Dual-Camera Refrigerator Interior Imaging Without Door Opening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current refrigerator designs do not allow users to view the contents while the doors are closed, leading to increased energy consumption and potential food waste due to unawareness of available items, as existing solutions either require the door to be open or involve complex camera movements that miss crisper and storage areas.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator equipped with two cameras and light sources positioned to capture images of different portions of the compartment, controlled by a controller to provide distinct illuminations, allowing for comprehensive imaging of the interior without opening the door, including crisper and storage bins.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single camera is used to capture images of the refrigerator compartment, then the device complexity is reduced, but the area coverage and imaging completeness deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The refrigerator compartment is divided into multiple imaging zones, with each camera responsible for capturing a specific portion. Two cameras are strategically positioned to cover different areas including crisper drawers and storage bins, ensuring complete area coverage without requiring a single complex camera system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes spatial dimensionality by positioning cameras at different locations and angles within the compartment. This multi-dimensional arrangement allows each camera to capture images of different portions simultaneously, achieving comprehensive coverage through spatial distribution rather than using a single camera with complex mechanics.
2Loss of information
If the refrigerator door is opened to view contents, then the user can see all items, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of opening the door to view contents, the system creates visual copies of the refrigerator interior through camera imaging. The captured images are transmitted to a remote device, allowing users to view a copy of the contents without physically opening the door, thus preventing energy loss while maintaining information access.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical action of opening the door with an optical-electronic system. Cameras capture images and transmit them electronically to a remote display device, substituting the physical mechanical operation (door opening) with an electronic imaging and transmission system, thereby eliminating the energy penalty associated with door opening.
3Loss of information
If complex camera movements are implemented to capture all areas, then the imaging completeness improves, but the device complexity and reliability worsen
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using a single camera with complex movement mechanisms to capture the entire compartment, the system segments the imaging task across multiple stationary cameras. Each camera is fixed in a specific position and angle, capturing a designated portion of the compartment, thereby eliminating the need for complex camera movement mechanisms while achieving complete imaging coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs dynamic lighting control to complement the stationary camera arrangement. The lighting system dynamically adjusts to illuminate different areas corresponding to each camera's field of view, ensuring that all captured images have adequate illumination without requiring the cameras themselves to move.
4Loss of information
If lighting is provided for all areas simultaneously, then all portions are visible, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The lighting system is segmented and controlled independently for different areas of the compartment. Each lighting zone corresponds to the field of view of a specific camera, allowing the controller to illuminate only the areas that need to be captured at any given time, thereby reducing overall lighting energy consumption while maintaining visibility of all portions across the imaging sequence.
Solution Approach 2:
The lighting system operates in periodic cycles, illuminating different areas sequentially rather than simultaneously. The controller activates lighting for specific zones in coordination with the camera imaging schedule, providing illumination only when and where needed, thus reducing total energy consumption while ensuring all areas are visible across the complete imaging cycle.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables users to view the entire refrigerator contents remotely, reducing energy consumption and food waste by providing a comprehensive and efficient imaging system that captures images of all areas, including hard-to-reach spaces, without the need to open the door.
Implementation Method 1
two light sources disposed in the compartment, and a controller communicatively coupled with the cameras and light sources and configured to control the light sources to provide two different illuminations for respective ones of the two cameras
Data Source
AI summary
Example refrigerators having internal content cameras, and methods of operating the same are disclosed. A disclosed example refrigerator includes a cabinet, an internal compartment disposed within the cabinet, a closing member operatively coupled to the cabinet providing selective access to the internal compartment, two cameras disposed in the compartment and positioned to capture images of different portions of the compartment, two light sources disposed in the compartment, and a controller communicatively coupled with the cameras and light sources and configured to control the light sources to provide two different illuminations for respective ones of the two cameras.