FR2734928A1 - Tracking and management of configuration of vehicle fleet - Google Patents

Abstract

The tracking and management procedure makes use of a memory card (20), in which are stored configuration trees and a program (24) to allow an external computer to read the data in the memory card and to write new data to it. Equipment is marked with a bar-code for easy external identification. Whenever an operation is performed with the particular item of equipment, data is written to the memory by a local personal computer. At the same time, the memory can be read and data transferred to a central management computer. All documentation associated with the operation is generated by the personal computers which also generates identification and address labels generated for attachment to parcels associated with the operation.

Description

METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TRACKING AND MANAGING CONFIGRATION OF MATERNALS
The invention relates to a method and a system for monitoring and managing the configuration of materials, such as for example vehicles or other devices or apparatuses for which monitoring, maintenance, updating and periodic replacement are required. or not, etc.

 For this purpose, it has already been proposed, in the Patent Application FR94 00626 of the Applicant, to associate with hardware memory cards, in which a tree-like logistical configuration of the hardware and a tracking software making it possible to read is recorded. and write in this tree configuration, so that it suffices to connect one of these cards to a conventional information processing system, such as a microcomputer of the PC type or the like for example, to record on the map of the interventions carried out on the associated equipment and correspondingly modifying the logistical configuration of this equipment, these interventions and modifications also being recorded in a memory of the information processing system for later transmission to a central database .

 For example, these information processing systems can be installed or used in maintenance workshops spread over a territory or possibly mobile while the central database is located with the manufacturer, supplier or owner of the equipment and allows centralize, store and process all logistical information on the equipment.

 The object of the present invention is in particular to complete, perfect and improve the process and the system described in the aforementioned Patent Application.

 It relates to a process and a system for monitoring and managing the configuration of materials, which also make it possible to carry out tasks such as the management of spare parts or spare parts, of their dispatch, of their reception and of their transport, management of technical facts, control of the execution of contractual obligations by suppliers and service providers, and the establishment and edition of documentation of maintenance and operation of the aforementioned equipment.

 To this end, it proposes a process for monitoring and managing the configuration of materials, consisting in associating with the hardware memory cards in which tree-like logistical configurations of the hardware and a software for writing and reading in these have been recorded. configurations, and to connect one of these cards to an information processing means for recording interventions carried out on the associated equipment and correspondingly modifying the tree-like logistical configuration of the equipment, characterized in that it consists in associating with this software for specific programs for reading, printing and processing coded information, for example of the barcode type, said specific programs being recorded on said card or on another memory medium, to connect said card or said memory medium with said card by the aforementioned means of information processing and, on the one hand, to ensure management of spare parts by printing and reading labels associated with spare parts and carrying coded information identifying these parts and their location in the logistical tree configurations of the materials and, on the other hand, ensuring shipping, transport and reception of packages by printing and reading labels associated with the packages and carrying coded information such as identification data of the packages, their content, their sender, their recipient and their means of transport.

 Thus, a conventional information processing system, such as a PC or similar microcomputer, is sufficient to manage the configuration of equipment, the management of spare parts for this equipment and the management of shipments, receptions and transport of these parts when a memory card associated with these materials and possibly another memory medium is connected to it.

 The invention therefore makes it possible to collect and combine in a simple manner the monitoring and management of configuration of materials, the management of spare parts, the dispatch, transport and reception of packages containing spare parts and other objects such as maintenance products, tools, consumables, etc., by means of a memory card comprising a tree-like logistical configuration of the hardware and configuration management software that is made to work with specific management programs spare parts and parcel processing.

 According to another characteristic of the invention, this method also consists in associating with the aforementioned software specific programs for establishing and editing maintenance and / or operating documentation of said equipment, these specific programs being recorded with databases. "illustration" and "document definition" on the aforementioned card or on another memory medium, to connect the card or the memory medium with the card using the aforementioned information processing means and to prepare the desired documents from the configurations tree logistics recorded on the aforementioned map and databases.

 According to yet another characteristic of the invention, this method also consists in associating with the aforementioned software specific programs for managing technical facts, recorded on the aforementioned card or on another memory medium, in connecting the card or the memory medium with the card using the aforementioned information processing means, and carrying out the management of technical facts from the information and tree-like logistical configurations recorded on the card.

 According to yet another characteristic of the invention, this method consists in associating with the aforementioned software specific programs for managing contractual documents, recorded on the aforementioned card or on another memory medium, in connecting the card or the memory medium with the card. using the aforementioned information processing means, and to control the performance of their contractual obligations by suppliers or service providers, from the information recorded on said card.

 In general, the invention makes it possible to organize, around a configuration and configuration management software recorded on a memory card, additional means or accessories allowing, on site, the management of spare parts, the parcel processing, management of technical facts, management of contractual documents and establishment and editing of documentation for maintenance and operation of equipment.

