BACKGROUND

Automobiles include a multitude of individual components and assemblies, which are manufactured by multiple different parts suppliers. The individual components and assemblies are then shipped to an assembly plant where they are assembled into a complete vehicle. Typical vehicle assembly plants may assemble thousands of individual parts and assemblies into the complete vehicle. Advances in robotics and automated assembly lines have greatly increased the speed and precision of the assembly process. However, in order to intake and assemble so many disparate parts and assemblies, typical assembly plants are large, complex, and expensive operations.

Many automakers today design platforms of vehicles which share some common parts. This strategy, known as platforming, allows the automakers to benefit from reduced overall part cost due to economies of scale. In some instances platforming may also allow a single assembly plant to be used to assemble multiple different vehicles that are part of the same platform. However, different models of vehicles that are part of a same platform still typically include numerous parts and assemblies that are unique to the particular model of vehicle.

Additionally, when a component of a vehicle made by the above process fails or the vehicle needs service, the process of repairing or replacing the failed component or otherwise servicing the vehicle is often a complex process requiring specialized skill or training. Thus, the vehicle is typically taken to a repair shop where the repair may take several hours, days, or even weeks, depending on the nature of the service needed.

