Using voice queries to diagnose problems while underway

One of the most practical uses of Skipper Don, the d3kOS voice assistant, is asking diagnostic questions while you are at the helm with your hands on the wheel. Here are the queries that work well and what to expect from the answers.

Sensor queries. “What is my oil pressure?” “What is my coolant temperature?” “What is my engine RPM?” These return the current live value from the NMEA 2000 bus. The answer is immediate — no AI processing required.

Trend queries. “Has my coolant temperature changed in the last hour?” “Is my oil pressure normal?” These queries use the local database to compare current values against recent history. The AI returns a short plain-English answer: “Your coolant temperature has risen 4 degrees in the last 45 minutes. It is currently within normal range but trending upward.”

Procedure queries. “What should I do if my engine overheats?” “How do I check my impeller?” These queries use the d3kOS knowledge base (the RAG document search) to find relevant information from the d3kOS User Manual and the documents you have loaded. The answer is a brief procedure, not a full manual extract.

What does not work well. Highly specific questions about your particular engine model (“What is the torque spec for the head bolts on my Yanmar 3YM30?”) are outside the knowledge base unless you have loaded the manual for that engine. The AI will acknowledge when it does not have enough information rather than guessing.