 The invention also proposes a system for monitoring and managing the configuration of hardware, comprising memory cards associated with the hardware and comprising in memory a tree-like logistical configuration of at least one hardware and software for writing and reading in this tree configuration, each card being connectable to data processing means for recording interventions carried out on equipment associated with the card and for modifying the tree logistics configuration of this equipment, characterized in that the software aforementioned is associated with specific programs or software for reading, printing and processing coded information, for example of the bar code type, allowing on the one hand the management of spare parts by reading and / or printing of labels associated with the spare parts and carrying coded information identifying these parts and their rs locations in the logistical tree configurations of the materials, and allowing on the other hand the processing of packages for their shipment, their transport and their reception by printing and reading of labels associated with the packages and carrying coded information such as data of identification of packages, their contents, their senders, their recipients and their means of transport, these specific programs being recorded on the aforementioned card or on another memory medium connected or connectable with said card to the aforementioned means of processing the 'information.

 Advantageously, the bar code information on the labels of the spare parts includes the references of the suppliers, the storage locations for these parts and tree-like logistics configurations that can be used in the tree-like logistics configuration of the corresponding equipment.

The information processing means are also associated with printing means and with barcode information reading means, the latter preferably being of an advanced type such as the
PDF 417.

 The aforementioned smart card or another memory medium connectable with the card to the aforementioned means of information processing, also includes specific programs for establishing and editing documentation for maintenance and operation of equipment, for managing the facts. technical and contractual document management, working with the aforementioned software of the memory card and from the information recorded on this card.

The invention will be better understood and other characteristics, details and advantages thereof will appear more clearly on reading the description which follows, given by way of example with reference to the appended drawings in which
Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a system according to the invention;
FIG. 2 schematically represents the architecture of the software operating with this system
The system represented in FIG. 1 is typically one of those which can equip a workshop for the maintenance of equipment, such as for example vehicles, and it essentially comprises a central processing unit 10 for information processing, a connected video screen 12 to the central unit, a keyboard 14 connected to this central unit, and means 16 for printing and 18 for reading information, in particular information in bar code, the code used being preferably of a type evolved such as that known under the name "PDF 417".

 The advantage of using such a bar code is that the amount of data which can be included on a label is much greater than with a bar code of a conventional type. In addition, a code such as PDF 417 includes error correcting codes so that printing or reading faults of the coded information do not prevent their normal processing by computer means.

In more detail, PDF code 417 of the
SYMBOL TECHNOLOGIES (NY, USA) is a continuous type code allowing the coding of approximately 1000 bytes of data or more in a graphic symbol of square or rectangular shape which can include from three to ninety rows and from one to thirty columns of data and which is decodable by bi-directional reading. Different data compression modes can also be used with this code
The means 16 for printing and the means 18 for reading such a code exist and are commercially available.

 The means 10, 12 and 14 for processing the information in the system of FIG. 1 are of a conventional type and can be constituted by a microcomputer of the IBM-PC or similar type, for example portable, equipped with at least one reader of a removable memory, such as for example a memory card 20 of the PCMCIA type.

 Depending on the applications and the memory capacities of the card or cards used, the central unit 10 of the information processing system can be equipped with one or more memory card readers 20 or other data carriers 22 , such as floppy disks, hard disks, CD-ROMs, etc.

 On one of these supports, for example on the memory card 20 of the PCMCIA type, a tree-like logistical configuration of a material with which the card 20 is associated, and a configuration management software 24 which recorded write and read in the tree-like logistical configuration of the equipment and record the dates, types and characteristics of the various interventions carried out on this equipment.

 According to the invention, the configuration management software 24 is advantageously associated (FIG. 2) with a spare parts management software 26, which can be recorded on the aforementioned card 20 or on another support 22 connectable to the central unit 10 with card 20.

 With the spare parts management software 26, all the necessary information concerning the spare parts is also recorded on the support 22 or the card 20, such as the references of their suppliers, their storage locations, their supply times, the time limits after which certain parts must be replaced, etc.

 The software includes means for reading and possibly for printing control of the coded information appearing on labels of the spare parts, so as to automatically take into account all the information relating to a part which has just been used or which the 'we're going to use.

 The configuration management software 24 is also associated with technical fact management software 28 which can be recorded on the same card 20 as the software 24 or on another medium 22. This technical fact management software is essentially intended for determine the behavior of the materials, their faults, their capacities and their evolutions or modifications, from the actions of maintenance, update or equipment carried out on these materials, in order to improve the reliability of the materials, to reduce or remove their faults, plan their changes or updates and plan preventive actions for breakdowns, faults, etc.

