Refrigerator Inventory Tracking via Invoice-Verified Camera Recognition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face difficulties in tracking and managing the contents of a refrigerator appliance, leading to accidental purchases and unnecessary expenditures due to the accumulation of items and lack of accurate inventory management.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerator appliance equipped with a camera module and controller that initiates an item recognition sequence based on purchase invoices, allowing for accurate tracking and inventory management by comparing captured images to stored purchase data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If manual input methods are used to track stored items, then the system can maintain an inventory list, but the process becomes cumbersome and error-prone
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically tracks stored items by capturing images with the camera module and processing them to identify items, eliminating the need for manual user input. The controller autonomously performs item recognition, quantity estimation, and inventory updates without requiring user intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical input methods with an automated optical recognition system. The camera module captures images of stored items, and the controller processes these images to automatically identify and track items, substituting manual listing with automated computer vision technology.
2Quantity of substance
If scales or estimation methods are used to determine item quantity, then the system can estimate stored items, but accuracy deteriorates and errors increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical scaling methods with optical image recognition. The camera module captures images of stored items, and the controller analyzes these images to accurately identify item types and quantities, providing more precise measurements than weight-based estimation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses image processing as an intermediary between the physical stored items and the inventory database. The camera captures visual information, which is then processed by the controller to automatically generate accurate item identification and quantity data, serving as a mediator that eliminates estimation errors.
3Stability of the object's composition
If items are stored in bags to maintain organization, then the system can preserve item integrity, but the system cannot accurately identify or track the items
Solution Approach 1:
The camera module serves as an intermediary that can penetrate the bag packaging to capture images of items inside. The controller processes these images to identify items even when they are enclosed in bags, maintaining both the organizational benefit of bagging and the ability to track items accurately.
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerator appliance, as provided herein, may include a cabinet defining a chilled chamber, a door rotatably hinged to the cabinet, a camera module, and a controller. The camera module may be mounted to the cabinet. The controller may be operably coupled to the camera module. The controller may be configured to initiate an operation routine. The operation routine may include receiving a purchase invoice, initiating an item recognition sequence within the refrigerator appliance, generating an initial recognition attempt of a first stored item based on the item recognition sequence, comparing the initial recognition attempt of the first stored item to the purchase invoice, generating a modified recognition attempt of the first stored item based on the comparison of the initial recognition attempt the first stored item to the purchase invoice, and recording a descriptor of the first stored item to an inventory within the refrigerator appliance.