ENERGY MANAGEMENT OF CLOTHES WASHER APPLIANCE
First Claim
1. A clothes washer comprising:
- one or more power consuming functions including at least one of a drive system for driving a tub and a basket, and a water delivery system comprising a pump for delivering water to the tub; and
,a controller in signal communication with an associated utility, the controller configured to receive and process a signal indicative of current state of an associated utility, the controller operating the dishwasher in one of a plurality of operating modes, including at least a normal operating mode and an energy savings mode, in response to the received signal, the controller being configured to change the power consuming functions by adjusting one or more of an operation schedule, an operation delay, an operation adjustment, and a selective deactivation of at least one of the one or more power consuming features/functions to reduce power consumption of the clothes washer in the energy savings mode.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A clothes washer is provided comprising one or more power consuming functions and a controller in signal communication with an associated utility. The controller can receive and process a signal from the associated utility indicative of current state of an associated utility. The controller operates the clothes washer in one of a plurality of operating modes, including at least a normal operating mode and an energy savings mode in response to the received signal. The controller is configured to change the power consuming functions by adjusting one or more of an operation schedule, an operation delay, an operation adjustment, and a selective deactivation of at least one of the one or more power consuming functions to reduce power consumption of the clothes washer in the energy savings mode.
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Citations
28 Claims
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1. A clothes washer comprising:
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one or more power consuming functions including at least one of a drive system for driving a tub and a basket, and a water delivery system comprising a pump for delivering water to the tub; and
,a controller in signal communication with an associated utility, the controller configured to receive and process a signal indicative of current state of an associated utility, the controller operating the dishwasher in one of a plurality of operating modes, including at least a normal operating mode and an energy savings mode, in response to the received signal, the controller being configured to change the power consuming functions by adjusting one or more of an operation schedule, an operation delay, an operation adjustment, and a selective deactivation of at least one of the one or more power consuming features/functions to reduce power consumption of the clothes washer in the energy savings mode. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A clothes washer control method, comprising:
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a) determining a state for an associated energy supplying utility, the utility state being indicative of at least a peak demand period or an off-peak demand period; b) operating the clothes washer in a normal mode during the off-peak demand period; c) operating the clothes washer in an energy savings mode during the peak demand period; d) scheduling, delaying, adjusting and/or selectively deactivating any number of one or more power consuming features/functions of the clothes washer to reduce power consumption of the clothes washer in the energy savings mode; and
,e) returning to the normal mode after the peak demand period is over, or f) remaining in the energy savings mode until a cycle is complete. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A clothes washer comprising:
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a tub for receiving washing liquid; a perforated basket disposed within the tub for receiving items to be washed; a drive system for driving the basket; and
,a controller configured to control energization of the drive system to selectively implement a plurality of power consuming cycles, and to receive and process an energy signal, the signal having a first state indicative of a utility peak demand period and a second state indicative of a utility off-peak demand period, the controller operating the clothes washer in one of an energy savings mode and a normal operating mode based on the received signal being in the first and second states respectively, the controller being configured to at least one of selectively delay or alter one or more of the power consuming cycles to reduce power consumption of the clothes washer in the energy savings mode. - View Dependent Claims (28)
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Specification