Workshop operators and experts from the field of automotive diagnostics met at the eco –Association of the Internet Industry in Cologne for an exchange at a technical workshop initiated by the Car Repair 4.0 consortium. This was an opportunity to learn about error diagnosis with a lambda sensor, get more structural knowledge of the Car Repair 4.0 concept and establish a task force to examine user requirements.
By Ralf Schädel, IT Editor and Project Manager Cloud Services and Gaia-X at eco – Association of the Internet
In April 2023, Car Repair 4.0 hosted a free workshop in Cologne for car repair shop operators and experts from the field of automotive diagnostics on “New Developments and Requirements for Automotive Diagnostics”.
Role of car repair shops and Car Repair 4.0
Moderator Juan Hahn first welcomed the participants and underlined the importance of car repair shops and the role of Car Repair 4.0: “The fact that there are over 24 million vehicles in Germany that are older than ten years highlights the potential in the maintenance and repair of motor vehicles.”
More about the project
More information on the current status and the next steps in the research project was provided by Benjamin Opitz, Product Manager Digital Services at Vergölst (see photo, standing at the centre). His focus, in line with the orientation of the Car Repair 4.0 project, was on the lambda sensor process. Benjamin also explained the consequences of a misdiagnosis of this component.
Lesson: Artificial Intelligence
Lukas Jakubczyk, Research Associate with a research focus on data-driven productivity management systems at the Georg Agricola University of Applied Sciences (THGA), introduced the workshop participants to the operating principles of artificial intelligence. Lukas introduced the necessary structural knowledge and the ontology of the project for his particular field.
Discussion round with clearly formulated goals
The audience then learned about the diagnostic process of the lambda sensor with the help of Car Repair 4.0 and how the research approach can be applied to identify the cause of an error and prevent a false diagnosis. In turn, they contributed interesting insights from their everyday work to the discussion: problems in the car repair shop and concerns such as how long the replacement of a lambda sensor takes were brought to the fore.
Talk first, then act
In the end, everyone agreed that they had learned a lot from the experience reports. Indeed, a working group has been formed to address further the topic of lambda sensors and the perspective of the car repair shops. For Wilhelm Bütje, owner of the eponymous car dealership in Cuxhaven, the workshop was a good start: “It was exciting to get insights into the project and artificial intelligence.” From his point of view, “it is essential to use the existing data in the independent car repair shops.” A procedure that tells car repair shops more precisely whether there is an error with the lambda sensor or the AGF valve would be helpful,” says Bütje.
The workshop clearly showed the complexity of the task as well as the commitment of all participants to simplify it for mechanics in the future. “Making vehicle diagnostics simple for the car repair shop is the main goal. We took a serious step in the right direction on this day!” added Jörg Seidel, Senior Manager Technical Market Support of MS Motorservice International.
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