Apparatus and control system for multi-gestural control of water delivery devices

A faucet assembly comprising:

• a body including a base and a spout, the spout extending outwardly from the base;
• a user interface provided on the spout;
• an electronically controlled micro-mixing valve in fluid communication with a hot water source and a cold water source;
• a first capacitive sensor pad provided below the user interface on the spout and configured to increase a temperature of a flow of water flowing from the electronically controlled micro-mixing valve;
• a second capacitive sensor pad provided below the user interface on the spout and configured to decrease the temperature of the flow of water flowing from the electronically controlled micro-mixing valve, wherein the second capacitive sensor pad is physically separated from the first capacitive sensor pad;
• and
• a controller operatively connected to the first capacitive sensor pad, the second capacitive sensor pad, and the electronically controlled micro-mixing valve;
• wherein the controller is configured to receive a signal from the first or the second capacitive sensor pad and to transmit a corresponding signal to the electronically controlled micro-mixing valve to independently control a flow of water from the hot water source and the cold water source so as to increase or decrease the temperature of the flow of water flowing from the electronically controlled micro-mixing valve;
• wherein each of the electronically controlled micro-mixing valve and the controller is disposed within the body of the faucet assembly;
• and
• wherein the first and second capacitive sensor pads are located laterally adjacent to each other and extend along a longitudinal direction from the base to a distal end of the spout.

A water delivery device comprising:

• a body including a base and a spout;
• a micro-mixing valve disposed within the body and in fluid communication with a hot water source and a cold water source;
• a first capacitive sensor pad provided within the body and associated with a water temperature increase;
• a second capacitive sensor pad provided within the body spaced apart from the first capacitive sensor pad and associated with a water temperature decrease, wherein the second capacitive sensor pad is physically separated from the first capacitive sensor pad such that the first and second capacitive sensor pads are independent of each other;
• and
• a controller disposed within the body and operatively connected to the micro-mixing valve, the first capacitive sensor pad, and the second capacitive sensor pad;
• wherein each of the first and second capacitive sensor pads is configured to be independently activated by a user to control a flow of water from the hot and the cold water sources to adjust a temperature of a flow of water flowing from the micro-mixing valve;
• and
• wherein the first and second capacitive sensor pads are located laterally adjacent to each other and extend along a longitudinal direction from the base to a distal end of the spout.