# US 12,762,909 B2 · Vehicle repair system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,762,909 B2 - Document ID: US12762909B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 19/036,511 - Filed: 2025-01-24 - Published: 2026-07-30 - Granted: 2026-10-13 - Earliest claimed: 2025-01-24 - Assignees: Ford Global Technologies, LLC - Applicants: Ford Global Technologies, LLC - Inventors: Syed Amaar Ahmad; Saed M. Abuzahrieh; Khalid Nayaz Ahmed - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12762909B2 ## CPC - G07C 5/0808: {Diagnosing performance data (testing of vehicles G01M17/00; testing of electrical installation on vehicles G01R31/005)} - B60S 5/00: Servicing, maintaining, repairing, or refitting of vehicles (vehicles adapted to carry a workshop for servicing or maintenance B60P3/14; servicing rail locomotives B61K) - G07C: TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE - B60S: SERVICING, CLEANING, REPAIRING, SUPPORTING, LIFTING, OR MANOEUVRING OF VEHICLES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR ## Abstract A computer includes a processor and a memory, and the memory stores instructions executable by the processor to generate a protocol to address a malfunction in a system of a vehicle based on an inputted description of the malfunction, determine that a deviation occurred based on data transmitted on board the vehicle, and, upon determining that the actual intervention deviated from the protocol, generate an output indicating the deviation. The protocol includes an ordered list of proposed interventions on the vehicle. The deviation is an actual intervention on the vehicle deviating from a respective one of the proposed interventions of the protocol. The data transmitted on board the vehicle identifies at least one component of the system. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A computer comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor to: generate a protocol to address a malfunction in a system of a vehicle based on an inputted description of the malfunction by executing a large-language model with a retrieval-augmented generator, the large-language model taking the inputted description as input and generating the protocol as output, the protocol including an ordered list of proposed interventions on the vehicle, the retrieval-augmented generator conforming the protocol to technical documentation about the vehicle, the protocol generated by the large-language model being an original creation compared with the technical documentation; determine that a deviation occurred based on data transmitted on board the vehicle, the deviation being an actual intervention on the vehicle deviating from a respective one of the proposed interventions of the protocol, the data identifying at least one component of the system, the at least one component including an original electronic control module, the protocol including updating software on the original electronic control module before replacing the original electronic control module, the deviation being replacing the original electronic control module with a replacement electronic control module without updating the software on the original electronic control module; and upon determining that the actual intervention deviated from the protocol, generate an output indicating the deviation. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the data identifying the at least one component includes at least one identifying number of the at least one component. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the instructions to determine that the deviation occurred include instructions to determine that an identifier of the replacement electronic control module transmitted on board the vehicle is different than an identifier of the original electronic control module. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein: the protocol includes checking wired connections to the original electronic control module before replacing the original electronic control module. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the inputted description includes unstructured text. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the inputted description includes a diagnostic trouble code transmitted on board the vehicle. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the large-language model is trained on training data including service manuals. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the large-language model is trained on training data including descriptions of earlier malfunctions. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the instructions further include instructions to display the output indicating the deviation on a user interface of the vehicle. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The computer of claim 1, wherein the instructions further include instructions to, upon determining that the actual intervention deviated from the protocol, transmit a message indicating the deviation to a server remote from the vehicle. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The computer of claim 10, wherein the message includes a log of actual interventions on the vehicle. ### Claim 12 A method comprising: generating a protocol to address a malfunction in a system of a vehicle based on an inputted description of the malfunction by executing a large-language model with a retrieval-augmented generator, the large-language model taking the inputted description as input and generating the protocol as output, the protocol including an ordered list of proposed interventions on the vehicle, the retrieval-augmented generator conforming the protocol to technical documentation about the vehicle, the protocol generated by the large-language model being an original creation compared with the technical documentation; determining that a deviation occurred based on data transmitted on board the vehicle, the deviation being an actual intervention on the vehicle deviating from a respective one of the proposed interventions of the protocol, the data identifying at least one component of the system, the at least one component including an original electronic control module, the protocol including updating software on the original electronic control module before replacing the original electronic control module, the deviation being replacing the original electronic control module with a replacement electronic control module without updating the software on the original electronic control module; and upon determining that the actual intervention deviated from the protocol, generating an output indicating the deviation. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein the data identifying the at least one component includes at least one of a part number or serial number of the at least one component. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein determining that the deviation occurred includes determining that an identifier of the replacement electronic control module transmitted on board the vehicle is different than an identifier of the original electronic control module.