Floor care appliance with network connectivity
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A floor care appliance, comprising:
- a base portion for contacting a floor surface and performing a cleaning operation thereon;
at least one electrically powered device producing work related to the cleaning operation;
a microprocessor maintaining at least one operational parameter used to control said at least one electrically powered device, said microprocessor configured to collect and store performance data associated with said electrically powered device; and
a port electronically connected to said microprocessor for selectively connecting said floor care appliance to a personal computer through a digital pathway, said personal computer configured to modify said at least one operational parameter based on said collected performance data.
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Abstract
A floor care appliance is provided with a microprocessor based control arrangement having a communications port for connection to a computer. Once connected to a computer, software updates for the microprocessor may be downloaded or diagnostic information stored in the microprocessor'"'"'s memory may be uploaded for diagnostic purposes. In one embodiment of the invention, the communication port is configured to be connected to a local computer for possible further connection to a remote computer over a computer or telephone network. In an alternate embodiment of the invention, the communication port is configured to connect to and dial up a remote computer over a telephone network.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A floor care appliance, comprising:
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a base portion for contacting a floor surface and performing a cleaning operation thereon; at least one electrically powered device producing work related to the cleaning operation; a microprocessor maintaining at least one operational parameter used to control said at least one electrically powered device, said microprocessor configured to collect and store performance data associated with said electrically powered device; and a port electronically connected to said microprocessor for selectively connecting said floor care appliance to a personal computer through a digital pathway, said personal computer configured to modify said at least one operational parameter based on said collected performance data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 7)
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6. A floor care appliance, comprising:
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a base portion for contacting a floor surface and performing a cleaning operation thereon; at least one electrically powered device producing work related to the cleaning operation; a microprocessor maintaining at least one operational parameter used to control said at least one electrically powered device, said microprocessor configured to collect performance data associated with said electrically powered device; and a port electronically connected to said microprocessor for selectively connecting said floor care appliance to a personal computer through a wireless connection, said personal computer configured to modify said at least one operational parameter based on said stored performance data. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10)
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11. A vacuum cleaner, comprising:
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a base portion for contacting a floor surface and performing a cleaning operation thereon; at least one electrically powered device producing work related to the cleaning operation; a microprocessor maintaining at least one operational parameters used to control said at least one electrically powered device, said microprocessor configured to collect performance data associated with said electrically powered device; and a modem connected to said microprocessor for selectively connecting said vacuum cleaner to a remote computer via a modem over a telephone network, said remote computer configured to update said microprocessor with new operational parameters based on said collected performance data. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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14. A method of connecting a floor care appliance having a base portion for contacting a floor surface and performing a cleaning operation thereon and at least one electrically powered device producing work related to the cleaning operation to a personal computer, comprised of the steps of:
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providing a floor care appliance with a microprocessor for controlling said at least one electrically powered device in accordance with at least one operational parameter; collecting and storing performance data based on the operation of said floor care appliance; selectively connecting said microprocessor to a personal computer through a digital pathway; and modifying said at least one operational parameter based on said performance data collected at said collecting step. - View Dependent Claims (15)
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16. A method of connecting a floor care appliance having a base portion for contacting a floor surface and performing a cleaning operation thereon and at least one electrically powered device producing work related to the cleaning operation to a remote computer, comprised of the steps of:
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providing the floor care appliance with a microprocessor for controlling said at least one electrically powered device in accordance with at least one operational parameter; collecting performance data based on the operation of said floor care appliance at said microprocessor; connecting said microprocessor to a personal computer through a digital pathway; exchanging data between said microprocessor and said personal computer; connecting said personal computer to a remote computer; analyzing said collected performance data at said remote computer; and updating said microprocessor with new operational parameters based on said analyzing step. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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20. A method of connecting a vacuum cleaner having a base portion for contacting a floor surface and performing a cleaning operation thereon and at least one electrically powered device producing work related to the cleaning operation to a remote computer, comprised of the steps of:
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providing a vacuum cleaner with a microprocessor, said microprocessor maintaining at least one operational parameter used to control said at least one electrically powered device; collecting performance data based on the operation of said electrically powered device; providing a modem connected to said microprocessor; connecting said modem to a telephone network; connecting said telephone network to a remote computer; analyzing said performance data obtained at said collecting step; updating said microprocessor with new operational parameters based on said analyzing step; and exchanging data between said microprocessor and said remote computer. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22)
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Specification