Office Action 3: Notice of Allowance (2025-07-18)

CLAIMS:
LISTING OF CLAIMS

In accordance with 37 C.F.R. § 1.121, a claim listing including the status and text of all claims as currently presented appears below.

1\. (Previously Presented) A washing machine appliance, comprising:
a wash tub positioned within a cabinet;
a wash basket rotatably mounted within the wash tub and defining a wash chamber configured for receiving a load of clothes;
a water supply configured to selectively dispense a flow of wash fluid through a discharge nozzle into the wash tub;
a bulk dispenser for selectively adding a wash additive to the flow of wash fluid;
a camera assembly mounted within the cabinet above the wash chamber and faces the discharge nozzle to monitor the flow of wash fluid; and
a controller operably coupled to the water supply, the bulk dispenser, and the camera assembly, the controller being configured to:initiate a bulk flush operation by operating the water supply to provide the flow of wash fluid and the bulk dispenser to dispense the wash additive;
obtain one or more images of the flow of wash fluid using the camera assembly before the wash fluid reaches the load of clothes;
analyze the one or more images using an image recognition process to determine an additive content of the flow of wash fluid;
determine that the additive content falls below a predetermined additive threshold;
and terminate the bulk flush operation in response to determining that the additive content falls below the predetermined additive threshold.
2\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:
determine that the additive content exceeds the predetermined additive threshold; and

continue the bulk flush operation by operating the water supply to provide the flow of wash fluid and the bulk dispenser to dispense the wash additive.
3\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:
analyze the one or more images using the image recognition process to determine that a flow rate of the flow of wash fluid falls below a flow rate threshold; and
provide a user notification that there is a fault condition with the water supply.
4\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 1, wherein terminating the bulk flush operation comprises stopping the flow of wash fluid using the water supply and stopping the dispensing of the wash additive using the bulk dispenser.
5\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 1, wherein terminating the bulk flush operation comprises providing a user notification that a bulk dispensing tank is empty.
6\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 5, further comprising:
a user interface panel, wherein the user notification is provided through the user interface panel.
7\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 5, wherein the controller is in operative communication with a remote device through an external network, and wherein the user notification is provided through the remote device.
8\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 1, wherein the image recognition process is a machine learning image recognition process comprising at least one of a convolution neural network ("CNN"), a region-based convolution neural network ("R-CNN"), a deep belief network ("DBN"), or a deep neural network ("DNN") image recognition process.
9\. (Canceled)

10\. (Canceled)

11\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 1, wherein the controller is in operative communication with a remote device through an external network, wherein the remote device comprises the camera assembly.

12\. (Original) The washing machine appliance of claim 1, wherein the washing machine appliance is a vertical axis washing machine appliance.

13\. (Previously Presented) A method of operating a washing machine appliance, the washing machine appliance comprising a wash basket rotatably mounted within a wash tub and defining a wash chamber configured for receiving a load of clothes, a water supply configured to selectively dispense a flow of wash fluid through a discharge nozzle into the wash tub, and a bulk dispenser for selectively adding a wash additive to the flow of wash fluid, the method comprising:
initiating a bulk flush operation by operating the water supply to provide the flow of wash fluid and the bulk dispenser to dispense the wash additive;
obtaining one or more images of the flow of wash fluid using a camera assembly, the camera assembly being mounted to face the discharge nozzle to monitor the flow of wash fluid before the wash fluid reaches the load of clothes;
analyzing the one or more images using an image recognition process to determine an additive content of the flow of wash fluid;
determining that the additive content falls below a predetermined additive threshold; and terminating the bulk flush operation in response to determining that the additive content falls below the predetermined additive threshold.

14\. (Original) The method of claim 13, further comprising:
determining that the additive content exceeds the predetermined additive threshold; and continuing the bulk flush operation by operating the water supply to provide the flow of wash fluid and the bulk dispenser to dispense the wash additive.

15\. (Original) The method of claim 13, further comprising:
analyzing the one or more images using the image recognition process to determine that a flow rate of the flow of wash fluid falls below a flow rate threshold; and
providing a user notification that there is a fault condition with the water supply.

16\. (Original) The method of claim 13, wherein terminating the bulk flush operation comprises stopping the flow of wash fluid using the water supply and stopping the dispensing of the wash additive using the bulk dispenser.

17\. (Original) The method of claim 13, wherein terminating the bulk flush operation comprises providing a user notification that a bulk dispensing tank is empty.

