Methods and apparatus for diagnosing open faults in an automotive electrical circuit

1. A method for detecting and locating an open-wire fault within a vehicle subsystem, the method comprising:

incorporating a large resistance into the vehicle subsystem to create a low-pass filter circuit in the vehicle subsystem, the vehicle subsystem comprising an electronic control unit (ECU), interconnected wiring, and at least one wiring connector;

comparing an output voltage of the low-pass filter circuit of the vehicle subsystem to a threshold voltage;

detecting that an open-wire fault exists in the vehicle subsystem when the output voltage is not less than the threshold voltage;

determining a capacitance value of the low-pass filter circuit;

performing a lookup, using the capacitance value, to determine a location of the detected open wire fault;

comparing the location of the open-wire fault to a connector location of the at least one wiring connector in the vehicle subsystem; and

when the comparing results in a match between the location and the connector location, designating the at least one wiring connector as requiring repair.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

when the output voltage is less than the threshold voltage, determining that an open-wire fault does not exist, and setting an indicator signifying healthy wiring and connections of the vehicle subsystem.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining step further comprises:

obtaining a capacitor voltage step response of the low-pass filter circuit;

calculating a time-constant from the capacitor voltage step response; and

determining the capacitance value based on the calculated time-constant.

4. The method of claim 3 , further comprising:

comparing the capacitor voltage step response to a predefined step response to calculate the time-constant;

wherein the predefined step response occurs when the open-wire fault occurs at a load of the vehicle subsystem.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

comparing the location of the open-wire fault to a plurality of connector locations in the vehicle subsystem, the plurality of connector locations comprising the connector location; and

when a match is not found, designating wiring of the vehicle subsystem, at the location, as requiring repair.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the location of the open-wire fault further comprises:

obtaining a value for a total length of wire in the vehicle subsystem; and

calculating a distance from an input voltage to the open-wire fault, using the value for the length of wire in the vehicle subsystem and a value of capacitance per a specified length of wire.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the performing step further comprises:

when the determined capacitance value falls between two capacitance values in a lookup table,

interpolating between the two capacitance values to determine a distance from an input voltage;

wherein the location of the open-wire fault comprises a position at the determined distance from the input voltage.

8. A method for detecting and locating an open-wire fault within a vehicle subsystem, the method comprising:

incorporating a large resistance into the vehicle subsystem to create a low-pass filter circuit in the vehicle subsystem, the vehicle subsystem comprising an electronic control unit (ECU), interconnected wiring, and at least one wiring connector;

comparing an output voltage from the low-pass filter circuit, within the vehicle subsystem, to a threshold; and

detecting that an open-wire fault exists in the vehicle subsystem when the output voltage is not less than the threshold;

determining a time-constant based on the output voltage;

determining a distance from an input voltage source, for the open-wire fault, based on the estimated time-constant;

comparing the distance from the input voltage source to a second distance for the at least one wiring connector of the vehicle subsystem; and

when the comparing results in a match between the distance and the second distance, designating the at least one wiring connector as requiring repair.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:

when the output voltage is less than the threshold, determining that an open-wire fault does not exist in the vehicle subsystem and designating wiring in the vehicle subsystem as not currently requiring repair.

10. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:

obtaining a capacitor voltage step response of the low-pass filter circuit; and

estimating the time-constant based on the capacitor voltage step response.

11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:

comparing the capacitor voltage step response to a designated step response to estimate the time-constant;

wherein the designated step response occurs when the open-wire fault occurs at a load of the vehicle subsystem.

12. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:

obtaining a length for a bundle of wires in the vehicle subsystem;

calculating the distance from the input voltage source to the open-wire fault, using the length for the bundle of wires in the vehicle subsystem and a value of capacitance per length of wire.

13. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:

utilizing a lookup table to determine the distance from the input voltage source, for the open-wire fault, based on the estimated time-constant;

wherein the lookup table comprises a plurality of time-constant values and associated distance values.

14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:

interpolating between time-constant values in the lookup table to determine the distance from the input voltage source, when the estimated time-constant value is between two of the plurality of time-constant values in the lookup table.

15. A diagnostic system for detecting and locating an open-wire fault within a vehicle subsystem, the diagnostic system comprising:

a low-pass filter circuit, comprising at least a giga-ohm (GΩ) resistor and a plurality of wires, the plurality of wires configured to conduct electrical signals for the vehicle subsystem, the vehicle subsystem comprising the low-pass filter circuit, an electronic control unit (ECU), and at least one wiring connector;

a vehicle chassis, coupled to the low-pass filter circuit and configured to serve as a ground potential for the vehicle subsystem;

a system memory comprising at least one lookup table, the at least one lookup table comprising a plurality of capacitance levels corresponding to a plurality of respective distances;

a processor architecture, operatively associated with the system memory, wherein the processor architecture is configured to:

compare an output voltage, from the low-pass filter circuit, to a threshold; and

detect that an open-wire fault exists in the vehicle subsystem when the output voltage is not less than a threshold;

determine a capacitance value of the low-pass filter circuit;

perform a lookup, using the capacitance value, to determine the distance to the open-wire fault from the input voltage source;

compare the location of the open-wire fault to a connector location of the at least one wiring connector in the vehicle subsystem; and

when the comparing results in a match between the location and the connector location, designate the at least one wiring connector as requiring repair.

16. The diagnostic system of claim 15 , wherein the processor architecture is configured to determine the capacitance value of the low-pass filter circuit by:

obtaining a capacitor voltage step response of the low-pass filter circuit;

calculating a time-constant from the capacitor voltage step response; and

determining the capacitance value based on the calculated time-constant.

17. The diagnostic system of claim 16 , wherein the processor architecture is further configured to:

compare the capacitor voltage step response to a predefined step response to calculate the time-constant;

wherein the predefined step response occurs when the open-wire fault occurs at a load of the vehicle subsystem.

18. The diagnostic system of claim 15 , wherein the processor architecture is further configured to:

compare the determined location of the open-wire fault to a plurality of connector locations in the vehicle subsystem; and

when the comparing results in a match between the determined location and one of the plurality of connector locations, designate the one of the plurality of connector locations as requiring repair.

19. The diagnostic system of claim 15 , wherein the processor architecture is further configured to:

compare the determined location of the open-wire fault to a plurality of connector locations in the vehicle subsystem; and

when a match is not found, designate wiring of the vehicle subsystem, at the determined location, as requiring repair.