Method for tracking defective functions in operation of motor vehicles

Method for tracking defective functions in the operation of heater plugs in a diesel engine in a vehicle, provided with a control unit for the control of its heater plugs, the preheater control unit, comprising:

• monitoring at least one operating parameter of the heater plugs and/or of the preheater control unit;
• monitoring further operating parameters of the vehicle;
• generating a fault message during any period of operation when an operating parameter so monitored deviates from a predefined nominal value or nominal state of the operating parameter;
• storing the fault message in the vehicle during any period of operation;
• linking the fault message to a time parameter during any period of operation;
• storing the linked fault message/time parameter in the vehicle during any period of operation;
• linking the values or states of the remaining operating parameters being controlled to the same time parameter as the fault message;
• storing the values or states jointly described as state information, of the other operating parameters being monitored, that have been collected simultaneously or nearly simultaneously, together with the time parameter during any period of operation;
• searching for messages that are linked to the same time parameter;
• combining the fault message from a first unit with the messages from another unit that are linked to the same time parameter as the fault message from the first unit.

Method for tracking defective functions in the operation of motor vehicles that are driven by a combustion engine or by a hybrid drive, comprising:

• monitoring at least one operating parameter of the vehicle;
• generating a fault message during any period of operation when the operating parameter so monitored differs from a predefined nominal value or nominal state of the operating parameter;
• storing the fault message in the vehicle during any period of operation;
• linking the fault message to a time parameter during any period of operation;
• storing the linked fault message/time parameter in the vehicle during any period of operation;
• searching for further fault messages that are stored in the vehicle, linked to the same time parameter;
• and
• combining the fault messages that are linked to the same time parameter.

Method for tracking defective functions in the operation of motor vehicles that are driven by a combustion engine or by a hybrid drive, comprising:

• monitoring a plurality of operating parameters of the vehicle;
• monitoring further operating parameters of the vehicle;
• generating a fault message during any period of operation when an operating parameter so monitored differs from a predefined nominal value or nominal state of the operating parameter;
• storing the fault message in the vehicle during any period of operation;
• linking the fault message to a time parameter during any period of operation;
• storing the linked fault message/time parameter in the vehicle during any period of operation;
• linking the values or states of the remaining operating parameters being monitored to the same time parameter as the fault message during any period of operation;
• storing in the vehicle the values or states, jointly described as state informations, of the other operating parameters being monitored, that have been recorded simultaneously or within short delay, together with the time parameter during any period of operation;
• searching for fault messages that are linked to the same time parameter;
• combining the fault message from a first unit of the vehicle with the messages from another unit of the vehicle that are linked to the same time parameter as the fault message from the first unit.