 The configuration management software 24 is also associated with contractual document management software 30, which is intended to take into account breakdowns, faults, changes of parts, etc. of the materials and to check whether the contractual obligations of the manufacturers, suppliers , service providers, etc., are or are not correctly executed, for example with regard to supplies, qualities, guarantees, lifetimes, prices, etc. of the parts and sub-assemblies of the equipment concerned.

 The configuration management software 24 is also associated with software 32 for establishing and editing equipment maintenance and operation documentation, this software being for example of the type described in French Patent Application 93 14163 of the Applicant the content of which is incorporated here by reference, and which relates to a method and a system for producing documentation comprising drawings, from a logistic database constituted by the data recorded on the card 20, of a database "illustration" 34, of a "document definition" database 36 and of an "interface" database 38, this system being associated with means for viewing and editing the documents produced.

 The process for producing documents essentially consists in decomposing into complex objects complex objects to be represented, in registering in the "illustration" database 34 a drawing and an identifier of each elementary object, in replacing the complex objects by virtual objects each constituted by an identification code of a complex object and by a nomenclature comprising identifiers of the corresponding elementary objects and their positions in a graphic representation of the complex object, and in registering these virtual objects in the database "illustration" 34, then to produce each page of documentation from the corresponding virtual objects, by entering or selecting the identification code of the complex object sought and by automatically setting up texts and drawings of elementary objects whose identifiers are included in the nomenclature associated with the object identification code and complex.

 This system has the advantage that the complete documentation is no longer kept as it is in memory, nor the pages and sheets of drawings that constitute them. This results in a reduction in the number of recorded data, a saving of space in memory and a simplification of the management of the recorded data. In addition, documentation updates are carried out automatically.

 The software 32 for establishing and editing documentation, and the databases 34, 36 and 38 can be recorded on the aforementioned memory card 20, or on another medium 22.

 Finally, the configuration management software 24 is also associated with a package processing software 40, which makes it possible to manage the dispatch, transport and reception of packages and packages, likely to contain spare parts, tools, consumables, documents, etc.

 To this end, the software 40 includes means for printing, reading and processing information, advantageously coded in a bar code or the like such as PDF 417, this information being for example printed on glued or fixed labels. on the packages or packages, the labels including identification data of the packages, their contents, their senders, their recipients, their means of transport, etc., some of this information can constitute a tree configuration corresponding to a package and its content.

The system according to the invention is used in the following manner
when an intervention is carried out on a piece of equipment, such as for example the replacement of a part, the memory card 20 associated with this material is connected to the central unit 10 of the information processing system which is located on place (for example in a maintenance workshop) and any other memory media 22 are also connected to this central unit.

 The means 18 associated with this central unit make it possible to read and acquire the data appearing on the label of the spare part used, the date and the nature of the intervention carried out are entered into the computer system, for example by means of the keyboard 14, and the data set is taken into account by the configuration management software 24 recorded on the card 20 to keep in memory the characteristics of the intervention and to correspondingly modify the tree-like logistical configuration of the equipment.

 This data can also be taken into account by the spare parts management software 26, in order to note the use of a spare part, possibly order a new spare part of the same type, etc.

 This information can also be taken into account by the software 28 for managing technical facts, by the software 30 for managing contractual documents (for example to check a warranty, replacement, supply period, etc.), by software 32 establishment and editing of documentation (in particular for the automatic updating of maintenance and operating documentation) and by the package processing software 40 when it is necessary to receive new parts, or to return used or defective parts .

 The coded information which appears on the label of a part or a set of parts includes all the data necessary for its identification, its origin and its routing, and possibly a tree-like logistical configuration when it is a complete part or a set of parts This data can therefore be used directly by the configuration management software 24, and by the other software 26, 28, 30, 32, 40.

 The labels accompanying parcels or packages carry complete coded information which can also be used for the automatic preparation of routing and transport documents (delivery slips, customs documents, etc.).

 The central unit 10 of the system in FIG. 1 can also be permanently or temporarily connected to a central database 42, for example by means of a "modem" and an information transport network 44 , the central database 42 being intended to collect all the logistical information relating to a set of equipment, for example a fleet of vehicles, and comprising for this purpose detailed and complete tree logistical configurations of all the equipment concerned.

 The central database 42 is associated with information processing means which, for the most part, can be of the same type as the system of FIG. 1 and which make it possible to know at any time the state and the availability of a set of materials, to determine the most frequent breakdowns, to optimize the stocks of spare parts, to improve maintenance, to reduce logistics costs, etc.

 The same tasks or a part of them can be executed, on a reduced scale, by the system of FIG. 1 as a function of the number of hardware whose tree-like logistical configurations are recorded on a memory card 20, and software 26, 28, 30, 32, 40 which can be associated with the software 24 for configuration management of the card 20.

