Laundry treating appliance with imaging control

• US 10,113,263 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2016
• Issued: 10/30/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/19/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Original Assignee: Whirlpool Corporation
• Inventors: Ashrafzadeh, Farhad, Carow, James P., Kanchanavally, Shreecharan
• Primary Examiner(s): McCormack, John
• Application Number:
  US15/046,033
• Publication Number:
  US 20160160432A1
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• Field of Search: 34524, 34529, 34 88, 34 89, 34595, 116213, 700259, 700275, 725 12, 382107, 382111, 73 156
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2101/00 User input for the control of domestic laundry washing machines, washer-dryers or laundry dryers
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2103/02 Characteristics of laundry or load
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2105/24 Flow or velocity
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2105/48 Drum speed
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2105/50 Starting machine operation, e.g. delayed start or re-start after power cut
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2105/60 Audible signals
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 34/18 Condition of the laundry, e.g. nature or weight
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 58/04 Details controlling or regulating devices D06F34/00
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 58/30 Drying processes controlling a series of operations in domestic laundry dryers D06F58/32

Abstract

A laundry treating appliance having a rotatable drum defining a laundry treating chamber, where the laundry in the laundry treating chamber may be imaged and a condition of the laundry determined based on the imaging of the laundry. A notification can be provided to a user based on the determined motion condition.

Claims

1. A laundry treating appliance for treating laundry according to an automatic treating cycle of operation, comprising:

a laundry treating chamber receiving laundry for treatment;

at least one component operable to implement at least part of the automatic treating cycle of operation;

an imaging device mounted to the laundry treating appliance and having a sensor operably coupled with at least a portion of the laundry treating chamber during execution of the automatic treating cycle of operation and outputting data representative of at least a portion of the laundry in the laundry treating chamber;

an indicator configured to output a signal; and

a controller receiving the data and operably coupled to the indicator, the controller comprising analysis software that is configured to determine a motion condition of the laundry based on the data and the controller configured to determine a condition of concern of the laundry based on the data and to activate the indicator to emit a signal based on the determined condition to notify a user of the determined condition of concern.

2. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1, further comprising a user interface and wherein the indicator is located on the user interface.

3. The laundry treating appliance of claim 2 wherein the signal is an audible signal or a visual signal.

4. A laundry treating appliance for treating laundry according to an automatic treating cycle of operation, comprising:

a laundry treating chamber receiving laundry for treatment;

at least one component operable to implement at least part of the automatic treating cycle of operation;

an imaging device mounted to the laundry treating appliance and having a sensor operably coupled with at least a portion of the laundry treating chamber during execution of the automatic treating cycle of operation and outputting data representative of at least a portion of the laundry in the laundry treating chamber;

a controller operably coupled to the at least one component and the imaging device, the controller configured to determine a condition of the laundry based on the data; and

a user interface operably coupled to the controller and providing an input and output function for the controller; and

wherein the controller comprises analysis software that is configured to determine a motion condition of the laundry based on the data and the controller is operably coupled to the user interface and configured to send a signal based on the determined condition to activate a portion of the user interface to notify a user of the determined condition.

5. The laundry treating appliance of claim 4 wherein a portion of the user interface can be activated to emit an audible signal or a visual signal.

6. The laundry treating appliance of claim 4 wherein determining the condition comprises the controller being configured to analyze multiple images over time.

7. The laundry treating appliance of claim 6 wherein the condition determined by the controller comprises at least one of rolling, tumbling, sliding or satelliting.

8. The laundry treating appliance of claim 4 wherein the output on the user interface comprises an indictor light configured to indicate a condition of concern.

9. The laundry treating appliance of claim 4 wherein the controller is configured to control at least one component, based on the determined condition, to set at least one of:

a rotational speed of a drum defining the laundry treating chamber;

a direction of rotation of a drum defining the laundry treating chamber;

a temperature in the laundry treating chamber;

an air flow through the laundry treating chamber;

at least one of a start and end of cycle condition;

at least one of a start and end of cycle step condition;

a rotational speed of an agitator;

a direction of agitator rotation;

or

a wash liquid fill level.

10. The laundry treating appliance of claim 4 wherein the sensor comprises at least one of a visible light sensor, an ultraviolet light sensor or an infrared sensor.