18\. (Original) The method of claim 13, wherein the image recognition process is a machine learning image recognition process comprising at least one of a convolution neural network ("CNN"), a region-based convolution neural network ("R-CNN"), a deep belief network ("DBN"), or a deep neural network ("DNN") image recognition process.

19\. (Canceled)

20\. (Original) The method of claim 13, wherein the washing machine appliance is in operative communication with a remote device through an external network, wherein the remote device comprises the camera assembly.

OFFICE ACTION:
DETAILED ACTION
Reasons for Allowance
Allowable Subject Matter
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: the closest prior art of record Kim (US 2020/0071871) in view of Gallagher (US 2017/0037559) fails to teach or suggest the claimed invention.
Kim figures 1-4 teach a washing machine appliance, comprising:
a wash tub (8 tub) positioned within a cabinet (2);
a wash basket (10 drum) rotatably mounted within the wash tub and defining a wash chamber configured for receiving a load of clothes;
a water supply (30 water supply part) configured to selectively dispense a flow of wash fluid into the wash tub;
a bulk dispenser (60 detergent supply part) for selectively adding a wash additive to the flow of wash fluid;
a controller (360) operably coupled to the water supply, the bulk dispenser, and a camera assembly (322 image sensor).[0037-41][0054-57]
Kim teaches a detergent bubble recognizer 110 for recognizing presence of detergent bubble from image data. The detergent bubble recognizer 110 may recognize presence of detergent bubble from the image data acquired by the image sensor 322 using an image recognition model based on machine learning as a field of artificial intelligence.  As an example of artificial intelligence technology applied to the detergent bubble recognizer 110 of the additional rinsing control module 100. The additional rinsing control module 100 may include a bubble ratio calculator 130 for calculating the ratio of detergent bubble based on the detergent bubble region extracted from the image data. The additional rinsing control module 100 may include an additional rinsing setting unit 140 for setting an additional rinsing cycle based on the ratio of detergent bubble calculated by the bubble ratio calculator 130. The additional rinsing setting unit 140 may set the number of times of performing the additional rinsing cycle and/or a time when the additional rinsing cycle is performed based on the calculated ratio of detergent bubble. The washing machine 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention may recognize presence of residual detergent (detergent bubble) from image data using an image recognition model based on artificial intelligence and perform control to perform the additional rinsing cycle based on the result of recognition, thereby more efficiently performing the rinsing cycle of the washing operation. Kim teaches image sensor 322 may be included in at least one camera installed inside or outside the washing machine 1 thereby reading on the controller being configured to obtain one or more images of the flow of wash fluid using the camera assembly, analyze the one or more images using an image recognition process to determine an additive content of the flow of wash fluid; determine that the additive content falls below a predetermined additive threshold; and terminate the bulk flush operation in response to determining that the additive content falls below the predetermined additive threshold.[0055,0074, 0077, 0110, 0112-113, 0116]
Kim is silent to a discharge nozzle. Kim is also silent to the controller being configured to: initiate a bulk flush operation by operating the water supply to provide the flow of wash fluid and the bulk dispenser to dispense the wash additive.
Gallagher is directed towards a washing machine wherein the mixture of water and detergent outputted by the pump 126 can be sprayed from the nozzle 66 generally directly down and along a side of the basket while the basket is being rotated. Gallagher further teaches the washing machine having a special flushing cycle for the pump 126 would need to be executed prior to switching chemistries to avoid contamination   thereby reading on a discharge nozzle and the controller being configured to initiate a bulk flush operation by operating the water supply to provide the flow of wash fluid and the bulk dispenser to dispense the wash additive.[0141][0184]
However, Kim in view of Gallagher is silent to the camera assembly mounted within the cabinet above the wash chamber and faces the discharge nozzle to monitor the flow of wash fluid, and the controller configured to obtain one or more images of the flow of wash fluid using the camera assembly before the wash fluid reaches the load of clothes.
Conclusion
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee.  Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”

