3D Hand-Tracking Faucet Control for Precise Touchless Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing automatic faucets do not allow for precise touchless adjustments of water temperature and flow rate, often requiring manual handles or supplemental devices for control.
Innovation Solution
The system employs a combination of hand tracking technology and computer vision to enable a touchless faucet that uses hand tracking technology to recognize and respond to the user's hand movements and gestures in three-dimensional space, allowing for precise control of water flow rate and temperature without physical contact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If automatic faucets use proximity sensors for touchless control, then hygiene is improved by eliminating contact with handles, but precision control of water temperature and flow rate is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical handle system with a hand tracking system using computer vision and 3D sensing. The system captures images of the user's hand, tracks its position and gestures in three-dimensional space, and translates these movements into precise control signals for water flow rate and temperature, eliminating the need for physical contact while maintaining control precision
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary system consisting of image capture devices, processing units, and gesture recognition algorithms. This intermediary translates hand gestures into control commands, serving as a bridge between the user's intent and the faucet's control mechanisms, thereby enabling precise touchless control
2Measurement precision
If manual handles are used for precise control of water preferences, then control precision is improved, but hygiene deteriorates due to contact with potentially harmful surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical handle system with a hand tracking system using computer vision and 3D sensing. The system captures images of the user's hand, tracks its position and gestures in three-dimensional space, and translates these movements into precise control signals for water flow rate and temperature, eliminating the need for physical contact while maintaining control precision
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a virtual copy of the manual handle's control functionality through hand gesture recognition. The system maps hand movements in 3D space to the control parameters that would traditionally be adjusted by rotating or moving a physical handle, replicating the precision control experience without physical contact
3Object-affected harmful factors
If supplemental remote devices like smartphones are used for touchless control, then hygiene is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the control functions into the faucet itself by integrating image capture devices, processing units, and gesture recognition algorithms directly into the faucet system. This eliminates the need for external supplemental devices like smartphones, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining touchless control functionality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables the faucet to perform its own control function through integrated hand tracking technology. The faucet captures images, processes gesture data, and adjusts water parameters autonomously based on detected hand movements, making the system self-sufficient without requiring external remote devices
Data Source
AI summary
Described is a touchless plumbing fixture system utilizing object tracking technology to allow a user's hand movement(s), gesture(s), or poses in three dimensional sensory space to control water flow rate, water temperature, and the enabling and disabling of water flow without physical contact or manual manipulation of the system or its parts.