Appliance comprising one or more sensors
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing solutions for connecting sensor devices and electrical/electromechanical components to an electronic control board in appliances result in a bulky wiring harness, requiring extensive time and precision during manufacturing, and a substantial workload for the control board to manage operations and acquire information.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating electrical/electronic/electromechanical components with on-board processing capabilities and sensors that detect physical parameters unrelated to their specific tasks, allowing for simplified design, manufacturing, and maintenance, with managing elements that preprocess and forward signals to the control circuitry.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a wiring harness is used to connect all sensor devices and electrical/electromechanical components to the electronic control board, then the appliance can achieve accurate control and automated operation, but the wiring harness becomes bulky and requires extensive time and precision during manufacturing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the appliance into multiple modular assemblies, each containing sensor devices and electrical/electromechanical components that are self-contained. This segmentation eliminates the need for a complex centralized wiring harness, as each module manages its own connections locally, significantly reducing manufacturing complexity while maintaining control accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements universal communication interfaces and protocols across all modular assemblies, allowing different sensor types and components to interact through standardized connections. This multi-functionality enables the system to maintain accurate control without requiring specialized wiring for each component, thereby simplifying manufacturing processes.
2Extent of automation
If the electronic control board manages all operations and acquires information from all sensor devices, then comprehensive control is achieved, but the control board workload becomes substantial
Solution Approach 1:
The patent distributes control functions across multiple microcontrollers embedded in different modular assemblies rather than concentrating all processing in a single control board. Each microcontroller handles local sensing and actuation independently, reducing the workload on the central electronic control board while maintaining comprehensive automated operation through coordinated module interaction.
Solution Approach 2:
Each modular assembly incorporates its own microcontroller that autonomously processes sensor data and controls local actuators without requiring constant intervention from the central control board. This self-service capability reduces the control board's workload to supervisory functions while maintaining full automation across the appliance system.
Data Source
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AI summary
An appliance (100) is proposed. The appliance comprises a control circuitry (150a) provided for managing the operation of the appliance (100), and at least one operating module (205) comprising an electric/electronic/electromechanical component (220) provided for performing one or more specific tasks required for the appliance operation, the at least one operating module comprising at least one sensor (265) arranged to detect values of one or more physical parameters. Said at least one sensor is arranged to detect values of one or more physical parameters which are not related to the one or more specific tasks performed by the electric/electronic/electromechanical component of the operating module.