Domestic appliance assembly with integrated functioning

• US 7,574,269 B2
• Filed: 02/01/2006
• Issued: 08/11/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electrolux Home Products Incorporated (AB Electrolux)
• Original Assignee: Electrolux Home Products Incorporated (AB Electrolux)
• Inventors: Cenedese, Claudio, Bottos, Roberto
• Primary Examiner(s): Hartman, Jr.; Ronald D
• Application Number:
  US11/344,869
• Publication Number:
  US 20060200255A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,287 Days
• Field of Search: 700/17, 700/83
• US Class Current: 700/17
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2101/20 Operation modes, e.g. delicate laundry washing programs, service modes or refreshment cycles
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2103/00 Parameters monitored or detected for the control of domestic laundry washing machines, washer-dryers or laundry dryers
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 2105/58 Indications or alarms to the control system or to the user
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 34/05 for wireless communication between components, e.g. for remote monitoring or control
• CPC Class Codes: D06F 34/30 characterised by mechanical features, e.g. buttons or rotary dials

Abstract

A domestic appliance assembly comprising at least two machines, each of which being provided with control means able to receive program inputs set by a user and operative information transmitted by the other machine so as said machines can perform their functions in an integrate and synchronised way.

Each machine (10,12) comprise a wireless communication module (14) adapted to exchange information directly between the machines and means (16) to process said information and to synchronise the machine functioning.

The domestic appliance assembly according to the invention allows to accomplish a better power management, to avoid electrical overloads, and to synchronise the appliance functioning.

Claims

1. A domestic appliance assembly comprising at least two machines (10, 12), each of which comprises:

control means able to receive program inputs set by a user and operative information transmitted by the other machine so as said machines can perform their functions in an integrated and synchronised way;

a wireless communication module comprising a radio frequency module (14) adapted to exchange information directly between the machines (10, 12); and

an electronic controller (16) to process said information and to synchronise the machine functioning;

wherein, the control means of each machine comprises an electronic board comprising a serial port (17) which is associated with the radio frequency module (14) in order to connect the radio frequency module (14) to the electronic controller (16),

wherein the radio frequency module (14) is adapted to receive information about the functioning state of the respective machine (10 or 12) from the electronic controller (16) via the serial port (17) and to send said information to the controller (16) of the other machine (10 or 12) and vice versa, and

wherein one of the controllers (16) is adapted to decide about actions to be performed by both the machines.

2. A domestic appliance assembly according to claim 1, characterised in that the radio frequency module (14) comprises a radio frequency transmitter (18) and a radio frequency receiver (20) managed by a micro controller (22).

3. A domestic appliance assembly according to claim 1, characterised in that the radio frequency module (14) comprise a serial line interface (15).

4. A domestic appliance assembly according to claim 1, characterised in that one of the machine (14) represents the master of the assembly and the control means of this machine are provided with a selector adapted to be positioned according to the different operative cycles, one of the selector positions corresponding to the best cycle depending on the received information from the other machine (12).

5. A domestic appliance assembly according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the controllers (16) is adapted to put one or the other machine (10, 12) on hold, or reduce the electrical load needed by the dryer (12) to avoid the overlapping of highly power-demanding operating phases of the machines (10, 12).