The Research and Development of an Automotive Fault Real-Time Alarming System

Abstract

The authors have researched on the communication protocols and the diagnostic modes used by the second generation of On-Board-Diagnosis (OBD-II) system and put forward a project scheme of automotive fault real-time alarming system based on OBD-II system. The Total Control Unit (TCU) of the alarming system, the signal conversion module between TCU and OBD-II system, the preliminary expert system of automotive fault diagnosis, LCD display system and phonic broadcast system have been developed. Test results on sample machines prove that the alarming system can successfully acquires data stream & trouble codes from automotive electronic control unit, so the expert system can comprehensively analyze potential fault causes and provide the driver with solutions. The fault causes and solutions can be displayed on LCD and converted into voice by text-to-speech module. The wide spread of the alarming system would effectively reduce the costs of vehicle operation and maintenance and greatly improve the vehicle road safety.