refer to the delivery of an incorrect component for the installation of a passenger transport system, the cause of the fault F2 may refer to a component having incorrect dimensions, the cause of the fault F3 may refer to the component having incorrect functional properties, etc. For example, the causes of the faults F1, F2, F3, F4 may be output on a display 25 of the reporting device 5 such that they can be easily perceived visually by a technician.

[0089] The reporting technician subsequently can select a sub-selection from the displayed selection information. For example, the technician may in this context select the cause of fault F1, F2, F3, F4, which in his opinion is actually or most likely causative for the presently observed fault state.

[0090] The corresponding sub-selection information is then automatically transmitted from the reporting device 5 to the analysis device 7 in the course of a third data transmission process 23.

[0091] In the course of time, the analysis device 7 or the evaluating device 3 therefore may respectively receive a plurality of reports from different reporting devices 5 and collect the possible causes of reported fault states cited in these reports.

[0092] The evaluating device 3 can correspondingly inform the monitoring device 9 as soon as the frequency 39, with which a certain possible cause 37 of a fault was reported to the evaluating device 3 specifically for a certain component type, exceeds a predefined frequency threshold value.

[0093] Developers can then attempt to enhance the corresponding component type in order to prevent the occurrence of the observed fault state in the future.

[0094] If such an attempt is successful, corresponding information can be transmitted to the analysis device 7, which then transmits this information onward to all reporting devices 5 that correspond with the analysis device or at least to the reporting devices 5 that have previously reported a corresponding fault state in the course of a fourth data transmission process 41.

[0095] All in all, the approach proposed herein can simplify the process of generating reports relating to fault states in components of a passenger transport system for a technician because the technician is to a large extend automatically supported by the report generating device 1. In addition, the reports can be generated in standardized form such that the evaluating device 3 can easily extract information, which allows a targeted enhancement of components 11′, 11″, 11′″, from these reports.

[0096] In conclusion, it should be noted that terms such as “having,” “comprising,” etc. do not preclude any other elements or steps and that terms such as “a” or “an” do not preclude a plurality. It should furthermore be noted that characteristics or steps, which were described above with reference to one of the exemplary embodiments, can also be used in combination with other characteristics or steps of other above-described exemplary embodiments.

[0097] In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, the present invention has been described in what is considered to represent its preferred embodiment. However, it should be noted that the invention can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described without departing from its spirit or scope.

LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS

[0098] 1 Report generating device [0099] 3 Evaluating device [0100] 5 Reporting device [0101] 7 Analysis device [0102] 9 Monitoring device [0103] 11′, 11″, 11′″ Components of passenger transport system [0104] 13 Machine-readable information [0105] 15 QR code [0106] 17 Scanner [0107] 19 First data transmission process [0108] 21 Second data transmission process [0109] 23 Third data transmission process [0110] 25 Display [0111] 27 Camera [0112] 31, 31′ Parts of a component [0113] 33 List of possible causes of faults [0114] 35 Identity information [0115] 37 Possible cause of a fault [0116] 39 Frequency [0117] 41 Fourth data transmission process