Model based troubleshooting in engineering

Ship your new product/system with an AI troubleshooting solution that gives you around 85% fault coverage from the get-go and gets better(learns) over time. It will also assist your field service engineers with manual troubleshooting. Include a predictive element and more.

What iTech can do for you

On-board/remote diagnostics

iTech's model based troubleshooting solutions can be embedded into your product or system (see API picture above) and can interface with your BIT and other data to do self-diagnostics. Obviously at times operator input and also manual testing might be required. Should the entire system fail, the same models can be run from a laptop to guide a FSE through a troubleshooting session to find the cause of the failure.

Manual troubleshooting

iTech's model based troubleshooting engine can be used by Field Service Engineers on a laptop or over the internet at a customer's site to resolve system failures and repair the equipment with all the data they need at their fingertips. The guidance includes what tools are needed, how to perform the necessary tests, identification of the root cause of failure and the necessary tools and parts information to repair the system and get it up and running again.

Savings

up to 95%

reduction in MTTR

iTech's optimization algorithms guide you through the shortest path to the fault

up to 90%

downtime reduction

Make your customers happy by reducing their downtime and therefor the associated losses

up to 55%

spare parts savings

Avoid replacing good parts as a result of incorrect diagnosis

Cross training

Cross train your FSEs on various equipment as all the knowledge is kept in iTech and allow them to be more productive

Knowledge retention

Staff turnover no longer means losing knowledge and skills as it all resides in iTech and therefor reduces training requirements

Travel restrictions

Never again leave your customers in the lurch because of lockdowns or travel restrictions - deliver expertise via iTech

No Coding

You don't have to code to build your diagnostic models. Import much of your data from Excel and build your model with drag-and-drop ease

Troubleshooting guidance

The iTech runtime version will guide your Field Service Engineer (or your customer) through a troubleshooting session with full test and repair instructions using multi-media

Interpreting BIT/error codes

Many systems have built-in tests that generate error messages. These can be very useful, but on larger complex systems, a single fault might generate a dozen or more error messages. iTech uses its diagnostic logic inference engine to interpret and make sense of all these messages and arrive at a root cause or an ambiguity group. Normally an engineer would have to read through all the error messages and try to make sense of the specific combination of errors to arrive at the root cause of the failure. However iTech does this automatically and within seconds purely by understanding the system logic and dependencies. If necessary it can then guide the engineer through manual testing to identify the root cause.

See Transrapid for such an example.

DFS (Design for Supportability)

iTech can be used during the design phase of a system to analyse the supportability of the system even before prototyping. It can assist in identifying the necessary test points, BIT and and tools required for troubleshooting and repair. During all phases from design to the operational phase benefits can be had and system design and tools can be improved.

FMECA

Once your model is built, you can simulate the failure of a specific component and iTech will highlight the resulting functional failures. FMECA is a very effective predictive tool which can be used to deal with the potential failure modes by making the process robust by incorporating in-built test and defect indicators whenever any defect occurs, thereby further improving the design.

APPLICATIONS

Troubleshooting a train or a coffee machine - use iTech.

Siemens and Thyssen Krupp developed and installed the first commercial MagLev train system in Shanghai, China. The Transrapid started service in Shanghai, China in 2003 and utilizes magnetic levitation and linear synchronous motors to propel it on its track at speeds of up to 500 km/h (312 mph).

ITECH DIAGNOSTICS (READ MORE)

How difficult is it to build these troubleshooting models?

It is actually quite easy once you have done the system analysis. Watch the video above to see how it is done with drag and drop ease. The methodology for designing the optimal model is the tricky part - but it is well documented and easy to follow. Whether you are troubleshooting an electrical, digital, mechanical, hydraulic or hybrid system iTech can assist you.

Why model-based reasoning?

What is wrong with the old fashioned methods?

Rule-based systems

Creating a set of rules to guide an FSE through a troubleshooting session is tedious and grows exponentially as the size of the system grows. For this you typically also need a lot of experience.

Once you have built the model in iTech it can generate a fault tree if you insist on going the old route.

Case-based reasoning

In this case you create a list of symptoms or failures and for each you provide a list of possible causes. This requires a lot of experience (historical failure data) - something you don't have when you release a new product or system - exactly when you need it most!

What about Machine Learning?

Machine learning

This method also requires massive amounts of historical data to become effective. Again this is great for legacy systems and assisting new FSEs, but it is useless when you are releasing a new product, because that is when you need it most as not even your expert engineers can anticipate all the possible faults.

So what makes iTech so special?

iTech is an artificial intelligence tool that uses model-based reasoning (or logic) as its basis and then borrows the best features from all the other systems to optimize the diagnostic and give you the best of all worlds.

Learn more