Abstract:
A method of assisting sellers and buyers in the sale and purchase of a vehicle is provided. The method may comprise the steps of communicating a vehicle&#39;s diagnostic data (e.g., OBD codes, etc.) with a provider. The method may further comprise the step of analyzing the communicated diagnostic data. The method may also comprise the step of preparing a vehicle diagnostic report based on the communicated diagnostic data. The method may also comprise the step of uploading the prepared report to a report database retrievable by a buyer.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     Not Applicable  
       STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT  
       [0002]     Not Applicable  
       BACKGROUND  
       [0003]     The present invention relates to a method of assisting buyers and sellers in the sale and purchase of a vehicle based on a diagnostic report derived from OBD trouble codes stored in a vehicle&#39;s computer.  
         [0004]     Automobiles or vehicles may be sold as new or used. If new, then purchasers are not concerned about wear and tear of the vehicle or broken components because new vehicles are tested at the factory. However, after the new vehicle has been purchased by a buyer and driven for a certain amount of time and mileage, various components of the vehicle may develop wear and tear thereby degrading the performance and reliability of the vehicle. Once the vehicle has been driven, purchasers become concerned that the vehicle may contain hidden defects which may not be readily noticeable.  
         [0005]     The prior art has addressed the above mentioned concern of buyers through means which are (1) ineffective and inexpensive or (2) effective but expensive. For example, the buyer may have an automobile mechanic inspect the vehicle to be purchased detailing the major and minor components which may require repair upon purchase of the vehicle. The mechanic may test drive the vehicle and visually inspect the various components of the vehicle as well as test various components of the vehicle via a component tester. However, an inspection of the vehicle by the mechanic may be too expensive in view of the overall cost of the vehicle. Accordingly, except for highly priced vehicles, a mechanic typically does not pre-inspect vehicles for buyers prior to purchase of the vehicle.  
         [0006]     Another method by which the buyer may address his/her concerns regarding the wear and tear of the vehicle is through public records obtained from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). In particular, the public records of the DMV may contain information such as the number of previous owners, whether the vehicle passed smog, whether the car is a lemon and other like information. This information is fairly inexpensive; however, the information may be unreliable or not particularly relevant based on a view that DMV records relate to information which may be months to years old.  
         [0007]     Accordingly, there is a need for an improved method of assisting a buyer and a seller in the sale and purchase of a vehicle.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY  
       [0008]     A method of assisting sellers and buyers in the sale and purchase of a vehicle is provided wherein diagnostic data from the vehicle to be sold is downloaded by the seller to a diagnostic report provider, analyzed by the provider, and a diagnostic report is prepared based on the downloaded data and made accessible to a plurality of buyers such that buyers may take the diagnostic report into consideration when purchasing the vehicle. In particular, the method may comprise the steps of receiving a vehicle&#39;s OBD codes by a diagnostic report provider, analyzing the received codes, preparing a vehicle diagnostic report based on the received codes, and uploading the prepared report to a report database retrievable by a buyer.  
         [0009]     In the analyzing step, the received codes may be compared to a vehicle diagnostic database and problem description database to determine whether the codes indicate that the vehicle requires repairs. Additionally, a service adviser may review the received codes to determine other possible causes of code faults. Once the received codes are analyzed, a report may be prepared which lists the general vehicle identifying information such as make, model, year and engine size as well as vehicle identification number. The report may also contain information regarding possible repairs that will need to be performed once the vehicle is purchased. The report may also provide an estimated cost of the repairs. To this end, the codes may be correlated to determine whether the seller has tampered with the vehicle&#39;s computer so as to alter the codes to hide possible problems with the vehicle. A reliability index may be associated with the report to provide buyers with an assurance that the report is reliable.  
