Glossary · Maintenance and diagnostics
Troubleshooting
Also known as: Fault finding
German: Fehlersuche
In maintenance and service, troubleshooting is the systematic process of finding and correcting the cause of a malfunction, from the observed symptom through diagnosis and repair to a check that the function has been restored.
- Maintenance
- Technical documentation
In one sentence
Troubleshooting is the systematic process from an observed symptom through diagnosis and repair to confirmed restoration of the function.
Example
The troubleshooting table tells the operator: if the message "Vacuum not reached" appears, check the gripper pads for damage, then the vacuum filter.
Explained in context
Context cards connect this term with others to answer one question. Also in British English and German.
How it applies
- Operation: Operators solve simple faults with the troubleshooting information on the HMI or in the manual, and call maintenance for the rest.
- Maintenance: Technicians work from symptom to cause, using diagnostics, drawings and measurements, and document what they found.
- Engineering: A consistent error concept and meaningful messages make troubleshooting faster; see Error management.
- Documentation: Troubleshooting content works best as structured units of condition, cause and remedy, as in the DITA troubleshooting topic. Each remedy should state who may perform it and which safety measures apply. Linking message numbers to troubleshooting units lets the same content appear on the HMI, in the manual and in service portals.
Troubleshooting vs. fault diagnosis
Fault diagnosis identifies what is wrong. Troubleshooting includes diagnosis plus the corrective action and the functional check that closes the case.