Automatic water filling for connected small appliance
AssigneeHaier US Appliance Solutions, Inc.
InventorsJanghwan Hahn, Anand Ashok Bora
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A kitchen appliance and a refrigerator appliance are commissioned on the same user account, the refrigerator appliance configured with a water dispensing system. The kitchen appliance monitors the water volume of a removable water container. If the level of water in the container is below a prescribed level, the kitchen appliance alerts a user and identifies the connected refrigerator appliance. When the water container is removed from the kitchen appliance, the kitchen appliance determines a refill volume to return the water container to a predetermined level and communicates the refill volume to the water dispensing system. The water dispensing system is preset to dispense the refill volume on the next activation of the dispensing system.
Claims20
A kitchen appliance commissioned on a same user account with a refrigerator appliance comprising a water dispensing system, the kitchen appliance comprising:
- a removable water container defining a maximum fluid level;
- a presence detector for the water container;
- a fluid level sensor configured to detect a fluid level in the water container;
- and
- an appliance controller in operative communication with the presence detector and the fluid level sensor, wherein the appliance controller is configured to:
- monitor a fluid level in the water container using the fluid level sensor;
- detect removal of the water container using the presence detector;
- determine a refill volume to return the fluid level in the water container to a prescribed fluid level;
- and
- communicate the refill volume to the water dispensing system of the refrigerator appliance.
A method of operating a kitchen appliance and a refrigerator appliance from a network, the method comprising:
- receive notification from a fluid level sensor on a kitchen appliance of a low fluid level;
- receive notification from a presence detector on the kitchen appliance of a removal of a water container from the kitchen appliance;
- receive from the kitchen appliance a refill volume to return the water container to a predetermined fluid level;
- identify a refrigerator appliance from one or more refrigerator appliances commissioned on a same user account as the kitchen appliance;
- and
- communicate the refill volume to a water dispensing system of the refrigerator appliance.
A method of operating a kitchen appliance commissioned on a same user account with a refrigerator appliance, the refrigerator appliance comprising a water dispensing system, the kitchen appliance comprising a removable water container defining a maximum fluid level, a presence detector for the water container, and a fluid level sensor configured to detect a fluid level in the water container, the method comprising:
- monitoring a fluid level in the water container using the fluid level sensor;
- detecting removal of the water container using the presence detector;
- determining a refill volume to return the fluid level in the water container to a prescribed fluid level;
- and
- communicating the refill volume to the water dispensing system of the refrigerator appliance.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.