Personal care apparatus
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current personal care apparatuses, such as smart mirrors, face ergonomic issues due to the distance between the touch interface and the user, and fingerprint smudges or stains on the touch interface can detract from the personal care experience, making it inconvenient to control the display apparatus while performing personal care activities.
Innovation Solution
A personal care apparatus with a control unit that determines its operation mode and detects user maneuvers to either control itself or the connected display apparatus, allowing remote control of the display via predetermined user actions, thus eliminating the need for direct interaction with the touch interface.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the touch interface of the smart mirror is placed at a distance from the user, then the display apparatus can be mounted in a standard position, but the ease of operation deteriorates as users must reach uncomfortably to interact with the interface
Solution Approach 1:
The personal care apparatus serves as an intermediary device between the user and the smart mirror interface. It receives user inputs (such as pressing buttons or touching the display on the personal care device) and transmits control signals to the smart mirror, enabling indirect control without requiring the user to reach the distant mirror interface
Solution Approach 2:
The personal care apparatus replicates the control functionality of the smart mirror interface in a location convenient for the user. By placing identical or similar control elements (display, buttons, touch interface) on the personal care device held by or near the user, it creates a functional copy of the interface at an ergonomic distance
2Ease of operation
If the touch interface is frequently touched during personal care activities, then user interaction is enabled, but fingerprint smudges and stains accumulate on the interface
Solution Approach 1:
The personal care apparatus acts as a mediator that transfers control functions from the smart mirror interface to a device that is not subject to the same contamination issues. Since the personal care device is held in the user's hand or positioned away from the mirror surface, it avoids accumulating fingerprint smudges while still enabling full user interaction
Solution Approach 2:
The control functionality is extracted from the smart mirror interface and relocated to the personal care apparatus. This separation removes the harmful effect of fingerprint accumulation from the interaction point, as controls are now on a different device that does not remain stationary on the mirror surface
Data Source
AI summary
There is provided a personal care apparatus that is configured to connect to a display apparatus. The personal care apparatus comprises a first control unit configured to: determine a current operation mode of the personal care apparatus as a usage mode or a control mode, and detect a first predetermined user maneuver. The first predetermined user maneuver corresponds to a control operation of the personal care apparatus in the usage mode and corresponds to a control operation of the display apparatus in control mode. When the first predetermined user maneuver is detected, the first control unit is further configured to: perform the control operation of the personal care apparatus if the determined current operation mode is the usage mode, or transmit a control signal corresponding to the control operation of the display apparatus to the display apparatus if the determined current operation mode is the control mode.