Integrated vehicle health management systems and methods using an enhanced fault model for a diagnostic reasoner

A system for vehicle fault management, the system comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• a memory including instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
• generate, for a subsystem of a vehicle system of a vehicle, a fault model including a plurality of faults using design failure mode and effect analysis information and wherein the fault model is generated each time the subsystem of the vehicle system of the vehicle is in use;
• parse, each time the subsystem of the vehicle system is in use, each of the faults of the plurality of faults by subsystem of the vehicle system;
• determine, for a respective fault associate with the subsystem of the vehicle system, whether the respective fault is associated with at least one existing diagnostic trouble code based on fault code requirement information;
• in response to a determination that the respective fault is associated with at least one existing diagnostic trouble code, associate, in a fault database, the at least one existing diagnostic trouble code with the respective fault;
• and
• identify, using a diagnostic reasoner, at least one potential fault in the vehicle system based on the input provided by the fault model and the fault database.

An apparatus for vehicle fault management, the apparatus comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• a memory including instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
• generate, for a subsystem of a vehicle system of a vehicle, a fault model including a plurality of faults using design failure mode and effect analysis information and wherein the fault model is generated each time the subsystem of the vehicle system of the vehicle is in use;
• parse, each time the subsystem of the vehicle system is in use, each of the faults of the plurality of faults by subsystem of the vehicle system;
• determine, for a respective fault associated with the subsystem of the vehicle system, whether the respective fault is associated with at least one existing diagnostic trouble code based on fault code requirement information;
• in response to a determination that the respective fault is associated with at least one existing diagnostic trouble code, associate, in a fault database, the at least one existing diagnostic trouble code with the respective fault;
• in response to a determination that the respective fault is not associated with at least one existing diagnostic trouble code:
• generate, using at least one of available data and a physics based model, diagnostic information for the respective fault, and
• associate the diagnostic information for the respective fault with the respective fault in the fault database;
• and
• identify, using a diagnostic reasoner, at least one potential fault in the vehicle system based on the input provided by the fault model and the fault database.