Method and apparatus for appliance service diagnostics

• US 20030046377A1
• Filed: 12/27/2000
• Published: 03/06/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Horning, Scott Allen, Holmes, John Steven, Evans, Scott Charles, Daum, Wolfgang, Bicknell, William Hull, Iqbal, Tanveer
• Application Number:
  US09/748,440
• Publication Number:
  US 20030046377A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/18 Delegation of network management function, e.g. customer network management [CNM]

Abstract

A method and apparatus for service diagnostics of appliances includes connecting to a local area appliance network, accessing an appliance in the local area appliance network, accessing functions of the appliance, and performing service diagnosis of the appliance using the functions. A diagnostic interface is used to diagnose and service the appliance. The local area appliance network may be a power line carrier communication carrier network. The diagnostic interface may connect to a remote system for service diagnostic information.

Claims

1. A method of performing service diagnostics on appliances, the method comprising:

connecting to a local area appliance network;

accessing an appliance in the local area appliance network; and

performing service diagnosis of the appliance over the local area appliance network using service functions in the appliance.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the local area appliance network comprises a power line carrier system.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein accessing further comprises accessing a dedicated appliance controller in an appliance.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the service functions comprise safety functions.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the service functions comprise appliance parameter functions.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the service functions comprise appliance status functions.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising connecting to a remote system to retrieve service diagnostic information.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein performing service diagnosis includes diagnosing and servicing the appliance based on the appliance diagnosis.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein servicing the appliance comprises patching appliance firmware.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein servicing the appliance comprises adjusting appliance parameters.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising maintaining an external database of appliance information based on diagnosis of the appliance.

12. A diagnostic interface for performing service diagnostics on appliances, the diagnostic interface comprising:

a display for viewing diagnostic and service information;

processing circuitry for generating service commands for an appliance; and

a power line carrier communication interface for transmitting the service commands to the appliance and receiving appliance diagnostic results on a power line carrier communication system.

13. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 further comprising an appliance bus interface for communicating with the appliance.

14. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 further comprising a remote service center interface.

15. The diagnostic interface of claim 14 wherein the diagnostic interface gathers appliance statistics to send to a remote service center over the remote service center interface.

16. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 further comprising a user interface to facilitate service diagnostics.

17. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 wherein the appliance comprises a refrigerator.

18. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 wherein the appliance comprises an oven.

19. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 wherein the appliance comprises a heating system.

20. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 wherein the appliance comprises a cooling system.

21. The diagnostic interface of claim 12 wherein the appliance comprises a lighting system.

22. A diagnostic system for provide access to service diagnostics on an appliance, the system comprising:

a diagnostic interface for accepting service diagnostics commands destined for the appliance;

a local area appliance network coupled to the appliance and the diagnostic interface; and

a dedicated appliance controller for receiving and executing the diagnostics commands.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein the local area appliance network comprises a power line carrier network.

24. The system of claim 22 wherein the diagnostic interface comprises a computer.

25. The system of claim 22 wherein the diagnostics interface comprises a laptop computer.

26. The system of claim 22 further comprising a communications interface between the local area appliance network and the dedicated appliance controller.

27. The system of claim 22 further comprising a remote system, the remote system connectable to the diagnostic interface via an Internet connection.

28. The system of claim 22 wherein the dedicated appliance controller is contained within the appliance.