Management control of household appliances using RFID communication

• US 8,704,639 B2
• Filed: 09/15/2009
• Issued: 04/22/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc. DBA GE Appliances (Haier Group Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Schork, Brian Michael, Besore, John K., Vankatakrishnan, Natarajan, Ilickovic, Darko
• Primary Examiner(s): HOLLOWAY III, EDWIN C
• Application Number:
  US12/559,528
• Publication Number:
  US 20100090806A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,680 Days
• Field of Search: 340/10.1, 340/10.4, 340/10.5, 340/12.51, 340/13.26, 340/13.3, 700/295, 700/296
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 21/04 Preventing the formation of frost or condensate
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 13/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00004 characterised by the power network being locally controlled
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00017 using optical fiber
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00024 by means of mobile telephony
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00026 involving a local wireless network, e.g. Wi-Fi, ZigBee or Bluetooth
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/14 The load or loads being home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/64 The condition being economic, e.g. tariff based load management
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/66 one of the loads acting as master and the other or others acting as slaves
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 40/00 Technologies aiming at improving the efficiency of home appliances, e.g. induction cooking or efficient technologies for refrigerators, freezers or dish washers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 90/20 Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/222 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/242 Home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/244 the home appliances being or involving heating ventilating and air conditioning [HVAC] units
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/124 using wired telecommunication networks or data transmission busses
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/126 using wireless data transmission
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 50/10 : Energy trading, including energy flowing from end-user application to grid

Abstract

A method and system for communicating with an associated home appliance having a micro-controller includes providing a master device that emits a signal in response to data indicative of energy operational costs. One or more RFID tags receive the master device signal. The RFID tag(s) are connected to the associated home appliance micro-controller to control the operational mode of the home appliance. Preferably, four RFID tags are responsive to four distinct frequency signal emitted by the master device and are representative of different modes of operation for the associated home appliance.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

emitting a first signal and a second signal from a master device in response to data indicative of energy operational costs, the first signal and the second signal having, respectively, a first frequency and a second frequency, wherein the first frequency is different from the second frequency; and

receiving the first signal and the second signal at a home appliance incorporating a first RFID tag and a second RFID tag responsive to, respectively, the first frequency of the first signal and the second frequency of the second signal to control operation of the home appliance.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein one of the first RFID tag and the second RFID tags are an active RFID tag having a memory for storing data therein.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising selectively manipulating the data in the active RFID tag by the master device.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a third RFID tag and a fourth RFID tag in communication with the associated home appliance controller, wherein the third RFID tag and the fourth RFID tag resonate at frequencies that are different from each other and from the first RFID tag and the second RFID tag.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising emitting a third signal and a fourth signal from the master device at, respectively, a third frequency and a fourth frequency for communicating with the third RFID tag and the fourth RFID tags, respectively.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the first RFID tag, the second RFID tag, the third RFID tag, and the fourth RFID tag are passive tags and wherein the first signal, the second signal, the third signal, and the fourth signal are representative of low, medium, high, and critical modes of operation for the associated home appliance.

7. A system comprising:

a master device adapted to receive data relating to energy cost and for emitting a first signal at a first frequency and a second signal at a second frequency indicative of same;

a home appliance incorporating a first RFID tag and a second RFID tag responsive to, respectively, the first frequency of the first signal and the second frequency of the second signal to control operation of the home appliance from the master device, the appliance also comprising a microcontroller,

wherein the microcontroller changes operation of the home appliance between a first state and a second state in accordance with the response to the first signal by the first RFID tag and the response to the second signal by the second RFID device.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein one of the first RFID tag and the second RFID tag is an active tag having a memory that is selectively altered in response to the first signal and the second signal from the master device.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the second RFID tag comprises a passive device operatively associated with the microcontroller.

10. The system of claim 7, further comprising a third RFID tag and a fourth RFID tag operatively associated with the microcontroller, wherein the third RFID tag and the fourth RFID tag are responsive to a third signal at a third frequency and a fourth signal at a fourth frequency from the master device, wherein the microcontroller changes operation of the home appliance between a third state and a fourth state in accordance with the response to the third signal by the third RFID tag and the fourth signal by the fourth RFID tag.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the first state, the second state, the third state, and the fourth state represent one of low, medium, high and critical modes of operation for the home appliance.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the first frequency, the second frequency, the third frequency, and the fourth frequency are different from one another.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the first state and second state define operation of the home appliance in different energy saving operational modes.