Cut The Cord

Automotive Industries, May, 1999 by Norman Martin

Wireless, modular diagnostic and test systems are ready to hit the factory floor.

Wireless testing and diagnostic systems are ready to leap from the service bay to the assembly plant. Using wireless communications and upgradable modularity, these new portable systems allow workers to perform various test functions on new vehicles as they roll down the assembly line.

Wireless systems eliminate the clutter of multiple tools connected with bulky cables, allowing users to move about with greater ease. They also give instant access to information from the Internet, CD-ROMs, factory databases and servers. Effective range of the wireless units varies. In open air with no impediments, the range is about 1,000 feet. Typically in a manufacturing environment, it's closer to 100 feet.

For line workers, they will provide ready access to text,, graphic and video resources without taking a step away from the work area. And there's even an option for video conferencing, using a tiny portable camera linked to the Internet.

"This (wireless) concept allows you to have an interface in the palm of the user's hand, whether it's on the manufacturing plant floor, out on the test track or the service bay," says Maurice Liang, Hewlett-Packard's marketing communications manager.

Until recently, wireless testing was very expensive. Typical automotive systems cost about $40,000 a decade ago. They're now in the $6,000 range. And the technology has improved sharply. Data rates and transmission capable can be used in the automotive manufacturing environment.

The most recent wireless diagnostics systems are aimed at vehicle service. One example is HP's three-part modular system, introduced last month. The first module, the TestBook 3100, is a pen-based, handheld computer that serves as an "information gateway" to multiple data sources, says Lara Kahler, TestBook product manager in Sunnyvale, Calif.

A second unit, the vehicle communication interface, acts as a pipeline, translating trouble codes and getting information from the engine control unit. It then transmits them to the computer. A third unit, the electronic instrumentation module, performs analog test measurements when it's connected to the vehicle. It also relays results back to the computer.

An optional feature of the 3100 is its ability to incorporate a small off-the-shelf USB video camera to link the pen computer to a remote help desk or some other remote site. In this case, the user's unit talks wirelessly to a server that is linked to a local area network.

Siemens' latest generation of wireless, portable diagnostic systems is known as SIDIS-W. Data from the vehicle is transmitted to a high-resolution, thin-film transistor touch-screen unit that has multimedia capabilities. Using a guided troubleshooting feature, the system leads the user to the location of the fault. Then the unit automatically generates a test plan to provide an optimum step-by-step sequence of tasks to fix the problem.

Any questions on how to fix the problem are stored in the unit's 4-gigabyte hard drive, which contains text, graphics and video on a CD-ROM drive. "Everything is on-board," explains Karl-Freidrich Raviol, an engineer at Siemens Automotive Testing Systems in Karlsruhe, Germany. "You don't have to go anywhere." Data or program updates can be downloaded to the unit from a central server through a local area network via cable or wireless link.

Looking ahead, industry experts say the future holds even more promise. They claim data transmission rates 10 times faster than today's wireless technology are coming within the decade. The next step, according to Raviol, will likely be a fully networked setting. If that happens, a powerful server computer would be wirelessly linked to a simple, portable display with browser technology. All the software and documentation would be stored on the server and called up by the user from the server.

More electronic standardization could make this a reality in five to 10 years, he says. So, is the potential for a fully wireless network operation, complete with lightweight, portable tablets linked to extremely powerful computer servers and browsers?

"There's definitely interest from a couple of U.S. auto manufacturers" in portable wireless testing, claims H-P's Kahler. For those responsible for on-line vehicle testing, that means it's finally time to cut the cord.