E-maintenance for household and similar appliances

Abstract

E-maintenance aims to automate management operations, like diagnostics and prognostics, by exploiting information and communication technologies (ICT) for the remote monitoring and control of manufacturing devices. E-maintenance has initially interested large plant machinery, but recent ICT advances are making it affordable also for mass-produced equipment such as household and similar appliances. This paper presents some general guidelines to consider when designing and building e-maintenance platforms for this class of machines, discussing both the functional requirements that the platform should provide and the most suitable models, architectures, and software engineering principles for its realisation. As a case study the paper presents the Carpigiani e-maintenance solution for high-duty ice cream making machines that provide remote monitoring, self-diagnostics and self-prognostics, and remote assistance interventions functions. The Carpigiani e-maintenance solution controls almost 2,000 machines installed all over the world and it is significantly improving the after-sale services provided to Carpigiani customers.