APPLICANT REBUTTAL: REMARKSClaims 1-8, 11-18, and 20 are pending in the present application including independent claims 1 and 13. Applicants respectfully request reconsideration and allowance in view of the amendments to the claims and the following remarks.Claim Reiections - 35 U.S.C. § 103 Claims 1-2, 4-8, 11-14, 16-28, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being unpatentable over Kim (US 2020/0071871) in view of Yoon (US 2023/0067550) and Gallagher (US 2017/0037559). Claims 3 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being unpatentable over Kim in view of Yoon and Gallagher, and further in view of Ha (US 2021/0025104). These rejections are respectfully traversed. In this regard, Applicant respectfully submits that these claims are not obvious for at least the reason that the proffered combinations do not yield the claimed invention.Independent claim 1 currently recites that the camera assembly is mounted to face the discharge nozzle to monitor the flow of wash fluid before the wash fluid reaches the load of clothes. The Office Action acknowledges that Kim is silent as to such a construction but contends that Yoon cures this deficiency. Office Action, page 4. However, for the reasons described below, Applicant respectfully submits that this is not a proper combination of references and that claim 1 is patentable over the cited references.Applicant respectfully submits that Yoon is not a proper prior art reference for use in supporting the present obviousness rejection. In this regard, Applicant notes that Yoon was published on March 2, 2023, after the October 10, 2022 filing date of the present application.Therefore, Yoon could only qualify as prior art under 35 U.S.C. § 102(a)(2). However, 35 U.S.C.§ 102(b)(2) provides exceptions to qualifying prior art under that section. Specifically, relevant here is 35 U.S.C. § 102(b)(2)(C), which states that a disclosure is not prior art under (a)(2) if "the subject matter disclosed and the claimed invention, not later than the effective filing date of the claimed invention, were owned by the same person . . .." Applicant refers Examiner to the Assignment recorded at reel/frame 057354/0063, executed on September 1, 2021 (prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention), assigning Yoon to Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc., the same assignee as the present application. In view of this assignment, Applicant respectfully submits that Yoon is not prior art to the present application.In view of the above, the Examiner is respectfully requested to reconsider the rejection of independent claim 1. Applicant respectfully submits that the cited references fail to teach all limitations of independent claim 1 and that this claim patentably defines over the cited references. The Office Action rejected independent claim 13 on the same grounds and based upon the same authority as claim 1. Notably, independent claim 13 has been amended to include similar limitations as claim 1. Thus, for the same reasons as discussed with respect to claim 1, Applicant respectfully submits that claim 13 is patentable over the cited references.Consequently, it is respectfully submitted that independent claims 1 and 13 are in condition for allowance.Applicant also respectfully submits that for at least the reasons indicated above relating to independent claims 1 and 13, the corresponding dependent claims are also in condition for allowance. However, Applicant also notes that the patentability of corresponding dependent claims certainly does not hinge on the patentability of the independent claims. In particular, it is believed that some or all of these other claims may possess features that are independently patentable, regardless of the patentability of the independent claims. In summary, it is respectfully submitted that the present application is in complete condition for allowance and favorable action is therefore respectfully requested.Conclusion With the present submission, Applicant respectfully submits that all pending claims are allowable, and that the application is in condition for allowance. Favorable action thereon is respectfully requested. The Examiner is encouraged to contact the undersigned if there are any questions regarding this matter or if any additional information is required. If any fee not accounted for above is required for entry of this Response or papers filed herewith, authorization is hereby granted to charge such fee to Deposit Account No. 04-1403. If any petition is required for entry, such petition is hereby made and any associated fees may also be charged to our deposit account.[SIGNATURE BLOCK ON FOLLOWING PAGE]Respectfully submitted, DORITY & MANNING, P.A.July 8, 2025


