Digital faucet system

• US 20110088799A1
• Filed: 10/15/2009
• Published: 04/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Woo-Chong Jung
• Original Assignee: Woo-Chong Jung
• Inventors: Jung, Woo-Chong
• Application Number:
  US12/588,425
• Publication Number:
  US 20110088799A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 137/607
• CPC Class Codes: E03C 1/055 Electrical control devices, e.g. with push buttons, control panels or the like
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 19/006 Specially adapted for faucets
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 27/045 with pivotal obturating members
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 27/048 Electromagnetically actuated valves
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/87692 With common valve operator

Abstract

A digital faucet system includes a faucet, data input unit, a sense unit, an adjusting unit and a control unit. The data input unit includes a display panel for displaying a temperature and a flow rate of mixed water from the faucet, and a touch screen for generating temperature input data and flow rate input data. The sense unit generates temperature sensing data and flow rate sensing data by detecting the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water. The adjusting unit adjusts the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water. The control unit controls the adjusting unit to adjust the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water based on the temperature input data, the flow rate input data, the temperature sensing data and the flow rate sensing data. The temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water may be automatically and simultaneously adjusted.

Claims

1. A digital faucet system, comprising:

a faucet coupled to a hot water path and a cold water path, and configured to output mixed water including hot water provided from the hot water path and cold water provided from the cold water path;

a data input unit including a display panel for displaying a temperature and a flow rate of the mixed water, and a touch screen for generating temperature input data and flow rate input data;

a sense unit configured to generate temperature sensing data and flow rate sensing data by detecting the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water;

an adjusting unit configured to adjust the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water; and

a control unit configured to control the adjusting unit to adjust the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water based on the temperature input data, the flow rate input data, the temperature sensing data and the flow rate sensing data.

2. The digital faucet system of claim 1, wherein the adjusting unit comprises:

a hot water adjusting unit configured to adjust a flow rate of the hot water; and

a cold water adjusting unit configured to adjust a flow rate of the cold water.

3. The digital faucet system of claim 2, wherein the control unit controls the hot water adjusting unit and the cold water adjusting unit to adjust a ratio of the flow rate of the hot water to the flow rate of the cold water while the flow rate of the mixed water is maintained, when a temperature corresponding to the temperature input data is different from a temperature corresponding to the temperature sensing data.

4. The digital faucet system of claim 2, wherein the control unit controls the hot water adjusting unit and the cold water adjusting unit to adjust the flow rate of the hot water and the flow rate of the cold water while a ratio of the flow rate of the hot water to the flow rate of the cold water is maintained, when a flow rate corresponding to the flow rate input data is different from a flow rate corresponding to the flow rate sensing data.

5. The digital faucet system of claim 1, wherein the control unit provides image data corresponding to the temperature sensing data and the flow rate sensing data to the data input unit, and the data input unit displays an image based on the image data.

6. The digital faucet system of claim 5, wherein the image displayed by the data input unit includes information about the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water supplied by the faucet.

7. The digital faucet system of claim 1, wherein the touch screen generates the temperature input data and the flow rate input data by detecting a single touch point.

8. A digital faucet system, comprising:

a faucet coupled to a hot water path and a cold water path, and configured to output mixed water including hot water provided from the hot water path and cold water provided from the cold water path;

a data input unit configured to generate temperature input data and flow rate input data;

an adjusting unit configured to adjust a temperature and a flow rate of the mixed water; and

a control unit configured to control the adjusting unit to adjust the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water based on the temperature input data and the flow rate input data.

9. The digital faucet system of claim 8, wherein the data input unit comprises a touch screen for detecting a touch point indicating a temperature and a flow rate of the mixed water to be set.

10. The digital faucet system of claim 8, wherein the data input unit comprises:

a panel including image pixels for displaying an image that represents the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water and touch screen sensors for detecting a touch point indicating a temperature and a flow rate of the mixed water to be set; and

a driver integrated circuit configured to drive the panel by applying voltages corresponding to image data provided from the control unit to the image pixels, configured to generate the temperature input data and the flow rate input data based on a detection result from the touch screen sensors, and configured to provide the temperature input data and the flow rate input data to the control unit.

11. The digital faucet system of claim 8, wherein the adjusting unit comprises:

a hot water adjusting unit configured to adjust a flow rate of the hot water; and

a cold water adjusting unit configured to adjust a flow rate of the cold water.

12. The digital faucet system of claim 11, wherein the hot water adjusting unit and the cold water adjusting unit adjust a ratio of the flow rate of the hot water to the flow rate of the cold water so as to adjust the temperature of the mixed water.

13. The digital faucet system of claim 11, wherein the hot water adjusting unit and the cold water adjusting unit adjust the flow rate of the hot water and the flow rate of the cold water and maintain a ratio of the flow rate of the hot water to the flow rate of the cold water so as to adjust the flow rate of the mixed water.

14. The digital faucet system of claim 8, further comprising:

a sense unit configured to generate temperature sensing data and flow rate sensing data by detecting the temperature and the flow rate of the mixed water, and provide the temperature sensing data and the flow rate sensing data to the control unit.

15. The digital faucet system of claim 14, wherein the control unit provides image data corresponding to the temperature sensing data and the flow rate sensing data, and the data input unit displays an image based on the image data.

16. The digital faucet system of claim 14, wherein the control unit controls the adjusting unit to adjust the temperature of the mixed water when a temperature corresponding to the temperature input data is different from a temperature corresponding to the temperature sensing data, and

wherein the control unit controls the adjusting unit to adjust the flow rate of the mixed water when a flow rate corresponding to the flow rate input data is different from a flow rate corresponding to the flow rate sensing data.

17. The digital faucet system of claim 14, wherein the adjusting unit comprises a hot water adjusting unit for adjusting a flow rate of the hot water and a cold water adjusting unit for adjusting a flow rate of the cold water,

wherein the control unit controls the hot water adjusting unit and the cold water adjusting unit based on the temperature input data and the temperature sensing data to adjust a ratio of the flow rate of the hot water to the flow rate of the cold water, and

wherein the control unit controls the hot water adjusting unit and the cold water adjusting unit based on the flow rate input data and the flow rate sensing data to adjust the flow rate of the hot water and the flow rate of the cold water.

18. The digital faucet system of claim 14, wherein the sense unit comprises:

a mixed water temperature sensor installed in a mixed water path through which the mixed water flows, and configured to generate the temperature sensing data by detecting the temperature of the mixed water; and

a mixed water flow rate sensor installed in the mixed water path, and configured to generate the flow rate sensing data by detecting the flow rate of the mixed water.

19. The digital faucet system of claim 14, wherein the sense unit comprises:

a hot water temperature sensor installed in the hot water path, and configured to generate hot water temperature sensing data by detecting a temperature of the hot water;

a cold water temperature sensor installed in the cold water path, and configured to generate cold water temperature sensing data by detecting a temperature of the cold water;

a hot water flow rate sensor installed in the hot water path, and configured to generate hot water flow rate sensing data by detecting a flow rate of the hot water; and

a cold water flow rate sensor installed in the cold water path, and configured to generate cold water flow rate sensing data by detecting a flow rate of the cold water.