Double-Door Appliance Image Capture During Camera Dead Time
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing household appliances with double-door arrangements face issues when trigger signals are generated simultaneously during the camera's dead time, resulting in incomplete image capture of both doors, especially when both doors are closed nearly simultaneously.
Innovation Solution
Implement a system where the data processing facility generates image sections for each door independently, either by cropping the captured image if no further trigger signal is received within the dead time or by copying and cropping if a further trigger signal is received during the dead time, ensuring complete image capture of both doors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If the camera facility captures images upon receiving trigger signals from both doors, then complete image coverage of both doors is achieved, but image capture reliability deteriorates when trigger signals occur within the dead time period
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the copying principle by creating a copy of the captured image when a trigger signal is received during the dead time. Instead of attempting to capture a new image (which would fail due to camera unavailability), the system copies the previously captured image and generates image sections from it. This ensures that image sections for both doors are generated even when trigger signals occur in rapid succession, thereby maintaining image coverage completeness without compromising capture reliability.
2Loss of information
If the camera facility is made responsive to all trigger signals, then image capture completeness improves, but system complexity increases due to dead time management
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the image processing into distinct sections corresponding to different doors. The data processing facility generates separate image sections from the captured image based on which door triggered the signal. This segmentation approach simplifies dead time management because the system only needs to track which door triggered during the dead period and generate the appropriate section, rather than managing complex multi-camera coordination or retry logic.
3Productivity
If image sections are generated for both doors using a single captured image, then processing efficiency improves, but image section accuracy may deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by capturing the image before the dead time expires and storing it for potential section generation. When a trigger signal arrives during the dead time, the system uses the pre-captured image that was taken just before the dead period began. This ensures the image is as current as possible while still allowing time for processing, thereby maintaining both processing efficiency and image section accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
A domestic appliance contains: a storage compartment delimited by a wall having a loading opening; a double-door assembly having two doors, wherein a trigger signal is output to a data-processing device when a door is closed; and a camera which is arranged on the wall and is configured to, upon receipt of a trigger signal, capture an image of the loading opening and transmit the image to a data-processing device. The camera has a dead time within which the camera cannot capture an additional image upon receipt of an additional trigger signal, and the data-processing device then generates, upon receipt of a trigger signal and an image captured as a result, an image section from the captured image if no additional trigger signal is received within the dead time. The image section shows the door which initiated the trigger signal, and, if an additional trigger signal is received within the dead time, the data-processing device additionally generates an additional image section from the captured image, which additional image section shows the other door.