# US 2016/0355388 A1 · Auto Water Dispenser Cutoff

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- Number: US 2016/0355388 A1
- Document ID: US20160355388A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 15/242,828
- Filed: 2016-08-22
- Published: 2016-12-08
- Earliest claimed: 2013-02-13
- Assignees: Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
- Applicants: Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
- Inventors: Timothy E. Willis
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20160355388A1

## CPC

- B67D 1/0014: {the beverage being supplied from water mains}
- B67D 1/0858: {using compression systems}
- B67D 1/1247: {Means for detecting the presence or absence of liquid}
- B67D 1/16: Devices for collecting spilled beverages
- F25D 11/02: with cooling compartments at different temperatures
- F25D 23/126: {Water cooler}
- F25D 29/005: {Mounting of control devices}
- B67D: DISPENSING, DELIVERING OR TRANSFERRING LIQUIDS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR (cleaning pipes or tubes or systems of pipes or tubes B08B9/02; emptying or filling of bottles, jars, cans, casks, barrels, or similar containers, not otherwise provided for B67C; water supply E03; pipe systems F17D; domestic hot-water supply systems F24D; measuring volume, volume flow, mass flow or liquid level, metering by volume G01F; coin-freed or like apparatus G07F)
- F25D: REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR (refrigerated showcases A47F3/04; thermally-insulated vessels for domestic use A47J41/00; refrigerated vehicles, see the appropriate subclasses of classes B60 - B64; containers with thermal insulation in general B65D81/38; heat-transfer, heat-exchange or heat-storage materials, e.g. refrigerants, or materials for the production of heat or cold by chemical reactions other than by combustion C09K5/00; thermally-insulated vessels for liquefied or solidified gases F17C; air-conditioning or air-humidification F24F; refrigeration machines, plants, or systems F25B; cooling of instruments or comparable apparatus without refrigeration G12B)

## Abstract

A refrigerator includes a refrigerated compartment and a door to open and close at least a portion of the refrigerated compartment. A dispenser is positioned on the door that is configured to dispense content into a receiver vessel. The dispenser includes a control unit, an actuation system controlled by the control unit, and a dispensing outlet through which the content flows from the dispenser and into the receiver vessel. The dispenser further includes a trough located below the dispensing outlet for collecting overflow content from at least one of the receiver vessel and the dispensing outlet. The dispenser further includes a sensor coupled to the trough and in electrical communication with the control unit. The sensor is configured to detect overflow content contained within the trough. A method for controlling the dispensing of content from a dispenser is also described.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A refrigerator comprising:
a refrigerated compartment;
a door to open and close at least a portion of the refrigerated compartment;
a dispenser positioned on the door that is configured to dispense content into a receiver vessel, the dispenser comprising:
a control unit;
an actuation system controlled by and in electrical communication with the control unit for operation between a dispensing condition and a non-dispensing condition;
a dispensing outlet connected to the actuation system and through which the content flows, when the actuation system is in the dispensing condition, from the dispenser and into the receiver vessel;
a trough on the door located below the dispensing outlet that supports the receiver vessel and comprising a generally concave geometry for collecting overflow content spilled into the trough from at least one of the receiver vessel and the dispensing outlet; and
a sensor coupled to the trough and in electrical communication with the control unit, the control unit configured to detect a level of overflow content contained within the trough based upon input from the sensor, wherein the sensor comprises:
a pressure transducer;
a capillary tube; and
a hole at a predetermined location of the trough, wherein the pressure transducer is in fluid communication with the hole via the capillary tube,
wherein the pressure transducer is configured to sense a fluid pressure of the overflow content contained within the trough and communicate the fluid pressure sensed to the control unit,
wherein the control unit determines that an overflow condition exists when the fluid pressure sensed exceeds a reference pressure by a predetermined amount to indicate that a depth of the overflow content contained within the trough is increasing while the actuation system is in the dispensing condition and content is being dispensed from the dispensing outlet, and
the reference pressure is a variable reference pressure measured in the trough immediately prior to content being dispensed from the dispensing outlet that represents an instant residual content level contained within the trough, and the fluid pressure sensed is measured by the pressure transducer at least twice while content is actively being dispensed from the dispensing outlet, and
wherein the control unit alters the actuation system to the non-dispensing condition and thereby terminates dispensing of content from the dispensing outlet when the control unit determines that the overflow condition exists.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the actuation system comprises a valve.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the pressure transducer is configured to sense the fluid pressure of either a gas or a liquid.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the concave geometry of the trough comprises a vertex, and wherein the reference pressure is a predetermined static pressure that is associated with a predetermined depth of the overflow content contained within the trough relative to said vertex.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines that an overflow condition exists when a rate of change of the sensed pressure as compared to the reference pressure exceeds a predetermined rate of change while content is being dispensed.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The refrigerator according to claim 5, wherein the rate of change is based upon a determination of the rate of change of the sensed depth of the residual content.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein the pressure transducer is mounted below the trough so that the pressure transducer has contact with the sensed liquid, or wherein the pressure transducer is mounted above the trough so that the pressure transducer does not have contact with the sensed liquid.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The refrigerator according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the pressure transducer and the control unit compensates the fluid pressure sensed for at least one of ambient temperature and barometric pressure of the environment about the trough.