Apparatus for tracking and recording vital signs and task-related information of a vehicle to identify operating patterns

DETAILED DESCRIPTION It is the general object of the invention to diagnose the cause of anomalies in the values of the state-of-health parameters of a vehicle.
It is a related object of the invention to employ the foregoing diagnosis to control the operation and use of the vehicle to reduce the severity and number of anomalies of the values of the state-of-health parameters of the vehicle, thereby extending the useful life of the vehicle while maintaining production goals.
It is also an important object of the invention to provide a historical record of the values of the condition and performance parameters of a vehicle, which can be used to schedule future maintenance and utilization of a vehicle.
It is yet another important object of the invention to provide to the user of a vehicle real-time information regarding the degree with which the vehicle is being utilized--i.
e.
, the maximization of all performance and condition parameters within their normal ranges.
It is a related object of the invention to signal the user of a vehicle whether the utilization of the vehicle at the moment is optimum and to also indicate whether the user has utilized the vehicle over a known time period (e.
g.
, a work shift) in a manner that meets expectations.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention, as well as additional inventive features, will be apparent from the description of the invention provided herein.
Briefly, the invention identifies a poor state of health of a vehicle and provides data regarding the recent use of the vehicle that can be used to effectively diagnose the cause of the poor health.
Operating the vehicle beyond its normal operating conditions stresses components and subassemblies.
If stressed to an extreme or for a long period of time, the component or subassembly may fail.
On the other hand, under-utilization of the vehicle results in undue operating expenses and inefficient use of the vehicle.
Therefore, the invention also provides a visual prompt to the operator of the vehicle on a substantially real-time basis an evaluation of the efficiency of the vehicle's operation with respect to a predetermined norm for an assigned task