HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE

• US 20100114339A1
• Filed: 12/01/2007
• Published: 05/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electrolux Home Products Incorporated (AB Electrolux)
• Original Assignee: Electrolux Home Products Incorporated (AB Electrolux)
• Inventors: Kaiser, Kersten, Neukamm, Alwin, Cenedese, Claudio
• Granted Patent: US 8,420,984 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/90
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 2213/05 Heating plates with pan detection means
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 2213/07 Heating plates with temperature control means
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 3/746 Protection, e.g. overheat cutoff, hot plate indicator

Abstract

The present invention relates to a household appliance for performing a housekeeping task. The household appliance comprises a data input device (16) adapted to remotely sense a property in a sensing area (18), and a controller (22) coupled to the data input device and adapted to control an operation of the household appliance in accordance with the sensed property.

Claims

1. A household appliance (10) for performing a housekeeping task, the household appliance comprising a data input device (16) adapted to remotely sense a property in a sensing area (18), and a controller (22) coupled to the data input device and adapted to control an operation of the household appliance in accordance with the sensed property.

2. A household appliance according to claim 1, wherein the property is related to the housekeeping task.

3. A household appliance according to claim 1, further comprising a cooking plate area (12) at least partly covered by said sensing area, wherein the data input device is adapted to sense the size of an object (20), such as a pot or pan, placed in the sensing area.

4. A household appliance according to claim 3, wherein the controller is adapted to control a heater (14) of the cooking plate area in accordance with the sensed size, preferably by activating portions (24) of the heater in accordance with the sensed size.

5. A household appliance according to claim 4, wherein the data input device is further adapted to sense the position of the object, and the heater to be controlled is selected based on the sensed position.

6. A household appliance according to claim 1, further comprising a cooking plate area at least partly covered by the sensing area, wherein the data input device is adapted to sense a temperature in the sensing area.

7. A household appliance according to claim 1, further comprising a cooking plate area (12) and projection means (30) adapted to direct a visual image on the cooking plate area indicating a hot or cold area of the cooking plate area.

8. A household appliance according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the data input device and projection means is mounted on a pop-up support (40) receivable within the household appliance, and wherein the household appliance is turned off when the pop-up support is in a received position and otherwise turned on.

9. A household appliance according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the data input device and projection means is adapted to be oriented in different directions for changing the position of said sensing area and/or visual image.

10. A household appliance according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the data input device and projection means forms part of a virtual user interface of the household appliance.