Patent ID: 7962271

Claim:
A method of providing information on the operating condition of a power plant of a vehicle with diagnostic instrumentation, the diagnostic instrumentation including a microprocessor and at least one indicator, the power plant including an engine and a powertrain control module, the method comprising the steps of: a. programming the microprocessor with one or more algorithms; b. programming the microprocessor with values in the form of Break Points; c. programming the microprocessor to extract parameter identification data (hereinafter “PID data”) from the powertrain control module; d. extracting PID data from the powertrain control module with the diagnostic instrumentation; e. acquiring voltage data from the power plant with the diagnostic instrumentation; f. comparing the voltage data acquired from the power plant with at least one parameter selected from the group including at least one algorithm and at least one Break Point; and g. activating the at least one indicator based on the comparison of the acquired voltage data with the at least one parameter.