Kitchen Appliance Pump Feedback Without Fluid Delivery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing kitchen appliances with pumps, such as beverage machines, face challenges in providing effective user feedback without compromising robustness or ease of cleaning, and often require additional complex and costly feedback devices.
Innovation Solution
The kitchen appliance employs a fluid displacement system with a pump that operates in both delivery and feedback modes. In the feedback mode, the pump provides audible and/or haptic feedback without delivering fluid through the outlets, utilizing the existing pump components to minimize complexity and cost.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If additional feedback devices (buzzer or beeper) are included to provide audible feedback, then user experience is enhanced, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The pump is made to serve dual functions: its primary function of fluid displacement and an additional function of providing audible feedback through vibrations. By utilizing the pump's inherent vibrations for feedback purposes, the patent eliminates the need for separate feedback devices, thereby reducing device complexity and cost while maintaining enhanced user experience
Solution Approach 2:
The pump's own operational vibrations are harnessed to provide feedback to the user. Instead of requiring external feedback mechanisms, the system uses the pump's self-generated vibrations during operation to communicate with the user, making the feedback mechanism self-contained and eliminating additional components
2Ease of operation
If electromechanical switches or buttons are used in the user interface, then feedback capability is provided, but robustness is compromised and cleaning becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional electromechanical switches and buttons with non-movable sensors in the user interface. These sensors detect user input without mechanical movement, eliminating the reliability issues and cleaning difficulties associated with mechanical components. The pump's vibrations provide feedback to users of this sensor-based interface without requiring any moving parts
3Ease of operation
If the pump is actuated to provide feedback, then user feedback is enhanced, but fluid delivery occurs causing wastage
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the pump's operational mode based on the desired function. When feedback is needed, the pump is actuated in a controlled manner that generates vibrations without completing the full fluid displacement cycle. This dynamic control allows the same pump mechanism to provide feedback without causing fluid wastage, while still enabling full fluid delivery when actually needed
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
This solution enhances user experience by providing immediate and effective feedback without the need for additional devices, while avoiding fluid and energy wastage, and simplifying the appliance's design and maintenance.
Implementation Method 1
Movement of pump components inherent to pump actuation may generate vibration that is audibly and/or haptically perceivable by the user
Implementation Method 2
As the name suggests, vibration pumps are known for the vibrations and noise they produce
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2B
AI summary
Provided is a kitchen appliance (10) comprising at least one outlet (14A, 14B) through which a fluid or a consumable comprising the fluid is deliverable. Each of the at least one outlet is arranged such that delivery of the fluid or consumable via the outlet(s) is visible to a user when using the kitchen appliance. The kitchen appliance further comprises a fluid displacement system (12) comprising a pump. The fluid displacement system is operable in a delivery mode in which actuation of the pump causes the delivery of one or both of the fluid and the consumable via the at least one outlet, and in a feedback mode in which actuation of the pump provides audible and/or haptic feedback but without causing such delivery via any of the at least one outlet. A user interface (40) receives a user input from the user, and a control system (31) controls the fluid displacement system to operate in the feedback mode in response to the user input being received by the user interface. In this way, the pump is employed to provide audible and/or haptic feedback in response to the user inputting via the user interface but without this audible and/or haptic feedback being accompanied by fluid or fluid-comprising consumable delivery via any of the at least one outlet. Further provided is a method of operating such a kitchen appliance and a related computer program.