Intelligent Network For Chemical Dispensing System
First Claim
1. A chemical dispensing system comprising:
- a peristaltic pump including a length of elastic tubing, a rotor that pumps fluid through the length of elastic tubing by progressively squeezing and releasing consecutive portions of the tubing, a motor that selectively rotates the rotor, a processor operatively coupled to the motor and that controls the motor, and a memory for storing pump calibration data; and
a system controller in communication with the peristaltic pump that provides data to the processor indicative of a desired volume of a product to be dispensed.
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Accused Products
Abstract
System and method for dispensing product to a washing machine. A chemical dispensing system includes a system controller, machine interface, and pump controller that communicate through serial data buses. The system controller provides a user interface, retrieves washing machine status information from the machine interface, and issues product dispensing commands to the pump controller. The pump controller monitors pump status and dispenses product in response to commands from the system controller. The pump controller: (1) determines pump activation periods based on calibration data stored in a pump controller memory; (2) tracks pump usage and adjusts the activation period to compensate for pump wear as the pump ages; (3) disables the pump if conditions exists that preclude operating the pump; (4) monitors product levels, and (5) reports pump status to the system controller. Integral channels are included in the pump housing to provide stress relief to a squeeze tube.
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Citations
61 Claims
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1. A chemical dispensing system comprising:
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a peristaltic pump including a length of elastic tubing, a rotor that pumps fluid through the length of elastic tubing by progressively squeezing and releasing consecutive portions of the tubing, a motor that selectively rotates the rotor, a processor operatively coupled to the motor and that controls the motor, and a memory for storing pump calibration data; and a system controller in communication with the peristaltic pump that provides data to the processor indicative of a desired volume of a product to be dispensed. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method of controlling the amount of a product dispensed by a chemical dispensing system including a system controller in communication with a peristaltic pump including a pump controller, the method comprising:
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communicating from the system controller to the pump controller a desired volume of the product to be dispensed by the peristaltic pump; calculating an activation period for the peristaltic pump to dispense the desired amount of the product based at least in part on calibration data stored in a memory in the pump controller; and activating the peristaltic pump for the activation period. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A chemical dispensing system comprising:
a pump including a memory for storing pump calibration data indicative of a product flow rate provided by the pump when the pump is activated. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A peristaltic pump for dispensing a product from a container in a chemical dispensing system, the pump comprising:
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a detection circuit including an electrical input port for receiving signals indicative of the presence of the product in the container, the detection circuit generating an output signal indicative of a low impedance state or a high impedance state at the electrical input port; and a processor operatively coupled to the detection circuit that determines an amount of product present in the container based at least in part on the output signal generated by the detection circuit. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36)
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37. A peristaltic pump for a chemical dispensing system, the pump comprising:
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a housing including a pumping chamber and integral input and output channels, each integral channel having a first end terminating in the pumping chamber and a second end terminating at a connection point accessible from the exterior of the housing; a flexible channel located in the pumping chamber and fluidically coupling the first end of the integral input channel to the first end of the integral output channel; and a rotor including at least one roller for pumping fluid through the flexible channel by progressively squeezing and releasing consecutive portions of the flexible channel, wherein the integral input and output channels provide stress relief between the flexible channel and the connection points. - View Dependent Claims (38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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43. A chemical dispensing system comprising:
a peristaltic pump including a processor that selectively activates the pump to dispense a desired quantity of a chemical, the processor including an input port that receives a signal indicative of the existence of a condition in the chemical dispensing system, the processor disabling the pump in response to detecting the presence of the signal on the input port. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47, 48)
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49. A chemical dispensing system for a washing machine, the system comprising:
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a system controller including a plurality of serial data bus interfaces; a pump including a pump controller in communication with the system controller over a first serial data bus interface of the plurality of serial data bus interfaces; and a machine interface including a machine interface controller in communication with the system controller over a second serial data bus interface of the plurality of serial data bus interfaces, wherein the system controller obtains trigger data indicative of a state of the washing machine from the machine interface via the second serial data bus interface, and based at least in part on the trigger data, transmits data indicative of an amount of a chemical to be dispensed to the pump controller via the first serial data base. - View Dependent Claims (50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57)
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58. A chemical dispensing system comprising a peristaltic pump, the peristaltic pump including:
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a length of elastic tubing; a rotor that pumps fluid through the length of elastic tubing by progressively squeezing and releasing consecutive portions of the length of elastic tubing; and a processor that determines a remaining service life of the length of elastic tubing based at least in part on an accumulated operational time on the length of elastic tubing. - View Dependent Claims (59, 60, 61)
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Specification