Cooking Appliance Touch Panel Segmentation for Malfunction Detection

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional cooking appliances with touch panel inputs face issues due to malfunctions in the cancellation command recognition unit, leading to potential secondary damages like burns or fires when the connection between the recognition device and touch circuit board is disrupted, and are vulnerable to noise interference.

Innovation Solution

The cooking appliance employs a dual-touch input system with separate first and second touch pads and circuit boards that communicate with each other, allowing the controller to detect abnormal signals and automatically stop the cooking operation if a malfunction is detected, thereby preventing damage.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the cancellation command recognition device is divided into two parts and electrically connected with the touch circuit board, then the reliability of cancellation command recognition is improved, but the system becomes vulnerable to noise due to frequency interference

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecancellation command recognition reliabilityVSAvoidnoise vulnerability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The touch circuit board is divided into a first touch circuit board and a second touch circuit board, which are electrically connected through a communication unit. This segmentation allows the system to detect abnormal signals by comparing communications between the two boards, thereby improving reliability while managing noise vulnerability through redundant verification.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The first and second touch circuit boards communicate with each other and provide feedback on signal integrity. When an abnormal signal is detected through this feedback mechanism, the control unit stops the cooking operation, preventing harmful effects from noise-induced malfunctions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

2Ease of operation

If a touch panel type input unit is used for operational convenience, then the ease of operation is improved, but the risk of secondary damage from malfunction increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveoperational convenienceVSAvoidsecondary damage risk

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary detection of abnormal signals through communication between the first and second touch circuit boards before executing cooking operations. This preliminary action identifies potential malfunctions or disconnections, allowing the control unit to prevent cooking operations that could lead to secondary damage while maintaining touch panel convenience.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The dual touch circuit board system continuously monitors signal integrity through mutual communication, providing real-time feedback on system health. When abnormalities are detected, the feedback triggers the control unit to stop operations, preventing secondary damage while preserving the ease of touch panel operation under normal conditions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Device complexity

If the touch circuit board and cancellation command recognition device are closely integrated, then the device complexity is reduced, but the reliability decreases when disconnection occurs

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinput unit complexityVSAvoidoperation reliability

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The touch circuit board is segmented into two independently connected boards that communicate with each other. This segmentation maintains relatively simple device architecture while improving reliability through redundant communication paths, allowing the system to detect disconnections and abnormal signals that would compromise operation safety.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

A communication unit acts as an intermediary between the first and second touch circuit boards, enabling them to exchange signals and verify system integrity. This intermediary mechanism maintains low device complexity while significantly improving reliability by detecting disconnections and abnormalities through mutual communication verification.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentUS11293643B2Cooking appliance and method for controlling a cooking appliance

Publication Date: 2022.04.05 LG ELECTRONICS INC

AI summary

A cooking appliance and a method for controlling a cooking appliance are provided. The cooking appliance may include at least one cooking device that cooks items to be cooked using a heat source, a touch panel type input that receives a command for controlling operation of the at least one cooking device, and a controller that receives a touch input signal from the input and controls the operation of the at least one cooking device. The input may include a first touch circuit board and a second touch circuit board, which may communicate with each other and may be electrically connected with the controller. If an abnormal signal is transmitted to the second touch circuit board from the first touch circuit board, the controller may stop the operation of the cooking device or operation of the cooking appliance. When the input is damaged or malfunctions, the operation of at least one cooking device or the operation of the cooking appliance may be stopped, thereby preventing secondary damage, such as fire.