Electrical home appliance

• US 5,839,097 A
• Filed: 04/17/1997
• Issued: 11/17/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Original Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Klausner, Markus
• Primary Examiner(s): KEMPER, MELANIE A
• Application Number:
  US08/837,347
• Time in Patent Office: 579 Days
• Field of Search: 702/188, 364/138, 364/708.1, 364/709.1, 340/870.01, 340/870.11, 340/531, 340/533, 340/635, 340/825.06, 340/825.07, 340/825.72, 345/903, 439/594, 307/38-42
• US Class Current: 340/12.3
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23147 LCD liquid crystal display
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23319 Microprocessor control or manual control
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23386 Voice, vocal command or message
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23406 Programmer device, portable, handheld detachable programmer
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24048 Remote test, monitoring, diagnostic
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25192 Infrared
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2642 Domotique, domestic, home control, automation, smart house
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2300/03 Application domotique, e.g. for house automation, bus connected switches, sensors, loads or intelligent wiring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/282 based on user interaction within the home receiver circuitry for displaying additional information being controlled by a remote control apparatus H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/285 Generic home appliances, e.g. refrigerators
• 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 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 20/14 Protecting elements, switches, relays or circuit breakers
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/20 End-user application control systems

Abstract

An electrical home appliance (14) such as a dishwasher, a clothes dryer, a washing machine, a lighting arrangement, a heating system control or the like, which, via an interface arranged on or in the home appliance, can be connected to a bus system supplied to several home appliances and controlled by a single central control computer (17), with the interface being connected to a bus connection module for transmitting control commands and/or sensor signals between the bus system and the home appliance (14). The home appliance (14) additionally is provided with a plug-in position (18) for the detachable plugging in of the control computer (17). A contact configuration (19) establishing the connection between the plugged-in control computer (17) and the interface is arranged at the plug-in position (18). A great flexibility is accomplished since the control computer (17) can also be plugged in at the plug-in positions of other home appliances connected to the bus system. By changing the plug-in location of the control computer (17), the entire system can be controlled from different points. The control computer does not require a special location but is integrated into one of the home appliances when it is plugged in.

Claims

1. An electrical home appliance, including a dishwasher, clothes dryer, washing machine, lighting arrangement, heating system control, having an interface, which is arranged on the respective home appliance, for connecting the home appliance to a bus system connected to several home appliances for control by a single central control computer, with the interface being connected to a bus connection module within the respective home appliance for transmitting control commands or sensor signals between the bus system and the home appliance;

and wherein the respective home appliance is provided with a plug-in position for the detachable plugging in of the control computer, and a contact configuration is provided at the plug-in position and connected to the interface for establishing a connection between a plugged-in control computer and the interface.

2. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the plug-in position is configured as a plug-in slot for at least partially receiving the control computer.

3. A home appliance according to claim 2, wherein the contact configuration is disposed on an end wall of the slot on the inside of the home appliance and has a contact configuration corresponding to that of the interface.

4. A home appliance according to claim 2, further comprising a slot cover for covering the plug-in position configured as a plug-in slot in the absence of the control computer.

5. A home appliance according to claim 1, further comprising an adapter cable for connecting a control computer not arranged at the plug-in position, with the contact configuration at the plug-in position.

6. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the control computer, which can be selectively plugged in at different home appliances, is designed for controlling all of the home appliances connected to the bus system.

7. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the home appliance is additionally provided with conventional control elements, including at least one of switches, keys, and rotary knobs, for operating the home appliance independently of the control computer.

8. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the contact configuration at the plug-in position additionally has contacts for connecting a power supply to the control computer.

9. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the control computer is modularly designed and includes at least one of an LC display, a numeric keyboard having function keys, an IR receiver device, and a synthetic language output device.

10. A home appliance according to claim 9, wherein the control computer has an IR receiver device for receiving IR signals from an external IR controller for IR manual operation for the control of and communication with the IR receiver device.

11. A home appliance according to claim 10, wherein the control computer has an IR decoder for converting signals of the IR receiver device into bus telegrams for transmission via the bus system.

12. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the control computer includes means for carrying out at least one of a functional check, a diagnosis and an error search of all home appliances connected to the bus system via the bus system.

13. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the control computer is provided with a storage battery or a storage capacitor for the maintenance of data during a position change of the control computer.

14. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the bus connection module is connected to sensors or actuators of the respective home appliance.

15. A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the bus system is configured as an EIB (European Installation Bus) bus system.