Claims (11)

 1. A method of monitoring and managing the configuration of equipment, consisting in associating with the equipment memory cards (20) in which there have been recorded tree-like logistical configurations of the equipment and software (24) for writing and reading in these configurations, and to connect a card (20) to an information processing means (10) to record interventions carried out on equipment and to correspondingly modify the tree-like logistical configuration of the equipment, characterized in that it consists to associate with the software (24) specific programs or software (26, 40) for reading, printing and processing coded information, for example of the bar code type, these specific programs or software being recorded on said card ( 20) or on another memory medium (22), to connect the card (20) or said memory medium (22) with said card (20) by the aforementioned means of processing information rmation and, on the one hand, to ensure the management of spare parts by printing and reading labels associated with spare parts and carrying coded information identifying these parts and their locations in the tree-like logistical configurations of equipment, and on the other hand to ensure the shipment, transport and reception of packages by printing and reading labels associated with packages and carrying coded information such as identification data of the packages, their contents, their senders, their recipients and their means of transport.  2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that it also consists in associating with the aforementioned software (24) specific programs (32) for establishing and editing maintenance and / or operating documentation for said equipment, these specific programs (32) being saved with databases the illustration "(34) and" document definition "(36) on the aforementioned card (20) or on another memory medium (22), to connect the card ( 20) or the memory medium (22) with the card (20) by the aforementioned means (10) for processing information, and for establishing the desired documentations from the information and tree logistical configurations recorded on the card (20) and the above-mentioned databases (34, 36).  3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it also consists in associating with the aforementioned software (24) specific programs (28) for managing technical facts, recorded on the aforementioned card (20) or on another memory medium (22), to connect the card (20) or the memory medium (22) with the card (20) by the aforementioned means (10) of information processing, and to manage the technical facts relating to the materials associated with the card (20) from the information recorded on this card.  4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it also consists in associating with the aforementioned software (24) specific programs (30) for managing contractual documents, recorded on the aforementioned card (20) or on a other memory medium (22), to connect the card (20) or the memory medium (22) with the card (20) by the aforementioned means (10) of information processing, and to control the execution of their contractual obligations by suppliers or service providers, from information recorded on the card (20).  5. Hardware configuration monitoring and management system, comprising memory cards (20) associated with the hardware and comprising in memory tree-like logistical configurations of the hardware and software (24) for writing and reading in these configurations. tree-like, each card (20) being connectable to means (10) for processing information for recording interventions carried out on equipment associated with the card (20) and for modifying the tree-like logistics configuration of this equipment , characterized in that the aforementioned software (24) is associated with specific programs or software (40) for reading, printing and processing coded information, for example in bar code, allowing on the one hand the management of spare parts by reading and / or printing of labels associated with the spare parts and carrying coded information identifying these parts and their uses acements in the logistical tree configurations of the materials, and allowing on the other hand the treatment of packages for their shipment, their reception and their transport by printing and reading of labels associated with the packages and carrying coded information such as identification data packages, their contents, their senders, their recipients and their means of transport, this specific program (40) being recorded on the card (20) comprising the aforementioned software (24) or on another memory medium (22 ) connected or connectable with said card to the aforementioned means (10) for processing information.  6. System according to claim 5, characterized in that the information processing means (10) are associated with means (16) for printing and / or with means (18) for reading information in code. with bars.  7. System according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the bar code is of an advanced type such as PDF 417.  8. System according to one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that the barcode information on the labels of the spare parts includes the references of the suppliers, the storage locations of these parts and tree configurations usable in the logistics configuration. tree of the corresponding material.  9. System according to one of claims 5 to 8, characterized in that the aforementioned software (24) of a card (20) is also associated with specific programs or software (32) for establishing and editing documentation of maintenance and / or operation of said equipment, from information recorded on the aforementioned card (20) and from the "illustration" (34) and "document definition" (36) databases recorded with the programs of establishment and editing of documentation on the aforementioned card (20) or on another memory medium (22) connected or connectable with said card (20) to the aforementioned means (10) for processing information.  10. System according to one of claims 5 to 9, characterized in that the aforementioned software (24) of a card (20) is also associated with specific programs or software (28) for managing the technical facts recorded on this card (20) or on another memory medium (22) connected or connectable with the card (20) to the aforementioned means (10) for processing information.  11. System according to one of claims 5 to 10, characterized in that the aforementioned software (24) of a card (20) is also associated with specific programs or software (30) for managing contractual documents, allowing in particular to verify the performance of their contractual obligations by suppliers or service providers, these specific programs (30) being recorded on the card (20) or on another memory medium (22) connected or connectable with the card (20 ) the aforementioned means (10) for processing information.