CLOTHES DRYER WIRELESS MOISTURE DATA TRANSFER SYSTEMS AND ENERGY-EFFICIENT METHODS OF OPERATION
First Claim
1. A method of operating a near field communication (NFC) tag, the NFC tag being secured to a rotatable drum of a clothes drying appliance, the method comprising:
- determining whether the drum is currently rotating;
when it is determined that the drum is not currently rotating, operating the NFC tag in an ultra-low power mode; and
when it is determined that the drum is currently rotating, periodically switching the NFC tag between a normal mode and a low power mode.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Clothes dryer wireless moisture data transfer systems and energy-efficient methods of operation thereof are provided. One example method of operating a near field communication (NFC) tag includes determining whether a rotatable drum of a clothes dryer appliance is currently rotating. The NFC tag is secured to the drum. The method includes operating the NFC tag in an ultra-low power mode when it is determined that the drum is not currently rotating. The method includes periodically switching the NFC tag between a normal mode and a low power mode when it is determined that the drum is currently rotating.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of operating a near field communication (NFC) tag, the NFC tag being secured to a rotatable drum of a clothes drying appliance, the method comprising:
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determining whether the drum is currently rotating; when it is determined that the drum is not currently rotating, operating the NFC tag in an ultra-low power mode; and when it is determined that the drum is currently rotating, periodically switching the NFC tag between a normal mode and a low power mode. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A clothes dryer, comprising:
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a cabinet; a drum rotatably mounted within the cabinet, the drum defining a space for the receipt of clothes for drying; one or more sensors positioned within the drum, wherein the one or more sensors respectively output one or more output signals indicative of an amount of moisture contained within the clothes; a near field communication (NFC) tag positioned on an exterior surface of the drum and wired to receive the output signals from the plurality of sensors, wherein the NFC tag uses near field communication to provide sensor data to an NFC reader positioned exterior to the drum and in operative communication with a controller of the clothes dryer, such that the operation of the clothes dryer can be controlled based on the amount of moisture contained within the clothes; and a power supply electrically connected to the NFC tag; wherein the one or more sensors, the NFC tag, and the power supply are secured with respect to the drum so as rotate concurrently with the drum; wherein the NFC reader is stationary and positioned adjacent to a rotational path of the NFC tag; and wherein the NFC tag transitions between an ultra-low power state, a low power state, and a normal state based at least in part on whether the drum is rotating. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method for operating a wireless communication tag of a moisture sensing system of a clothes drying appliance, the method comprising:
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determining whether a drum of the clothes drying appliance is rotating, wherein the wireless communication tag rotates concurrently with the drum; when it is determined that the drum is not rotating, operating the wireless communication tag in an ultra-low power mode until it is determined that the drum is rotating; when it is determined that the drum is rotating, periodically transitioning the wireless communication tag between a normal mode and a low power mode; wherein operating the wireless communication tag in the normal mode comprises; writing received moisture data to memory; and after writing the received moisture data to memory, placing the wireless communication tag into the low power mode; and wherein operating the wireless communication tag in the low power mode comprises; disabling one or more components of the wireless communication tag from consuming power; waiting for a real time clock interruption; and when the real time clock interruption is received, placing the wireless communication tag into either the normal mode or the ultra-low power based at least in part on whether the drum is still rotating. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification