Heater apparatus and method

Abstract

Apparatus for drying or styling hair comprises sensors 31, 32, 34, such as motion sensors 31, for sensing and outputting data indicative of how the apparatus is being operated. The sensor data indicat

Description

Field of the Invention The present invention relates to heating apparatus and method. The heaters can be used for styling and / or drying hair. Such styling and / or drying of the hair may be performed by a user in respect of their own hair, for example, or by a hair stylist. The invention has particular, but not exclusive, relevance to a styling and / or drying device comprising one or more low thermal mass heaters. Background to the Invention Heated hair styling tools use heat to increase the temperature of hair to a desired styling temperature. For example, a hair straightener having a heated plate applies heat directly via conduction to heat the hair, which may be either wet or dry, to achieve the desired temperature for styling. The hair may be heated to a temperature that is particularly suitable for styling hair (for example, to or beyond a hair glass transition phase temperature). At lower temperatures, the user may have to make many passes with the hair straightener over the hair to achieve a desired styling effect, whereas at higher temperatures, there is a risk of causing permanent damage to the hair. Similarly, a heated brush or hair dryer can also be used to style hair by heating air which in turn heats the hair to a temperature suitable for styling. The hair is typically styled from wet, for example after the user has washed their hair, although the hair could also be styled from dry. Existing hair styling appliances typically use heaters that provide a certain amount of thermal energy to the hair styling appliance. The amount of thermal energy provided to the hair styling appliance corresponds to one mode of operation so that the hair of most users of the hair styling appliance may be heated to a temperature that is particularly suitable for styling hair. However, there is a need for improvements to such existing hair styling appliances. Users sometimes need to move from a seated position while styling, e.g., to switch on / off an external device and / or to command the external device, which can provoke damage to the hair. The present invention aims to address or at least partially ameliorate one or more of the above problems. Summary of the Invention Aspects and embodiments of the invention are set out in the appended claims. These and other aspects of the invention, and aspects and embodiments which are useful in understanding the invention set out in the appended claims, are also described in the disclosure herein. Any feature in one aspect of the disclosure may be applied to other aspects of the disclosure, in any appropriate combination. In particular, method aspects may be applied to device and computer program aspects, and vice versa. Furthermore, features implemented in hardware may generally be implemented in software, and vice versa. Any reference to software and hardware features herein should be construed accordingly. In one aspect the invention provides apparatus for drying and / or styling hair, the apparatus being manipulable by a user to perform drying and / or styling of the hair of the user, the apparatus comprising: one or more sensors for sensing and outputting data indicative of how the apparatus is operated during use, the sensor data including data indicative of how the apparatus is moved during use and / or data indicative of an open or closed configuration of arms of the apparatus; communication circuitry configured to communicate with an external processing device, remote from the apparatus; and a controller configured to process the sensor data to determine whether the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device, and, if it does, to control the communication circuitry to provide to the external processing device the on / off command and / or the control command. The communication circuitry may be configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising a smartphone or a smartwatch. The communication circuitry may be configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising at least part of a domotic system, the domotic system comprising at least one of: home lights, home heating, home entertainment, such as a television and / or a sound system, and / or a home appliance, such as a coffee machine and / or a refrigerator. The communication circuitry may be configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising a server remote from the apparatus. The on / off command for the external processing device may be configured to cause the external processing device to switch on or to switch off, and / or, when an application is running on the external processing device, the control command may cause the application to perform an action other than providing a feedback message about the drying and / or styling of the hair of the user. The communication circuitry may be configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising a video and / or audio application running on the external processing device. The one or more sensors may comprise a grip sensor configured to measure the open or closed configuration between the arms of the apparatus and / or a pressure between the arms of the apparatus and / or a pressure in a handle and / or a head of the apparatus. The grip sensor may comprise a magnetometer coupled to a magnet, such as a part of a loudspeaker of the apparatus, the controller being configured to process the sensor data to detect a peak in a magnetic field amplitude when the arms of the apparatus are moved from the open configuration to the closed configuration. The one or more sensors may comprise one or more motion sensors for sensing and outputting sensor data indicative of how the apparatus is being moved by the user. The one or more motion sensors of the apparatus may comprise any one or more of: an accelerometer, a gyrometer, a magnetometer, an inclination sensor. The one or more motion sensors of the apparatus may comprise an accelerometer and a gyrometer, and the controller may be configured to process the data from the accelerometer and the gyrometer to determine absolute movements of the apparatus in space by taking into account the orientation of the apparatus, such that if, the apparatus is upside down, the controller is configured to interpret a left swipe as a movement to the left instead of a right movement as shown by the accelerometer data in isolation. The video and / or audio application running on the external processing device may be a video content creation application, and the control command for the video content creation application may cause the application to perform a video editing action. The controller may be configured to: determine whether the arms of the apparatus are in the closed configuration for a time period which is greater than a threshold value, such as three seconds, and if they are, to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to record as a clip the whole video captured when the arms are in the closed configuration, such that all the movements helping for the drying and / or styling hair are recorded as clips by the video content creation application. The controller may be configured to: determine whether the arms of the apparatus are closed, by the user, at least twice at a frequency which is greater than a threshold value, such as twice in a second, and if they are, to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to record as a clip the video captured from the moment the arms are in the closed configuration for the second time until the moment it is determined again that the arms of the apparatus are closed, by the user, at least twice at a frequency which is greater than the threshold value. The communication circuitry may be configured to communicate with the external processing device comprising a user interface which is associated with the user on the external processing device, and the user interface associated with the user on the external processing device may be configured to enable the user to at least one of: add a musical background, speed up or slow down clips, over dub clips, remove clips, add filters to clips, render clips, and upload clips to one or more desired social medias. The video and / or audio application running on the external processing device may be a video and / or audio playing application, and the control command for the video and / or audio playing application may cause the application to perform a remote-control action comprising at least one of: video and / or audio track selection and / or skipping; video and / or audio track fast forwarding or fast rewinding; video and / or audio track modifying the volume up or down. The controller may be configured to: determine whether the arms of the apparatus are in the open configuration and swiped in a given direction, such as towards the right, the left, upwards or downwards, by the user, at a speed which is greater than a threshold value, and if they are, to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to perform a remote-control action. A rapid swipe towards the right may correspond to a forward track skipping remote-control action; a rapid swipe towards the left may correspond to a backward track skipping remote-control action; a rapid swipe upwards may correspond to modifying the volume up remote-control action; a rapid swipe downwards may correspond to modifying the volume down remote-control action. The video and / or audio application running on the external processing device may be a drying and / or styling training tutorial and / or a video game. The controller may be configured to: determine whether the arms of the apparatus are swiped in a given direction, such as towards the right or the left or upwards or downwards, by the user, and if they are, to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to perform a remote-control action. The remote-control action may comprise moving a virtual character and / or virtual styler in a direction corresponding to the determined direction of the swipe. The communication circuitry may be configured to send the on / off command to switch on or off the domotic system and / or send the control command to control operation of the domotic system, based on the way the apparatus is moved during use and / or on whether the arms of the apparatus are in the open or closed configuration. The apparatus may comprise a heater for heating hair during drying and / or styling. The heater may comprise a hair contacting surface, for heating the hair contacting the hair contacting surface by conduction. The apparatus may comprise a user interface for allowing the user to specify the on / off command for the external processing device and / or the control command for the application running on the external processing device. The controller may be configured to further determine the on / off command and / or the control command to be sent to the external processing device based on the input specified by the user. In another aspect, the invention provides apparatus for drying and / or styling hair, the apparatus being manipulable by a user to perform drying and / or styling of the hair of the user, the apparatus comprising: a heater for heating hair during drying and / or styling; communication circuitry configured to communicate with an external processing device, remote from the apparatus; a user interface for allowing the user to specify an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device; and a controller configured to control the communication circuitry to provide to the external processing device the specified command. In another aspect, the invention provides a method performed by apparatus for drying and / or styling hair, the apparatus comprising: one or more sensors for sensing and outputting data indicative of how the apparatus is operated during use, the sensor data including data indicative of how the apparatus is moved during use and / or data indicative of an open or closed configuration of arms of the apparatus; and / or a user interface for allowing the user to specify an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device; and communication circuitry configured to communicate with an external processing device, remote from the apparatus, wherein the method comprises: determining whether a command is specified on the user interface; and / or sensing and outputting the sensor data, and processing the sensor data to determine whether the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device; and control the communication circuitry to provide to the external processing device the on / off command and / or the control command. Brief Description of the Drawings Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, and with reference to the drawings in which: Figure 1a shows an overview of an exemplary hair styling device; Figure 1b shows a hair styling device in use; Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating the main electronic components of the hair styling device shown in Figure 1; Figure 3a is an exploded view of a heater forming part of the hair styling device shown in Figure 1; Figure 3b is an assembled partially transparent view of the heater shown in Figure 3a; Figure 4a schematically illustrates the heating zones on the heating surface of the heater shown in Figure 3; Figure 4b schematically illustrates an alternative arrangement of heating zones; Figure 5 schematically illustrates a further alternative arrangement of heating zones that are of different sizes and shapes; Figure 6a illustrates the way in which the heating zones may be formed on a tubular substrate for use in a curling tong or the like; Figure 6b illustrates the way in which the heating zones may be arranged on a curved substrate which may be used on a heated brush; Figure 7 illustrates a tress of hair that partly overlaps with zones Z2 and Z4 of a heater; Figure 8 shows a flow chart illustrating an example method of operation of the apparatus, according to the disclosure; Figure 9 shows a flow chart illustrating an example method of operation of the apparatus, according to the disclosure. Overview of Hair Styling Device Figure 1a illustrates a hand-held (portable) hair styler 1 (or hair styling appliance or apparatus in the present disclosure). The hair styler 1 includes a handle 10 that the user holds during use. In Figure 1a the handle 10 comprises a first movable arm 4a and a second movable arm 4b, which are coupled at proximal ends thereof to a shoulder 2. The hair styler 1 includes at least one heater for heating hair during drying and / or styling. In Figure 1a, the first arm 4a bears a first heater 6a at its distal end, and the second arm 4b bears a second heater 6b at its distal end. The first and second heaters 6a, 6b oppose one another and are brought together as the first and second arms 4a, 4b are moved from an open configuration to a closed configuration. As shown in Figure 1b, during use, a tress of hair 40 is sandwiched between the two arms 4 so that the user’s hair is in contact with, and therefore heated by, outer heating surfaces of the heaters 6a, 6b. Therefore, as the user pulls the hair styler 1 along the tress of hair 40, the tress of hair 40 is heated by conductive heating to a suitable temperature to facilitate styling. A user interface 11 is provided to allow the user to input information about them to the device and / or for the device to output information to the user. The user interface 11 may have a dial, button or touch display for allowing the user to input information to the device 1. The user interface 11 may have an indicator light, a display, a sound generator comprising a loudspeaker or a haptic feedback generator, for outputting information to the user. The sound generator may be configured for providing a polyphonic sound. The sound generator may provide a particular sound brand or jingle when switching on and / or off. The sound generator may provide a sound to indicate particular events, such as reaching a desired operating temperature and / or sleep mode. The indicator light may provide a pleasing aesthetic appearance as well as indicate temperature or other events. The indicator light may comprise an electroluminescent backlight as it enables wide angle, wide area viewing. Alternatively or additionally, the indicator light may comprise an LED lighting with a suitable light-pipe and / or optical diffuser. In this embodiment, the user interface 11 also comprises a control button or switch 14 to enable the user to turn the device 1 on or off; and an indicator light 15 to show whether the power is on. Alternatively or additionally, and as described in more detail below, the user interface 11 may be configured to allow the user to specify an on / off command for an external processing device and / or a control command for an application running on the external processing device. A printed circuit board assembly (not shown) may be provided at any suitable location within the housing of the device 1 and carries the control circuitry for controlling the operation of the device 1 and for controlling the interaction with the user via the user interface 11. In this example, electrical power is provided to the device 1 by means of a power supply located at an end of the device, via a power supply cord 3. The power supply may be an AC mains power supply. However, in an alternative embodiment the power supply may comprise one or more DC batteries or cells (which may be rechargeable, e.g., from the mains or a DC supply via a charging lead), thereby enabling the device 1 to be a cordless product. In use, the device 1 is turned on, energising the heaters 6 to cause them to heat up. The user then opens the first and second arms 4a, 4b and, normally starting from the roots of the hair (i.e. near the scalp), a length or tress of hair 40 (which may be clumped) is introduced between the arms 4a, 4b, transversely across the heaters 6a, 6b. The user then closes the arms 4a, 4b so that the length of hair 40 is held between the first and second arms 4a, 4b and then the user pulls the hair through the closed arms (as illustrated in Figure 1b). The outer (hair contacting) surface of the heaters 6 is flat in this embodiment so that the hair styler 1 can be used to straighten the user’s hair. The hair styling device 1 shown in Figure 1 can also be used to curl the hair by turning the device 1 through approximately 180 degrees or more after clamping the hair between the arms 4a, 4b and before moving the device 1 along the tress of hair 40. Hair has a relatively high thermal mass and when in contact with the heating surface of the heater 6 the hair absorbs a significant amount of the heat energy. The heaters 6 must quickly supply the lost heat energy back to the heating surface otherwise the temperature of the heating surface will drop and potentially impact on the quality of the thermal styling. If the temperature of the heaters 6 fall below that required to raise the hair temperature above the glass transition temperature of the hair, the hair will not retain the styled shape. However, if the hair is heated to a temperature that is too high, the hair can undergo significant damage. Furthermore, different hair types require different amounts of heat energy for hair styling (because of different thickness, quality, condition, thermal mass of hair). Typically, fine straight hair requires less heat than thick curly hair for styling. Depending on the type of hair, the glass transition temperature of the hair when dry may be a temperature in the range of approximately 40°C-200°C. When the hair is moist or damp, the glass transition temperature may be in the range of 0°C to 150°C. As such, the device 1 must be able to control the temperature so that the heating surface of the heaters 6 remains within a particular temperature range. Furthermore, it must maintain the temperature range both when hair is frequently and quickly loaded and unloaded onto the heating surface, and when hair is held on the heating surface for a prolonged period of time. Control Circuitry Figure 2 is a simplified block diagram of control circuitry 15 that controls the operation of the hair styler device 1 shown in Figure 1. As shown, the control circuitry 15 comprises a power supply 21 that, in this embodiment, derives power from a battery power source (not shown). A mains power supply input may be provided to charge the battery via an AC to DC converter (not shown), which may be external or internal to the device 1. Alternatively, the power supply 21 may derive power from an AC mains supply input. In this example, power is provided to the heaters 6 for heating the user’s hair. The power supplied to the heaters 6 is controlled by a controller 28 having a microprocessor 29. The power supplied to the heaters 6 is controlled by drive circuitry 23 (which may include one or more power semiconductor switching devices (triacs)) which controls the application of an AC mains voltage, or a DC voltage derived from the AC mains or from a battery, to the heaters 6 in accordance with instructions from the microprocessor 29. The microprocessor 29 is coupled to a memory 30 (which is typically a non-volatile memory) that stores processor control code for implementing one or more control methods that control the heating of the heaters 6 in accordance with a desired operating temperature and sensed temperatures of the heaters 6, for example obtained from temperature measurement circuitry 25. The microprocessor 29 allows for complex control of the heaters 6. For example, the controller 28 may be configured to adjust the power delivered to the heaters by using an on / off triac based upon the output of the temperature measurement circuitry 25. The memory 30 may store a number of transfer functions such as: simple on-off control means or bang-bang control means; proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control means; a machine learning algorithm ; fuzzy logic; feed back control means; feed forward control means. The controller 28 comprises means to measure the input voltage or alternatively to detect the speed at which the heaters 6 heat up, so as to detect the type of input voltage. A high input voltage would lead to a faster heat up of the heaters 6, and hence a control loop can react appropriately. The input voltage and / or speed of heat up can also be used to detect a failure. The controller 28 may comprise means to detect the use of the hair styling appliance and control the power supply to the heaters accordingly. This feature helps to reduce power consumption and improve safety. For example, the controller 28 may comprise means to reduce the temperature of the heaters when they are not active and then rapidly heat them up when they are about to be used. The controller 28 may allow a heater to power down to a standby temperature if a user momentarily places the hair styling appliance on a table, for example. The controller 28 may then power up the heater to an operating temperature when the hair styling appliance is picked up to be used. If the controller 28 detects that the hair styling appliance has not been used for a longer period of time, then the control means may shut down the hair styling appliance. This enables the hair styling appliance to meet the mandatory requirement of the safety standard that the appliance must turn off after 30 minutes whether it is being used or not. Detection of use may be achieved by detecting the opening and closing of the first movable arm relative to a second arm and / or detecting the opening and closing of the first movable arm relative to a second movable arm of the hair styling appliance, or through the use of one or more motion detection devices to detect the motion of the hair styling appliance or the use of a capacitive touch system. The one or more motion detection devices are shown in Figure 2 and referred to with numerical reference 31. The one or more motion detection devices 31 may comprise any one of an accelerometer, a gyrometer, a magnetometer, an inclination sensor. The controller is configured to determine amplitudes of movements of the apparatus, including angles, inclinations and rotations, based on sensor data from the motion detection devices 31. In an example, the one or more motion sensors 31 comprise an accelerometer and a gyrometer. In such an example, the controller 28 is configured to process the data from the accelerometer and the gyrometer to determine absolute movements of the styler in space, by taking into account the orientation of the styler. In such an example, if the styler is upside down, the controller 28 is configured to interpret a left swipe of the styler as a movement to the left instead of a right movement as shown by the accelerometer data in isolation. The hair styler 1 includes a grip sensor 32 configured to measure an open or closed configuration between movable arms of the apparatus and / or a pressure between the first movable arm 4a and the second movable arm 4b, e.g., when styling the hair. In an example, the grip sensor 32 comprises a magnetometer coupled to a magnet, such as a part of a loudspeaker of the sound generator already described. In such an example, the controller 28 is configured to process the grip sensor data to detect a peak in a magnetic field amplitude when the movable arms 4a and 4b are moved from the open configuration to the closed configuration. The hair styler 1 includes a hand placement sensor 34 configured to measure the placement of the hand of the user during the treatment. The hand placement sensor 34 comprises at least one of resistive and / or capacitive means to measure the placement of the hand of the user on an outside casework (of the moveable arms 4a and 4b) of the styler 1. The temperature measurement circuitry 25 may be temperature sensors such as thermistors or they may use circuitry that senses the resistance of heater electrodes that are used to heat the heaters 6, which resistance depends on the temperature of the heater electrode. Figure 2 also shows that the user interface 11 is coupled to the microprocessor 29, for example to provide one or more user controls, input and / or output indications such as a visual indication or an audible alert. Finally, the control circuitry includes communications circuitry 27 to allow the device to communicate with an external processing device, remote from the styler. In some examples, the external processing device comprises a smartphone or a smartwatch. Alternatively or additionally, the external processing device comprises at least part of a domotic system. The domotic system may comprise at least one of: home lights, home heating, home entertainment, such as a television and / or a sound system, and / or a home appliance, such as a coffee machine and / or a refrigerator. Alternatively or additionally, the external processing device comprises a server remote from the apparatus. The communications circuitry 27 may use, for example, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and / or 3GPP communication protocols to communicate with the external processing device. A user interface may be associated with the user on the external processing device, such that the user may input user input information. Heaters The heaters 6a, 6b are low thermal mass heaters and can therefore heat up and cool down quickly. Figures 3a and 3b show an exemplary embodiment of such heaters 6a, 6b, which comprise a stack of thin layers. Referring in particular to Figure 3a, the heaters 6a, 6b include an upper dielectric (electrically insulating) layer 62, an electrode layer 63 that has a plurality of separate heater electrodes 64, and a lower dielectric layer 66 which electrically insulates the heater electrodes 64 from other components mounted behind the heater 6a, 6b. The three layers 62, 63 and 66 are bonded together either through an adhesive layer (pressure set or thermoset) or through diffusion bonding of the contacting materials (e.g. melting them together) and define a heater 6 that is very thin (the three layers have an overall thickness of between 30|jm to 1000pm in the case of Safe Extra Low Voltage (SELV) operation (less than 42.4 Volts) and 0.8mm to 2.0mm in the case of AC operation) and with very low thermal mass. The upper surface of the layer 62 provides the hair contacting surface of the heater 6, although a non-stick coating may be applied to the upper surface of the layer 62 to facilitate the passage of the user’s hair over the heating surface if the layer 62 does not itself have such nonstick properties. The bonded layers 62, 63 and 66 define a flexible heater 6 and rigidity of the heater is provided in the illustrated embodiment by mounting the heater layers 62, 63 and 66 into a rigid support 68 which forms a base. These layers may be mounted onto the rigid support after the layers themselves have been bonded together or they may be bonded one at a time (or multiple at a time) onto the rigid support 68. If a flexible heater is desired, then there is no need for the rigid support 68 or if a support is used, this may be a non-rigid support. In the illustrated embodiment, there are ten heater electrodes 64 that each snake across and back across the width of the heater 6, folding twice such that they each cross the width three times. The ends of each of the heater electrodes 64 are electrically connected through the lower dielectric layer 66 to electrical connections within the rigid support 68, which connect to an electrical connector 70. Drive circuitry 23 that is mounted within one of the arms 4 connects to the heater electrodes 64 via the electrical connector 70 and applies electrical power to the individual heater electrodes 64 to control the heat generated by each heater electrode 64. The electrical connector 70 extends from a surface of the rigid support 68 facing away from the surface layer 62 (shown in Figures 3a and 3b as extending directly away from the upper layer 62, but it could also be provided as extending in a perpendicular direction). Each of the heater electrodes 64 thus creates an individual heating zone 642 on the hair contacting surface of the heater 6, which spans the width (which we shall refer to as the x-direction) of the heater 6 and the heater electrodes 64 are arranged sequentially one after the other along the length (the y-direction) of the heater 6. Figures 4a and 4b show schematic views of different arrangements of such heating zones 642. Figure 4a shows an arrangement corresponding to that of Figures 3a and 3b, in which the heating zones 642-1 to 642-10 are arranged along the y-direction only. Figure 4b shows an alternative arrangement, in which heating zones 642-1 to 642-16 are arranged in both the x- and y-directions. Such an arrangement of heating zones 642 can be provided by arranging two sets of heater electrodes 64 like those shown in Figure 3a side by side in the width, x-direction. The heaters 6 may be separated in this way into any number of heating zones 642 and may comprise any number of heating zones along the x- and y-directions. In particular, whilst Figure 4b shows two zones along the x-direction, a greater number of zones in the x-direction could also be provided. The heating zones 642 of the heaters 6a, 6b can be operated (heated) independently, which can help to reduce hot / cold spots when using very low thermal mass heaters 6 such as those shown in Figure 3. The heating zones illustrated in Figure 4 are all the same size. Of course, different sized heating zones 642 may be provided, as illustrated in Figure 5, which shows a heater 6 having seven different sized heating zones (labelled Z1 to Z7). The way in which the heater electrodes 64 would be arranged to define these different sized zones would be understood by the skilled reader and will not be described in detail here. The heating zones 642 described above form part of a heater having a flat hair contacting surface. The heater is not limited to flat hair contacting surfaces and can be configured for use a tubular form (as illustrated in Figure 6a) for example for use in a hair curler device or in a curved form (as illustrated in Figure 6b) for example for use in a heated hair brush. The heater surface may have a corrugated or ribbed shape to provide a hair crimping device. The temperature of each heating zone 642 is independently controllable. Each heating zone 642 can be set to a target temperature. The target temperature of each heating zone 642 may be different. A separate temperature sensor may be provided for sensing the temperature of each heating zone 642 which is fed back to the microprocessor 29 to allow the microprocessor 29 to control the delivery of power to the heater electrode 64 of the corresponding heating zone 642. Alternatively, if the heater electrodes 64 are formed of a material having a Positive Temperature Coefficient (PTC) or a Negative Temperature Coefficient (NTC) (such that its resistance varies with its temperature), then the temperature of each heating zone 642 can be determined by determining the resistance of the corresponding heater electrode 64. The microcontroller 28 controls the heating in order to reduce the difference between the actual temperature of the heating zone 642 and the target temperature for that heating zone 642. Heating Zone Sizing When the user loads a tress of hair 40 onto the heaters 6, some parts of the heater will be loaded with hair whilst other parts will not be loaded with hair. Upon loading with hair, and using the already described temperature measurement circuitry 25, more power is supplied to the heater 6 to ensure that all regions on the hair contacting surface can be retained within and / or recovered back to the desired operating temperature limits. Figure 7 shows a tress of hair 40 overlying heating zones Z2, Z3 and Z4, with heating zone Z3 being fully loaded with hair whilst heating zones Z2 and Z4 being only partially loaded with hair. The Figure 7 extent of the heating zones gives the microcontroller 28 an indication of the size of the tress of hair 40 introduced between the arms of the styling appliance. In the present disclosure, the size of the tress of hair can refer to a volume of hair, a number of hair fibres, a surface area of hair, or any combinations of the previous, such as a hair density. The size of the tress of hair 40 gives an indication of the amount of hair introduced between the arms of the styling appliance. Additionally or alternatively, the styler may comprise sensing means to determine the amount of hair introduced in the styling apparatus. The sensing means may include capacitive sensing means to detect the amount of hair between the heaters. Command Figure 8 shows a flow chart illustrating an example method 100 of operation of the apparatus, according to the disclosure. In the method 100, the apparatus is manipulable by a user to perform a desired treatment on the hair of the user, such as drying and / or styling of the hair of the user. In the method 100 of Figure 11, at S1, one or more sensors already described in the present disclosure sense and output sensor data indicative of one or more operating parameters of the styler during use. At S1 the sensor data includes data indicative of how the apparatus is moved during use and / or data indicative of an open or closed configuration of movable arms of the apparatus. At S2, the microcontroller 28 processes the sensor data. At S2 the sensor data is processed to determine whether the way the styler is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device. If it is determined at S2 that the way the styler is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command and / or a control command, the method 100 moves to S3. At S3, the microcontroller 28 controls the communication circuitry 27 to provide to the external processing device the on / off command and / or the control command. In the method 100, if at S2 it is determined that the way the styler is operated during use does not correspond to an on / off command and / or a control command, the method 100 moves back to S1. In the present disclosure, the on / off command for the external processing device may be configured to cause the external processing device to switch on or to switch off. In the present disclosure, when an application is running on the external processing device, the control command may cause the application to perform an action other than providing a feedback message about the drying and / or styling of the hair of the user. In some examples, the communication circuitry 27 is configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising a video and / or audio application running on the external processing device, as explained in greater detail below. In a first example of the method 100 of Figure 8, the video and / or audio application running on the external processing device may be a video content creation application. In such an example, the control command for the video content creation application causes the application to perform a video editing action. The first example of the method 100 of Figure 8 enables the user to easily edit media on the external device, such as recording certain clips for the video content creation application, without moving from a seated position while styling, without letting go of the styler, and without needing to access the remote external processing device. This reduces the risk of the hair being damaged during styling. In such a first example, the controller 28 is configured to, at S2, determine whether the moveable arms of the apparatus are in the closed position for a time period which is greater than a threshold value, such as three seconds (other durations are envisaged) If it is determined at S2 that the moveable arms of the apparatus are in the closed position for a time period which is greater than the threshold value, then at S3 the controller 28 is configured to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to record as a clip the whole video captured when the movable arms are in the closed position, such that all the movements helping for the drying and / or styling hair are recorded as clips by the video content creation application. Alternatively or additionally, in such a first example, the controller 28 is configured to, at S2, determine whether the moveable arms of the apparatus are closed, by the user, at least twice at a frequency which is greater than a threshold value, such as twice in a second (other frequencies are envisaged). If it is determined at S2 that the moveable arms of the apparatus are closed, by the user, at least twice at a frequency which is greater than the threshold value, then at S3 the controller 28 is configured to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to record as a clip the video captured from the moment the movable arms are in the closed position for the second time until the moment it is determined again that the moveable arms of the apparatus are closed, by the user, at least twice at a frequency which is greater than the threshold value. In the first example of the method 100 of Figure 8, the user interface associated with the user on the external processing device, which was already described above, may be configured to enable the user to at least one of: add a musical background, speed up or slow down clips, over dub clips, remove clips, add filters to clips, render clips, and upload clips to desired social medias. The clips represent one or more desired sequences to achieve a desired hair treatment. In a second example of the method 100 of Figure 8, the video and / or audio application running on the external processing device is a video and / or audio playing application. The second example of the method 100 of Figure 8 enables the user to easily playout media on the external device, without moving from a seated position while styling, without letting go of the styler, and without needing to access the remote external processing device. This reduces the risk of the hair being damaged during styling. In such a second example, the control command for the video and / or audio playing application causes the application to perform a remote-control action comprising at least one of: video and / or audio track selection and / or skipping; video and / or audio track fast forwarding or fast rewinding; video and / or audio track modifying the volume up or down. In the second example of the method 100 of Figure 8, at S2, the controller 28 determines whether the moveable arms of the styler are in the open configuration and swiped in a given direction, such as towards the right, the left, upwards or downwards, by the user, at a speed which is greater than a threshold value. If it is determined at S2 that the moveable arms of the styler are in the open configuration and swiped in the given direction at a speed which is greater than the threshold value, then at S3 the controller is configured to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to perform a remote-control action. In the second example, e.g.,: a rapid swipe towards the right corresponds to a forward track skipping remote-control action, a rapid swipe towards the left corresponds to a backward track skipping remote-control action; a rapid swipe upwards corresponds to modifying the volume up remote-control action; a rapid swipe downwards corresponds to modifying the volume down remote-control action. In a third example of the method 100 of Figure 8, the video and / or audio application running on the external processing device is a drying and / or styling training tutorial and / or a video game. The third example of the method 100 of Figure 8 enables the user to easily playout media, such as a position of a virtual styler in a training tutorial and / or a position of a virtual character of a video game, on the external device. This can be used to teach users how to hold and move the styler to achieve looks and improve dexterity with the styler, therefore minimising the risk of damage to the hair during a treatment. In such a third example of the method 100 of Figure 8, at S2 the controller is configured to determine whether the moveable arms of the apparatus are swiped in a given direction, such as towards the right or the left or upwards or downwards, by the user. If it is determined at S2 that the controller is configured to determine whether the moveable arms of the apparatus are swiped in a given direction, then at S3 the controller is configured to provide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to perform a remote-control action. In the third example, the remote-control action comprises moving, on a display of the external device, a virtual character and / or virtual styler in a direction corresponding to the determined direction of the swipe. In an example of the method 100 of Figure 8, the external processing device comprises at least part of a domotic system as already described. In such an example, the method 100 of Figure 8 enables the user to command the external device which is part of a domotic system, without moving from a seated position while styling, without letting go of the styler, and without needing to access the remote external processing device. This reduces the risk of the hair being damaged during styling. In such an example, at S2 the controller 28 is configured to process the sensor data to determine whether the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command for the external processing device. If it is determined at S2 that the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command, then at S3 the controller 28 is configured to send the on / off command to switch on or off the domotic system. Alternatively or additionally, at S2 the controller 28 is configured to process the sensor data to determine whether the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to a control command for the external processing device. If it is determined at S2 that the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to a control command, then at S3 the controller 28 is configured to send the send the control command to control operation of the domotic system, based on the way the apparatus is moved during use and / or on whether the movable arms of the apparatus are in the open or closed configuration. In this example, e.g.,: a rapid swipe towards the right corresponds to brightening up the lighting of the domotic system, and / or a rapid swipe towards the left corresponds to dimming down the lighting of the domotic system; and / or a rapid swipe upwards corresponds to modifying the volume up of the television; and / or a rapid swipe downwards corresponds to modifying the volume down of the television; and / or a push on a button on the interface 11 corresponding a start of the coffee machine, etc. Alternatively or additionally to the four examples described above, in cases where the user interface 11 is configured to allow the user to specify the on / off command for the external processing device and / or the control command for the application running on the external processing device, the controller may be configured to further determine, at S2, the on / off command and / or the control command to be sent to the external processing device based on the input specified by the user. Figure 9 shows a flow chart illustrating an example method 200 of operation of the apparatus, according to the disclosure. The method 200 is performed by the styler for drying or styling hair, the styler comprising the user interface for allowing the user to specify an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device, as described above. At S10, the controller 28 determines whether a command is specified on the user interface, and, if it is, at S20 the controller 28 controls the communication circuitry already described to provide to the external processing device the on / off command and / or the control command. Modifications and alternatives Detailed embodiments and some possible alternatives have been described above. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, a number of modifications and further alternatives can be made to the above embodiments whilst still benefiting from the inventions embodied therein. It will therefore be understood that the invention is not limited to the described embodiments and encompasses modifications apparent to those skilled in the art lying within the scope of the claims appended hereto. The invention has been described above in a styler comprising a heater having a plurality of independently controllable heater electrodes that define a plurality of independently controllable heating zones of the hair contacting surface. However, the invention also applies to any styler comprising a heater for heating hair during drying and / or styling, for example a heater comprising only one heater electrode for heating the hair, the controller being configured to control a temperature or a power output of the at least one heater electrode of the heater. The invention applies to any type of heater configured to heat the hair. The invention has been described above by way of implementation in a hair styling device for straightening hair (‘hair straighteners’) which employ flat hair styling heaters 6. However, it could alternatively be implemented in any form of hair styling device, such as (but not limited to) crimpers, curlers or heated brushes. The heaters 6 may define a heating surface that is flat, curved, ridged or in the shape of a barrel. The hair styling device may have two arms, for example like the device illustrated in Figure 1, or it may be a single armed device. For example, the device may be a device with a first arm and a second moveable arm arranged to be moveable relative to the first arm between an open configuration and a closed configuration. Such a device may comprise first and second heaters opposing one another at the distal ends of the two arms, as previously described, that are brought together as the second moveable arm is moved towards the first arm from an open configuration to a closed configuration. During use, a tress of hair is sandwiched between the two arms so that the user’s hair is in contact with, and therefore heated by, outer heating surfaces of the heaters. In some arrangements, pressure sensors in a handle and / or a head of the device may be used to sense how the user is gripping the handle and / or how the user is wrapping the hair around the head. For example, another embodiment would be to place a pressure sensor in the handle of a single armed device, such as a curling wand, to determine how the user grips the device. Another example is to place a pressure sensor in the head of a single armed device, such as a curling wand, to determine how the user wraps their hair around the head of the device. The heaters described above may also be used in hair dryers or in combination devices that use conductive heating and air to dry and style the user’s hair (such as those described in the applicant’s earlier PCT application WO 2021 / 019239). In embodiments where air is used, the heaters 6 may be perforated so that air passes through the heater and is warmed by the heater as the air passes through. In the above embodiments, Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor (MOSFET) switches were used to control powering and sensing of the heater electrodes. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, other switches could be used instead. For example, Field Effect Transistors (FETs) could be used, such as Gallium Nitride FETs or bipolar junction transistors (BJTs). In the above embodiments, a DC power source was used to provide electrical power for heating the heater electrodes 64. This DC power source will typically be one or more batteries, although DC supplies that derive their power from a mains power AC signal may be used. Thicker or more dielectric layers are typically used between the heater electrodes 64 and the hair contacting surface of the hair styler when AC power is used to heat the heaters. In the above-described examples the hair styling device 1 may comprise a single heater 6, or may alternatively comprise two or more heaters 6. The heater may not comprise a plurality of independently controllable heater electrodes that define a plurality of independently controllable heating zones of the hair contacting surface, but the heater may have a single heating zone or one or more heating zones which are not independently controllable. Throughout the description and claims of this specification, the words “comprise” and “contain” and variations of the words, for example “comprising” and “containing”, means “including but not limited to”, and is not intended to (and does not) exclude other components, integers or steps. The expressions “to dry hair”, “drying hair” or “decrease a moisture level of hair” and 5 the like, as used in the present disclosure, can refer both to the removal of “unbound” water that exists on the outside of hair when wet, or the removal of “bound” water, which exists inside individual hairs, and which can be interacted with when heat styling hair. The “bound” water need not necessarily be removed when drying hair, although removal of some bound water may occur during a drying or styling process. 10 Various other modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art and will not be described in further detail here.

Claims

1. Apparatus for drying and / or styling hair, the apparatus being manipulable by a user to perform drying and / or styling of the hair of the user, the apparatus comprising:one or more sensors for sensing and outputting data indicative of how the apparatus is operated during use, the sensor data including data indicative of how the apparatus is moved during use and / or data indicative of an open or closed configuration of arms of the apparatus;communication circuitry configured to communicate with an external processing device, remote from the apparatus; anda controller configured toprocess the sensor data to determine whether the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device, and, if it does, tocontrol the communication circuitry to provide to the external processing device the on / off command and / or the control command.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising a smartphone or a smartwatch.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising at least part of a domotic system, the domotic system comprising at least one of:home lights,home heating,home entertainment, such as a television and / or a sound system, and / ora home appliance, such as a coffee machine and / or a refrigerator.

4. The apparatus of any of the preceding claims, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising a server remote from the apparatus.

5. The apparatus of any of the preceding claims, wherein the on / off command for the external processing device is configured to cause the external processing device to switch on or to switch off, and / orwherein, when an application is running on the external processing device, the control command causes the application to perform an action other than providing a feedback message about the drying and / or styling of the hair of the user.

6. The apparatus of any of the preceding claims, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to communicate with an external processing device comprising a video and / or audio application running on the external processing device.

7. The apparatus of any of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more sensors comprise a grip sensor configured to measure the open or closed configuration between the arms of the apparatus and / or a pressure between the arms of the apparatus and / or a pressure in a handle and / or a head of the apparatus, optionally wherein the grip sensor comprises a magnetometer coupled to a magnet, such as a part of a loudspeaker of the apparatus, the controller being configured to process the sensor data to detect a peak in a magnetic field amplitude when the arms of the apparatus are moved from the open configuration to the closed configuration.

8. The apparatus of any of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more sensors comprise one or more motion sensors for sensing and outputting sensor data indicative of how the apparatus is being moved by the user.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the one or more motion sensors of the apparatus comprise any one or more of: an accelerometer, a gyrometer, a magnetometer, an inclination sensor.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more motion sensors of the apparatus comprise an accelerometer and a gyrometer, and wherein the controller is configured to process the data from the accelerometer and the gyrometer to determine absolute movements of the apparatus in space by taking into account the orientation of the apparatus, such that if, the apparatus is upside down, the controller is configured to interpret a left swipe as a movement to the left instead of a right movement as shown by the accelerometer data in isolation.

11. The apparatus of any one of claims 6 to 10, when dependent on claims 7 and 8, wherein the video and / or audio application running on the external processing device is a video content creation application,the control command for the video content creation application causes the application to perform a video editing action.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the controller is configured to: determine whether the arms of the apparatus are in the closed configuration for a time period which is greater than a threshold value, such as three seconds, and if they are, toprovide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to record as a clip the whole video captured when the arms are in the closed configuration, such that all the movements helping for the drying and / or styling hair are recorded as clips by the video content creation application.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 or claim 12, wherein the controller is configured to: determine whether the arms of the apparatus are closed, by the user, at least twice at a frequency which is greater than a threshold value, such as twice in a second, and if they are, toprovide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to record as a clip the video captured from the moment the arms are in the closed configuration for the second time until the moment it is determined again that the arms of the apparatus are closed, by the user, at least twice at a frequency which is greater than the threshold value.

14. The apparatus of any of claims 12 to 13, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to communicate with the external processing device comprising a user interface which is associated with the user on the external processing device,wherein the user interface associated with the user on the external processing device is configured to enable the user to at least one of: add a musical background, speed up or slow down clips, over dub clips, remove clips, add filters to clips, render clips, and upload clips to one or more desired social medias.

15. The apparatus of any one of claims 6 to 14, when dependent on claims 7 and 8, wherein the video and / or audio application running on the external processing device is a video and / or audio playing application, andwherein the control command for the video and / or audio playing application causes the application to perform a remote-control action comprising at least one of:video and / or audio track selection and / or skipping;video and / or audio track fast forwarding or fast rewinding;video and / or audio track modifying the volume up or down.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the controller is configured to:determine whether the arms of the apparatus are in the open configuration and swiped in a given direction, such as towards the right, the left, upwards or downwards, by the user, at a speed which is greater than a threshold value, and if they are, toprovide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to perform a remote-control action.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein:a rapid swipe towards the right corresponds to a forward track skipping remote-control action;a rapid swipe towards the left corresponds to a backward track skipping remote-control action;a rapid swipe upwards corresponds to modifying the volume up remote-controlaction;a rapid swipe downwards corresponds to modifying the volume down remote-control action.

18. The apparatus of any one of claims 6 to 17, when dependent on claims 7 and 8, wherein the video and / or audio application running on the external processing device is a drying and / or styling training tutorial and / or a video game.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the controller is configured to:determine whether the arms of the apparatus are swiped in a given direction, such as towards the right or the left or upwards or downwards, by the user, and if they are, toprovide the control command to the external processing device to cause the application to perform a remote-control action.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the remote-control action comprises moving a virtual character and / or virtual styler in a direction corresponding to the determined direction of the swipe.

21. The apparatus of any of the preceding claims, when dependent on claim 3, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to send the on / off command to switch on or off the domotic system and / or send the control command to control operation of the domotic system, based on the way the apparatus is moved during use and / or on whether the arms of the apparatus are in the open or closed configuration.

22. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a heater for heating hair during drying and / or styling, optionally wherein the heater comprises a hair contacting surface, for heating the hair contacting the hair contacting surface by conduction.

23. The apparatus of any of the preceding claims, further comprising:a user interface for allowing the user to specify the on / off command for the external processing device and / or the control command for the application running on the external processing device,the controller being further configured to further determine the on / off command and / or the control command to be sent to the external processing device based on the input specified by the user.

24. Apparatus for drying and / or styling hair, the apparatus being manipulable by a user to perform drying and / or styling of the hair of the user, the apparatus comprising:a heater for heating hair during drying and / or styling;communication circuitry configured to communicate with an external processing device, remote from the apparatus;a user interface for allowing the user to specify an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device; anda controller configured to control the communication circuitry to provide to the external processing device the specified command.

25. A method performed by apparatus for drying and / or styling hair, the apparatus comprising: one or more sensors for sensing and outputting data indicative of how the apparatus is operated during use, the sensor data including data indicative of how the apparatus is moved during use and / or data indicative of an open or closed configuration of arms of the apparatus; and / or a user interface for allowing the user to specify an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device; and communication circuitry configured to communicate with an external processing device, remote from the apparatus, wherein the method comprises:determining whether a command is specified on the user interface; and / orsensing and outputting the sensor data, and processing the sensor data to determine whether the way the apparatus is operated during use corresponds to an on / off command for the external processing device and / or a control command for controlling editing and / or playout of media on the external device; andcontrol the communication circuitry to provide to the external processing device the on / off command and / or the control command.34

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