         [0010]     The report may be provided to vehicle buyers through a website (i.e., report database). In particular, the website may be loaded with a plurality of reports of many vehicles. The report provider may derive a revenue stream through providing reports to vehicle buyers. In particular, buyers may pay the provider a set fee for viewing a single report. Alternatively, buyers may pay the provider a subscription fee for accessing an unlimited or limited number of reports contained in the provider&#39;s database. The report provider may also derive a revenue stream from the sellers of the vehicles. In particular, the provider may charge the seller a fee for analyzing their vehicle&#39;s OBD codes and listing their vehicle&#39;s diagnostic report. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]     These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect to the following description and drawings in which:  
         [0012]      FIG. 1  is a pictorial diagram of a diagnostic report provider assisting a buyer and seller of a vehicle in the transfer of ownership of such vehicle;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a flow chart illustrating steps a diagnostic report provider may perform to assist the buyer and seller in the sale of the vehicle;  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is an exemplary index of various information accessible on a website of the diagnostic report provider;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is a flow chart illustrating steps a seller may perform to use the diagnostic data stored in the seller&#39;s vehicle to sell the vehicle; and  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is a flow chart illustrating steps a buyer may perform to use a diagnostic report in consideration of whether to purchase the vehicle. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0017]     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , a pictorial diagram is shown illustrating the method by which OBD codes may be downloaded from an onboard computer  10  of a vehicle  12  to be sold and presented to a buyer  14  or a plurality of buyers  14  such that the buyer  14  may consider the information derived from the downloaded OBD codes in purchasing the seller&#39;s vehicle  12 . The derived information may aid the buyer  14  in determining whether to purchase the vehicle  12 . In particular, the derived information may provide information regarding required repairs that would have to be completed upon the purchase of the vehicle  12 . Also, the derived information may also aid the seller  16  in selling the vehicle  12  when the diagnostic data (e.g., OBD codes, etc.) stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  show that the vehicle  12  does not need to be repaired upon purchase thereby increasing the desirability of the vehicle  12 .  
         [0018]     To this end, the seller  16  of a vehicle  12 , which is OBD compliant, may download codes stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  and transmit the downloaded codes to a diagnostic report provider  18  as shown pictorially in  FIG. 1  and in the flow chart of  FIG. 4 . It is also contemplated that the buyer  14  downloads and transmits the codes to the provider  18 . The OBD compliant vehicle  12  may have a plurality of sensors attached to various components of the vehicle  12 . The sensors sense the components statuses when the vehicle  12  is in normal running condition as well as in factory defined and government defined test conditions. The sensed statuses of the components are transmitted and stored on the onboard computer  10  of the vehicle  12 . The component status codes stored in the onboard computer  10  typically is the most recent diagnostic data for the vehicle  12 . More particularly, the stored codes may contain codes relevant to the last time the seller  16  drove the vehicle  12 . Such information may be useful to; the seller  16  in selling the vehicle  12  at a premium especially if the codes evidence a well maintained vehicle  12  or a vehicle  12  that does not require extensive repair. The seller  16  may transmit the codes to the diagnostic report provider  18  who in turn prepares and makes a diagnostic report  20  (see  FIGS. 2 and 3 ) available for viewing to potential buyer(s)  14  of the vehicle  12  wherein the report  20  indicates the vehicle&#39;s condition based on the transmitted codes.  
         [0019]     To download the codes stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10 , a code reader  22  may be placed in communication with the onboard computer  10 . By way of example and not limitation, the code reader  22  may be a model 3030 code reader marketed by Equus Products, Inc. of Fountain Valley, Calif. The code reader  22  may download the codes stored on the onboard computer  10  via a communications link cable  52 . Once the codes have been downloaded into the code reader  22 , the code reader  22  may be placed in communication with the diagnostic report provider  18 . By way of example and not limitation, the communication between the code reader  22  and the diagnostic report provider  18  may be established via blue tooth technology, cell phones, telephone land lines, a computer  26  connected to the internet, or any means by which the data (e.g., downloaded codes, etc.) in the code reader  22  may be communicated or transmitted to the diagnostic report provider  18 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , the code reader  22  transmits the downloaded data to the computer  26  which may communicate with the provider  18  via the internet.  
