Laundry Appliance Identification Using Floor Plan Image Association
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laundry appliance systems can only provide general location information, making it difficult to identify specific appliances within a group and their exact positions relative to each other and other fixtures in a monitored room.
Innovation Solution
A method that involves receiving a floor plan of a room with laundry appliance locations, displaying the room image on a remote user interface, and allowing users to input and associate appliance positions with their corresponding location information, enabling precise identification of appliances.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If only general location information is provided for laundry appliances, then the system is simple to operate, but the measurement precision of appliance location is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from providing only general location information (one dimension) to providing both general location and specific position information within the room (adding spatial dimensionality). This is achieved by capturing images of the room and marking appliance positions on these images, thereby resolving the contradiction between measurement precision and device complexity through dimensional enrichment of location data.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a visual copy of the physical room environment through captured images. These images serve as a digital representation where appliance positions can be marked and identified. This copying approach allows precise location identification without requiring complex physical tagging or modification of the actual appliances, thus improving measurement precision while managing system complexity.
2Loss of information
If specific appliance identification is implemented, then the loss of information is reduced, but the ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system allows users to independently capture room images and mark appliance positions themselves, rather than requiring system administrators to pre-configure all location data. This self-service approach reduces information loss by enabling users to document the actual room layout while maintaining ease of operation through intuitive image-based interaction, eliminating the need for complex configuration procedures.
3Measurement precision
If manual association of appliances with location information is required, then measurement precision is improved, but the productivity of the system decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically capturing room images and preparing them for markup before the user begins the association process. This preliminary preparation reduces the overall time required for precise appliance positioning, as the foundational work of image acquisition and processing is completed in advance, allowing users to focus only on the essential task of marking appliance locations.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of identifying a laundry appliance of a group of laundry appliances includes receiving an upload including a floor plan of a room. The group of laundry appliances is located in the room. In addition, the floor plan includes location information of each laundry appliance. The method further includes providing a user notification in response to receiving the upload. The user notification may be provided on a remote user interface device. The method additionally includes displaying an image of the room in response to an affirmative action to the user notification. The image may be displayed on the remote user interface device. The method further includes receiving an input. The input may be received on the remote user interface device. In addition, the input may include an association of the laundry appliance in the image of the room with the location information of the laundry appliance.