Refrigerator Camera Module for Item Identification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face difficulties in identifying and tracking items within a refrigerator, leading to accidental purchases and unnecessary expenditures due to the accumulation of non-perishable items and lack of awareness about consumed or removed items.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator appliance equipped with a camera module, digital display, and controller that initiates an image capture sequence, assigns image scores based on predetermined criteria, and presents the best image to the user for viewing the contents of the chilled chamber.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If multiple items are stored in the refrigerator chamber, then the storage capacity is improved, but the ability to identify and track individual items deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a camera module to capture images of items in the refrigerator chamber and displays these images on a digital interface. This creates a visual copy of the physical items, allowing users to identify and track items without physically searching through the stored goods, thus resolving the contradiction between storing multiple items and maintaining item identification capability.
2Productivity
If the refrigerator chamber is filled with items, then the storage efficiency is improved, but the ease of viewing and tracking items deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a camera module and digital display as intermediaries between the user and the stored items. The camera captures images of items in the crowded chamber, and the display presents these images to the user, eliminating the need to physically move or search through items to view them, thus maintaining ease of operation while maximizing storage efficiency.
3Adaptability or versatility
If users do not communicate about item additions and removals, then the operational independence is improved, but the accuracy of inventory tracking deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the camera module continuously or periodically captures images of items in the refrigerator chamber, and the digital display shows updated inventory information to all users. This automated feedback system maintains accurate inventory tracking without requiring users to communicate with each other, preserving operational independence while ensuring inventory accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for operating a refrigerator appliance, as provided herein, may include initiating an image capture sequence at a camera module. The image capture sequence may include a first two-dimensional image captured at the camera module and a second two-dimensional image captured at the camera module subsequent to the first two-dimensional image. The method may further include assigning an image score to the first two-dimensional image according to a predetermined grading scale, and assigning an image score to the second two-dimensional image according to the predetermined grading scale. The method may still further include comparing the image scores of the first and second two-dimensional images, and presenting one of the first and second two-dimensional images on a digital display based on comparing the image scores.