         [0020]     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , once the diagnostic report provider  18  has received the codes (step  100 ), the diagnostic report provider  18  may begin to analyze the codes (step  102 ) to determine general vehicle information  28 , a problem description  30  of various problems of the vehicle, a repair estimate  32  and a reliability index  34  of the report  20 . Once the codes have been analyzed by the provider  18 , the provider  18  prepares (step  104 ) the vehicle diagnostic report  20  which may contain the general vehicle information  28 , a problem description  30 , a repair estimate  32 , a reliability index  34 , and also the actual raw data of the downloaded codes  36  from the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  which may be confirmed later by a third party. The general vehicle information  28  may include the year, make, model, engine size, vehicle identification number (VIN), and other general information regarding the vehicle  12 .  
         [0021]     The codes received by the diagnostic report provider  18  may indicate various possible problem areas with the vehicle  12 . By way of example and not limitation, the codes may indicate a potential problem with the vehicle&#39;s oxygen sensor. Additionally, based on the codes, an estimated cost to fix the various problem areas may be generated to provide the buyer  14  a gauge as to the amount of repairs needed once the vehicle  12  is purchased. The codes received by the diagnostic report provider  18  may be correlated amongst each other so as to validate the received codes and ensure that the seller  16  has not tampered with the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  prior to transmission of the codes to hide potential problems with the vehicle  12 .  
         [0022]     Once the codes from the code reader  22  are received by the diagnostic report provider  18 , a service adviser  38  of the provider  18  may review the received codes (step  106 ). The service provider  38  may determine based on his/her experience whether the received codes are within expectations based on the year, make, model of the vehicle  12 , etc. Additionally, the service adviser  38  may review the codes in light of a vehicle diagnostic database  40 . The database  40  may comprise a list of possible diagnosis based on the received codes. Also, the codes may be analyzed in view of a problem description database  42 . The problem description database  42  may comprise a listing of a problem description associated with a particular trouble code. The service adviser  38  may review the codes to determine whether the codes conflict thereby indicating that the seller  16  may have tampered with the vehicle&#39;s computer  10 . Once the service adviser  38  has checked for potential conflicts in the codes, the service adviser  38  may enter a reliability index  34  for the report  20  prepared by the service adviser  38 . The reliability index  34  may be a scale of “1” to “5” wherein “1” indicates that the seller  16  has not tampered with the vehicle&#39;s computer  10 , a “5” indicates that the seller  16  has tampered with the vehicle&#39;s computer  10 , and “2” through “4” indicates varying degrees of possible tampering of the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  by the seller  16 . The reliability index  34  may also flag possible causes of conflicts between the codes.  
         [0023]     The diagnostic report  20  prepared by the provider  18  may be uploaded (step  108 ) to a report database  44  (see  FIG. 3 ; e.g., web site, etc.) having a password protect mechanism such that permission to view the prepared report  20  may be granted or denied by the diagnostic report provider  18 . The diagnostic report provider  18  may permit access to the diagnostic report  20  based on whether payment for such display has been made. For example, the provider  18  may allow potential buyers  14  to access a website  44  via a user name and password of the buyer  14  wherein the website  44  displays the report  20  once the buyer&#39;s user name, password and payment for the report  20  has been confirmed. Alternatively, the provider  18  may store the prepared F report  20  in a storage medium of a computer. The computer may provide for a fax back system or an email auto-responder in which the buyer  14  may order the report over the phone or internet, and the computer would fax or email the report to the buyer  14 .  
         [0024]     Payment for the diagnostic report  20  may be provided by the buyer  14  of the vehicle  12 . For example, the provider  18  may permit buyers  14  to access a database  44  containing the diagnostic reports  20  of a plurality of vehicles  12 . Buyers  14  may purchase an unlimited number of reports  20  for a fixed fee or on a per report  20  basis. Alternatively, the provider  18  may permit access to the vehicle&#39;s diagnostic report  20  by any buyer upon payment of a fee by the buyer.  
