Why predictive maintenance beats reactive

  • Reduce roadside failures and tow costs.
  • Shift to planned service windows to protect revenue routes.
  • Extend component life with data‑driven thresholds.

The CAN/OBD signals that matter

Start with OBD‑II PIDs available on most vehicles, then enrich with CAN where supported:
Source Signal Why it matters
OBD Coolant temp, oil temp Overheat/viscosity stress
OBD RPM, load, throttle Work intensity & patterns
OBD Fuel rate (calc) Injector health; MAF sanity
CAN DPF Soot, SCR/NOx Emission system failures
CAN Brake wear % Service forecasting
CAN Battery SOC 12V/EV pack health

Starter rules before ML

Start with OBD‑II PIDs available on most vehicles, then enrich with CAN where supported:

  • Overheat: Coolant > 105°C for > 30s → reduce load; schedule inspection.
  • DPF risk: Soot > 80% → force regen; sensor check.
  • Braking stress: Harsh decel > 0.35g repeatedly → coach; inspect pads.
  • Battery drain: Pack SOC drop > Y%/h parked → 12V/pack check.

When to add ML (and how)

  • Pick a horizon (7/14/30‑day failure likelihood).
  • Use features: temp deltas, idling %, load profiles, regen cycles.
  • Validate against workshop tickets: precision/recall, lead time.

Your first pipeline

  • Inventory vehicles, ECU types, and data sources.
  • Build a signal map (CSV). - download
  • Stream data at 1–5s; store summaries per trip/day.
  • Apply starter rules; route alerts to a “Maintenance Tickets” queue.
  • Weekly review with workshop to tune thresholds.

Turn alerts into action

  • Use webhooks to create tickets in your maintenance app.
  • Attach clip/telemetry context to each ticket.
  • Auto‑schedule service windows; notify drivers.

KPIs to track

  • Mean time between failures (MTBF)
  • Unscheduled vs. scheduled service %
  • No‑fault‑found (NFF%)
  • Parts spend vs. mileage

Copy‑paste assets

💬 FAQs

No—start with OBD PIDs and add CAN as available for better accuracy.
1–5 seconds is a good balance for most signals.
Add persistence windows (e.g., 30s) and combine multiple signals.
Yes—add a symptom prompt (“noise/vibration/smell”) in the app.
Track unscheduled vs scheduled %, MTBF, and workshop labor hours saved.

Glossary

  • Headway: Following distance measured in seconds.
  • Event taxonomy: Standardized codes for coaching and analysis.
  • Hash: A cryptographic signature proving a clip wasn’t altered.