Patent Document ID: 20020087578
Application ID: 09839272
Patent Status: 0

Claim One:
1. A computerized method for identifying repeatedly malfunctioning equipment and root causes therefor, said method comprising: providing a database comprising detailed equipment data including data indicative of historical equipment malfunctions in a plurality of pieces of equipment, said equipment data including a unique equipment identifier for uniquely relating each malfunction to respective equipment; analyzing the data base for a selected time window to review equipment malfunctions logged in the database and resulting in servicing activities over that time window; establishing an equipment malfunction threshold for the number of malfunctions occurring during a predetermined period of time; configuring said database to automatically issue a report identifying any respective equipment as a repeatedly-malfunctioning-equipment whenever the number of equipment malfunctions resulting in servicing activities over that time window exceeds the equipment malfunction threshold; providing an input/output device to communicate with said database to receive the report from the database; instantiating a work order for said repeatedly-malfunctioning-equipment, wherein said order is configured to remain open at least until service personnel logs comment data into the work order indicative of possible root causes for the repeatedly malfunctioning equipment.