         [0025]     The codes, and more particularly, the diagnostic report  20  derived from the trouble codes stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  is useful for buyers  14  in determining whether to purchase the vehicle  12 . For example, the diagnostic report  20  informs buyers of an estimated repair cost to fix the problems indicated by the vehicle&#39;s stored trouble codes. The estimated repair cost may be broken down in terms of the minimum and maximum range of estimated repair costs as well as suggested short term repairs and long term repairs. The buyer  14  may also contact the service advisor  38  to discuss the problems indicated by the vehicle&#39;s stored trouble codes, as shown by communications path  46  in  FIG. 1 . This may help the buyer  14  in determining whether to purchase the vehicle  12 . The buyer  14  may view the diagnostic report  20  of a specific vehicle  12  via the web site  44  to which the diagnostic report  20  has been uploaded and permission granted to the buyer  14  to view the diagnostic report  20 . Alternatively, the buyer  14  may have the report  20  faxed or otherwise transmitted to himself/herself.  
         [0026]     The codes, and more particularly, the diagnostic report  20  derived from the trouble codes stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  may also be useful for sellers  16  to obtain a premium for the vehicle  12 . The reason is that if the codes indicate that the vehicle  12  is in excellent operating condition then the seller  16  may promote the vehicle  12  as such and should be able to capture a premium for the vehicle  12 .  
         [0027]     In a typical transaction, the seller  16  has posted his/her vehicle  12  on a website or database of pre-owned vehicles for sale  48  (see  FIG. 3 ), or other listing indicating that his/her vehicle  12  is for sale.  FIG. 3  illustrates the database  48  and the diagnostic report  20  being accessible from a common website  44 ; however, it is also contemplated that the database  48  and the diagnostic report be accessible on separate and different websites. Prior to the posting, the seller  16  may download and transmit the trouble codes in the seller&#39;s vehicle computer  10  to the diagnostic report provider  18 . It is also contemplated that the buyer  14  download and transmit the codes to the provider  18  after the buyer has identified the vehicle  12  to be purchased. The provider  18  may analyze (step  102 ) the received trouble codes then prepare (step  104 ) a diagnostic report  20  to be posted (step  108 ) on a website  44  or otherwise made available to potential buyers  14  of the vehicle  12  as shown in  FIG. 2 . The provider  18  may associate the report  20  with a unique identification number such as the vehicle identification number such that potential buyers  14  may request the diagnostic report  20  from the provider  18  by identifying the unique identification number. The seller  16 , in promoting the sale of his/her vehicle  12 , may list the report&#39;s unique identification number and the means of contacting the provider  18  to request the report  20  (e.g., list provider&#39;s website, etc.).  
         [0028]     The seller  16  (or buyer  14 ) may have the codes stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  transmitted to the report provider  18  at a service station  50  (see  FIG. 1 ). By way of example and not limitation, the service station  50  may be an automobile parts retail store such as Pep Boys, an independent mechanic, a service shop of an automobile dealer, and the like. The seller  16  (or buyer  14 ) may request that the service station  50  merely download and transmit the raw OBD trouble codes from the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  without any further testing of the vehicle  12  by the service station  50 . In the alternative, the seller  16  (or buyer  14 ) may request the service station  50  to run the vehicle  12  through factory defined test conditions as well as government defined test conditions prior to downloading and transmitting the codes stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10 . The reason is that running the vehicle  12  through these additional test conditions provides more detailed information regarding the condition of the vehicle  12 .  
         [0029]     The service station  50  may transmit the downloaded codes to the provider  18  via the internet, fax, mail and the like. For example, the service station  50  may capture the downloaded codes in electronic format and email the downloaded codes to the provider&#39;s computer  51 . Alternatively, the service station  50  may log onto a website  44  of the provider  18  as shown by communications path  54  which may provide step by step instructions to transmit the downloaded codes to the provider  18 .  
