Control unit for switching and controlling household appliances

Process for switching and controlling household appliances, especially large household appliances, comprising the steps of:

• providing a control unit having:
• a control surface without perforations and being formed on a plate of stable form;
• separate individual pressure-sensitive sensors coupled to the plate for generating electrical signals when pressure is exerted at a pressure point on the control surface at a position for selecting a function represented by the position on the control surface;
• and a processor for receiving and processing the signals;
• generating simultaneous signals of differing intensities with the pressure-sensitive sensors when pressure is exerted at the position on the control surface, each intensity depending upon a location of the sensor which created the signal relative to a location of the position on the control surface;
• evaluating the intensities of the signals with the processor by comparing them with each other and determining the signal with the greatest intensity which represents the pressure position on the control surface, and thus the selected function associated with that position;
• and
• controlling the function with the processor.