Domestic appliance control and display panel

• US 3,974,472 A
• Filed: 05/05/1975
• Issued: 08/10/1976
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/1974
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: Gould, Robert R. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Trafton, David L.
• Application Number:
  US05/574,513
• Time in Patent Office: 463 Days
• Field of Search: 340/337, 340/365 C, 200/DIG. 1, 317/DIG. 2, 307/116
• US Class Current: 345/211
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 7/087 of electric circuits regulating heat
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/104 characterised by physical layout of switches; switches co-operating with display; use of switches in a special way
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23378 Touch sensitive key
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1917 using digital means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/24 the sensing element having a resistance varying with temperature, e.g. a thermistor

Abstract

A domestic range including a touch control and display panel and digital control logic for energizing power circuits controlling the various range heater elements in response to a program entered by the user by touching certain areas of the panel. The control logic also controls the displays located behind the panel to provide feedback to the user of the program selected.

Claims

1. A digital control and display panel for use in the control console of a domestic appliance adapted to be connected to a domestic power supply for household operation, said panel comprising a pane of strengthened planar glass adapted to be coextensive with said control console and imperforate throughout for easy wipe cleanability and a printed circuit board located at the rear side of said glass pane, said printed circuit board supporting a plurality of display means and digital logic means, said glass pane having an opaque paint surface of nonconductive material on the rear side thereof defining a transparent area in front of each of said display means so a user may view said display means, and touch control means for programming said appliance, said touch control means including a plurality of conductive address pads on the front side of said glass pane respectively identifiable with said plurality of display means and with each address pad having an associated conductive drive pad and conductive sense pad applied to said paint surface on the rear side of said glass pane, said digital logic means implemented in at least one monolithic integrated circuit chip and responsive to the user'"'"'s touch of an address pad for enabling a respective one of said display means to display a program entry as a visual feedback to the user.

2. The digital control and display panel of claim 1 wherein said printed circuit board includes terminals for applying a drive signal to the drive pads and for sensing the signal at the sense pad in response to a user'"'"'s touch of one of said address pads.

3. The digital control and display panel of claim 2 wherein said address pads are formed of tin oxide.

4. A digital control and display panel for use in a control console of a domestic appliance adapted to be connected to a domestic power supply for household operation, said panel comprising a pane of planar dielectric material adapted to be coextensive with said control console and imperforate throughout for easy wipe cleanability and a printed circuit board located at the rear side of said pane, said printed circuit board supporting display means and digital logic means, said pane having an opaque paint surface of nonconductive material on the rear side thereof defining a transparent area in front of said display means so a user may view said display means, and touch control means for programming said appliance, said touch control means including a plurality of conductive address pads on the front side of said pane, each address pad having an associated conductive drive pad and conductive sense pad applied to said paint surface on the rear side of said pane, said digital logic means being responsive to the user'"'"'s touch of an address pad for enabling said display means to display program entries as a visual feedback to the user, means for electrically interconnecting the sense pads in a plurality of groups, each group containing a plurality of pads, means electrically interconnecting the drive pads in a plurality of groups each group containing a plurality of pads, drive means for applying a pulsating drive signal of predetermined magnitude and pulse rate to each of said groups of drive pads in a predetermined timed sequence, said digital logic means including means responsive to the signal at each of said groups of sense pads for detecting which address pad has been touched.

5. A digital control and display panel for use in a control console of a domestic appliance adapted to be connected to a domestic power supply for household operation, said panel comprising a pane of planar dielectric material adapted to be coextensive with said control console and imperforate throughout for easy wipe cleanability and a printed circuit board located at the rear side of said pane, said printed circuit board supporting display means and digital logic means, said pane having an opaque paint surface of nonconductive material on the rear side thereof defining a transparent area in front of said display means so a user may view said display means, means including said pane forming touch control means for programming said appliance, said touch control means further including a plurality of spaced function address pads of electrically conductive material and a plurality of digit address pads of electrically conductive material, each address pad affixed to the user'"'"'s side of said panel, a drive pad of electrically conductive material and a sense pad of electrically conductive material associated with each of said plurality of address pads and affixed to said opaque paint surface, conductor means affixed to said opaque paint surface for electrically interconnecting the drive pads in a plurality of groups each group containing a plurality of drive pads, and for electrically interconnecting the sense pads in a plurality of groups, each group containing a plurality of sense pads, said display means including a plurality of display elements, means adapted to be connected with said domestic power supply for providing a regulated source of DC voltage, switch means for connecting said groups of drive pads and said display elements to said DC source, said digital logic means including means for applying a drive signal of predetermined pulse rate to said plurality of switch means in a predetermined time sequence, said digital logic means further including detector means responsive to the signal at each of said groups of sense pads for detecting which of the several address pads associated with a group of sense pads has been touched, said detector means including means establishing a criteria for valid input data from said panel which requires that data indicative of a touched address pad be present for at least two successive applications of said DC voltage to the group of drive pads associated with a touched address pad.

6. A digital control and display panel for use in a control console of a domestic appliance adapted to be connected to a domestic power supply for household operation, said appliance including an operating element, said panel comprising a pane of strengthened planar glass adapted to be coextensive with said control console and imperforate throughout for easy wipe cleanability and a printed circuit board located at the rear side of said glass pane, said printed circuit board supporting display means and digital logic means, said glass pane having an opaque paint surface of nonconductive material on the rear side thereof defining a transparent area in front of said display means so a user may view said display means, and touch control means for programming said appliance, said touch control means including a plurality of conductive address pads on the user'"'"'s side of said panel and user touchable for programming said operating element for timed operation, each address pad having an associated conductive drive pad and conductive sense pad applied to said paint surface on the rear side of said glass pane, said digital logic means responsive to the user'"'"'s touch of said address pad for permitting said operating element to be connected to said power supply for the operating time entered by the user and for enabling said display means to display the time remaining in the operation as a visual feedback to the user.

7. The digital control and display panel of claim 6 including means to display time of day on said display means and wherein said digital logic means includes means responsive to said user'"'"'s touch of said address pad for disabling the display of time of day so that said display means can display said time remaining.