         [0030]     In a further alternative method of transmitting the codes to the provider  18 , the service station  50  may have a code reader  22  which is communicable with the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  via communications link cable  52 . Further, the code reader  22  may be communicable to the provider  18  via a wide area network such as the internet. In particular, the service station  50  may be provided with a communications link  24  which connects the code reader  22  to the computer  26  linked to the wide area network. The service station  50  may activate the code reader  22  to download the trouble codes stored on the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  by virtue of linking a connector of vehicle&#39;s computer  10  to the code reader  22  (step  110 ), as shown in  FIG. 4 . Simultaneously, the trouble codes may be transmitted (step  112 ) to the provider  18  as the trouble codes are downloaded from the vehicle&#39;s computer  10 , or alternatively, the trouble codes may be transmitted (step  112 ) to the provider  18  after the trouble codes have been downloaded from the vehicle&#39;s computer  10 .  
         [0031]     Further, it is contemplated that the buyer  14  or seller  16  may personally download and transmit the codes to the provider  18 . In particular, the buyer  14  or seller  16  may purchase or rent the code reader  22 . The buyer  14  or seller  16  may link the code reader  22  to the vehicle&#39;s computer. The codes on the vehicle&#39;s computer may then be downloaded onto the code reader  22 . Thereafter, the code reader  22  may be connected to the buyer&#39;s or seller&#39;s computer for downloading the codes to the buyer&#39;s or seller&#39;s computer and retransmission to the provider  18  such as through the internet.  
         [0032]     The diagnostic report  20  provides unique information to the buyer  14  which provides information as to the condition of the vehicle  12 . However, the buyer  14  may still be skeptical about the vehicle&#39;s condition even if the diagnostic report  20  states that the vehicle  12  is in good operating condition. In this instance, confirmation of the information contained in the diagnostic report  20  may be made a condition of the purchase of the vehicle  12 . In practice, the seller  16  may list or post his/her vehicle  12  for sale on a website  44  either displaying a copy of the diagnostic report  20  prepared by the provider  18  (see  FIG. 3 ) or referring potential buyers to the provider  18  such that the provider  18  may release the diagnostic report  20  to the buyer  14  either through fax, website access, and the like.  
         [0033]     A buyer  14  may search an online database  48  of pre-owned vehicles  12  for sale as shown in  FIG. 3 . The database  48  allows buyers to search for vehicles  12  based on search criteria defined by the buyer  14 . By way of example and not limitation, the buyer  14  may be able to search the online database based on year, make, model of the vehicle, condition of the vehicle  12  reported by the provider  18  on the diagnostic report  20 , and/or other information reported by the provider  18 . The buyer  14 , upon finding a list of vehicles  12  meeting the buyer  14  defined criteria, may contact the seller  16  to inspect the vehicle  12 . After the inspection, if the buyer  14  desires to purchase the vehicle  12 , then the buyer  14  and seller  16  may agree that the sale of the vehicle  12  be conditioned on confirmation of the downloaded trouble codes or the information/opinions stated in the diagnostic report  20  wherein confirmation may be made by a third party.  
         [0034]     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , the buyer may subscribe (step  114 ) with the provider  18  to receive the diagnostic report  20 . Upon receipt of the diagnostic report (step  116 ), the buyer  14  may also have the option of contacting the service advisor  38  of the provider  18  to discuss the information contained in the diagnostic report  20 , as shown by step  118  and by communications path  46  in  FIG. 1 . If the buyer  14  is satisfied with the report  20  and the discussions with the service advisor  38  then the buyer  14  may purchase (step  120 ) the vehicle  12  upon verification of the information contained in the diagnostic report  20 . Once the contract (step  120 ) is made, the buyer  14  may have a third party verify (step  122 ) the information contained in the diagnostic report  20 . If the third party verifies the information contained in the diagnostic report (step  124 ), then the buyer  14  purchases (step  126 ) the vehicle  12 . If the third party does not verify (step  126 ) the information contained in the diagnostic report  20  then the buyer  14  does not have to purchase (step  128 ) the vehicle  12 .  
         [0035]     The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation. Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein, including various ways of utilizing the codes stored in the vehicle&#39;s computer  10  to assist buyers  14  and sellers  16  in the sale and purchase of the seller&#39;s vehicle  12 . Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein. Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments.