Validation of addition of cleaning chemistry to self-cleaning oven

A method for controlling the initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance, the method comprising:

• receiving sensor data from a detection sensor representative of a first time, the first time being a time when no cleaning product is present within a field of detection (FOD) of the detection sensor, wherein
• the FOD of the detection sensor comprises one or more pre-determined locations in the interior of the appliance, each pre-determined location intended for the receipt of the cleaning product used during the cleaning process;
• generating an initial condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the first time;
• receiving sensor data from the detection sensor representative of a second time, different than the first time;
• generating a new condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the second time;
• and
• determining if cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined locations at the second time based on the comparison of the initial condition and the new condition.

A system for controlling the initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an oven, comprising:

• the oven;
• at least one heating element;
• a detection sensor, the detection sensor configured to generate detection sensor data based on a sensed condition in a field of detection (FOD) of the detection sensor, wherein
• the FOD of the detection sensor comprises one or more pre-determined locations in the interior of the oven, each pre-determined location intended for the receipt of a cleaning product that is used during the cleaning process;
• a first auxiliary sensor, the first auxiliary sensor configured to sense whether the at least one heating element is on or off;
• and
• a processor operatively coupled to the detection sensor, the processor being configured to control the initiation of a pre-cleaning process and a cleaning process, the pre-cleaning process comprising:
• receiving data from the first auxiliary sensor;
• determining whether the heating element is on or off, and initiate the cleaning process for the interior of the oven if the heating element is determined to be off;
• the cleaning process comprising:
• receiving detection sensor data from the detection sensor representative of a first time, the first time being a time when no cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined locations;
• generating an initial condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the first time;
• receiving detection sensor data from the detection sensor representative of a second time, different than the first time;
• generating a new condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the second time;
• comparing the initial condition and the new condition;
• and
• determining if cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined locations at the second time based on the comparison of the initial condition and the new condition.