Water fixture control system

• US 5,588,636 A
• Filed: 06/08/1995
• Issued: 12/31/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Friedrich Grohe AG & Co. KG (LIXIL Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Friedrich Grohe AG (LIXIL Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Eichholz, Heinz-Dieter, Rudrich, Hans-Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): KWON, JOHN
• Application Number:
  US08/488,629
• Time in Patent Office: 572 Days
• Field of Search: 251/129.04, 4/DIG. 3, 364/184, 364/187, 364/509, 364/510, 364/140, 364/141, 364/146
• US Class Current: 251/129.04
• CPC Class Codes: E03C 1/057 touchless, i.e. using sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1393 characterised by the use of electric means

Abstract

A fixture provided with proximity sensing for operation of the valve and contactless setting of the parameters of the control circuit for operating the valve of the fixture, can have a nonvolatile memory which is effective independently of the power supply for the control circuit so that the set parameters are maintained in the memory even on battery failure and are available to restore operation with the set parameters when power is restored.

Claims

1. A water-control device comprising:

an electrically controllable valve for dispensing water in a sanitary fixture;

a control circuit operatively connected to said valve and provided with a proximity detector for operating said valve in response to proximity of a user of said fixture and with system parameters and operating parameters including flow duration and operating range of said proximity detector;

a voltage source connected to said control circuit;

means in wireless communication with said control circuit for contactless setting of at least one of said system and operating parameters in said control circuit; and

at least one nonvolatile memory connected to said control circuit for storing said system and operating parameters independently of failure of said voltage source whereby operation of said control circuit with said system and operating parameters is automatically restored by said nonvolatile memory upon restoration of said voltage source to said control circuit.

2. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory is a digital storage memory.

3. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory is a analog storage memory.

4. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein data is stored in said nonvolatile memory in a digital and analog manner.

5. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory is a long-term nonvolatile storage.

6. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory is a short-term nonvolatile storage.

7. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory is a combination of short-term nonvolatile storage and long-term nonvolatile storage.

8. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory includes a E² PROM nonvolatile fixed-value storage.

9. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory includes a flash-EPROM digital long-term storage.

10. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory includes a condenser-buffered static RAM digital long-term storage.

11. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory includes a battery-buffered static RAM digital long-term storage.

12. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory includes a DAS chip long-term storage.

13. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said nonvolatile memory includes a digital potentiometer long-term storage.

14. The water-control device defined in claim 1 wherein said control circuit includes an integrated microcontroller with an on-chip E² PROM.