Device for controlling and/or regulating the supply of a medium, devices of this type comprising washing or drying units and a corresponding method
First Claim
1. A washstand comprising:
- a basin;
a supply unit for supplying a medium to the basin for washing parts of the body, the supply unit including at least one shut-off member for regulating a supply of the medium;
an actuating element connected to the shut-off member for bringing the shut-off member into a closed position for stopping the supply of the medium, and into a plurality of different flow regulating open positions for supplying different quantities of the medium;
a controlling device connected to the actuating element for controlling the supply of the medium from the supply unit, the controlling device comprising a sensor device for contact-less determination of the presence of the parts of the body to be impinged upon by the medium at the basin, the sensor device including at least two sensor cells for generating an electrical field that changes as a function of the presence of the parts of the body with respect to the basin, and relative positions of the parts of the body with respect to the basin, the controlling device outputting signals which act on the actuating element to bring the shut-off member into different ones of the open positions which correspond to the presence and the relative positions of the parts of the body with respect to the basin.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
The invention relates to a device (2) for controlling and/or regulating the supply of a medium using a supply unit for an impingement device. Said supply unit comprises at least one shut-off member and each shut-off member can be moved into a closed position and at least one open position by means of an actuating element. The device comprises a sensor unit (50) for determining in a contactless manner the presence of a material that is to be impinged by the medium. The inventive device (2) is characterized in that said sensor unit (50) is additionally configured for the contactless determination of the relative position of the material in relation to the impingement device (10) and for the output of signals, which act on the actuating elements in such a way that the later moves the shut-oft members into a position that corresponds with the presence and the location of the material to be impinged by the medium. The washing and/or drying devices (10) preferably comprise a device (2) of this type for controlling and/or regulating the supply of water and/or warm air for washing and/or drying purposes. The invention also relates to a corresponding method.
117 Citations
14 Claims
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1. A washstand comprising:
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a basin; a supply unit for supplying a medium to the basin for washing parts of the body, the supply unit including at least one shut-off member for regulating a supply of the medium; an actuating element connected to the shut-off member for bringing the shut-off member into a closed position for stopping the supply of the medium, and into a plurality of different flow regulating open positions for supplying different quantities of the medium; a controlling device connected to the actuating element for controlling the supply of the medium from the supply unit, the controlling device comprising a sensor device for contact-less determination of the presence of the parts of the body to be impinged upon by the medium at the basin, the sensor device including at least two sensor cells for generating an electrical field that changes as a function of the presence of the parts of the body with respect to the basin, and relative positions of the parts of the body with respect to the basin, the controlling device outputting signals which act on the actuating element to bring the shut-off member into different ones of the open positions which correspond to the presence and the relative positions of the parts of the body with respect to the basin. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method of contact-less controlling of a supply of a medium through a supply unit for a washstand for washing parts of the body, the supply unit including at least one shut-off member and an actuating element, each shut-off member having a closed position and a plurality of flow regulating open positions using said actuating element, the washstand including a sensor device for contact-less determination of the presence of the parts of the body to be impinged upon using the medium, wherein this sensor device includes at least two sensor cells designed to act as transmitters or receivers for generating at least one electrical field and also of detecting a change in the at least one electrical field as a function of the parts of the body that are in the electrical field;
- the method comprising;
using the sensor device for detecting a presence of the parts of the body in the at least one electrical field and for registering a relative position of the parts of the body in relation to the washstand; the sensor device outputting signals that are a function of the presence and relative position of the parts of the body; and using the signals to act on the actuating elements to bring the shut-off member into one of the open positions corresponding to the presence and the position of the parts of the body to be impinged by the medium. - View Dependent Claims (14)
- the method comprising;
Specification