CITED REFERENCE SUMMARIES: Ref US20200071871: Claims:
1. A washing machine comprising:
a door comprising an external cover and an internal glass configured to open and close a laundry entrance of the washing machine; at least one image sensor disposed to face the internal glass and configured to acquire image data; a detergent bubble recognizer configured to recognize detergent bubbles from the image data through a machine learning based image recognition model; and a controller configured to control the washing machine to perform an additional rinsing cycle based on a result of recognition.
2. The washing machine of claim 1, further comprising a bubble ratio calculator configured to process the image data and to calculate a ratio of an area of the detergent bubbles to an area of the internal glass, based on the detergent bubbles being recognized by the detergent bubble recognizer,
wherein the controller is configured to control the washing machine to perform the additional rinsing cycle based on the ratio calculated by the bubble ratio calculator.
3. The washing machine of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to update the machine learning based image recognition model of the detergent bubble recognizer using the acquired image data, and at least one of (i) information regarding an amount of laundry, (ii) information regarding an amount of detergent, or (iii) washing mode information.
4. The washing machine of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to set a number of times for performing the additional rinsing cycle based on the ratio calculated by the bubble ratio calculator.
5. The washing machine of claim 4, wherein the controller is further configured to:
set the number of times for performing the additional rinsing cycle to a first number based on the calculated ratio being a first ratio, and set the number of times for performing the additional rinsing cycle to a second number based on the calculated ratio being a second ratio greater than the first ratio.
6. The washing machine of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to increase a duration of time for performing the additional rinsing cycle, as the calculated ratio increases.
7. The washing machine of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to control the at least one image sensor to acquire the image data based on completion of a first rinsing cycle prior to the additional rinsing cycle.
8. The washing machine of claim 7, wherein the first rinsing cycle is one of a plurality of cycles in a washing operation of the washing machine, and
wherein the controller is further configured to perform a next cycle that follows the first rinsing cycle in the washing operation, based on the detergent bubbles not being recognized from the image data by the detergent bubble recognizer.
9. The washing machine of claim 1, wherein the at least one image sensor is disposed between the external cover and the internal glass of the door.
10. The washing machine of claim 9, wherein the at least one image sensor is fastened to an internal wall of the external cover of the door.
11. The washing machine of claim 1, further comprising at least one light source provided on an inner circumferential surface of the laundry entrance,
wherein the controller is configured to activate the at least one light source during acquisition of the image data by the at least one image sensor.
12. The washing machine of claim 1, wherein the image recognition model comprises a deep neural network that is configured to implement machine-based deep learning.
13. The washing machine of claim 2, further comprising a communication unit configured to transmit, to a server or a terminal, the acquired image data or at least one of (i) a number of times for performing the additional rinsing cycle, or (ii) duration of time for performing the additional rinsing cycle based on the ratio calculated by the bubble ratio calculator.
14. The washing machine of claim 13, wherein the controller is further configured to:
receive updated learning data from the server through the communication unit; and update the machine learning based image recognition model of the detergent bubble recognizer based on the received updated learning data.
15. A method of operating a washing machine, the method comprising:
performing a first rinsing cycle of a washing operation of laundry; acquiring image data of an internal glass of a door of the washing machine, based on completion of the first rinsing cycle; recognizing detergent bubbles from the image data through a machine learning based image recognition model; and controlling the washing machine to perform an additional rinsing cycle based on a result of recognizing detergent bubbles.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein controlling the washing machine to perform the additional rinsing cycle comprises:
processing the image data and calculating a ratio of an area of the detergent bubbles to an area of the internal glass, based on the detergent bubbles being recognized; and controlling the washing machine to perform the additional rinsing cycle based on the calculated ratio.
17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:
acquiring at least one of (i) information regarding an amount of laundry, (ii) information regarding an amount of detergent, or (iii) washing mode information; and updating the machine learning based image recognition model using the acquired at least one information and the acquired image data.
18. The method of claim 16, wherein controlling the washing machine to perform the additional rinsing cycle based on the calculated ratio comprises:
setting at least one of (i) a number of times for performing the additional rinsing cycle, or (ii) a duration of time for performing the additional rinsing cycle, when the additional rinsing cycle is performed based on the calculated ratio.
19. The method of claim 18, further comprising transmitting, to a server or a terminal, data regarding the at least one of (i) the number of times for performing the additional rinsing cycle, or (ii) the duration of time for performing the additional rinsing cycle.
20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:
receiving updated learning data from the server based on the transmitted data; and updating the machine learning based image recognition model based on the received updated learning data.
Ref US20170037559: Claims:
1. A laundry treating appliance for treating laundry according to a cycle of operation, the laundry treating appliance comprising:
a cabinet defining an interior and defining an access opening; a treating chamber located within the interior and accessible through the access opening; and a treating chemistry station comprising at least one actuator and a treating chemistry conduit, the at least one actuator located on the cabinet, and the treating chemistry conduit directed toward the treating chamber, wherein actuation of the at least one actuator causes a discharge of treating chemistry from the treating chemistry conduit toward the treating chamber.
2. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 further comprising at least one nozzle disposed on a terminal end of the treating chemistry conduit.
3. The laundry treating appliance of claim 2 wherein the at least one actuator comprises multiple actuators, and the at least one nozzle comprises multiple nozzles, with the multiple actuators and nozzles arranged in pairs.
4. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 further comprising at least one sensor providing a sensor output indicative of an amount of treating chemistry dispensed through the treating chemistry conduit.
5. The laundry treating appliance of claim 4 further comprising a controller operably coupled to the at least one sensor to receive the sensor output and reduce a volume of treating chemistry supplied to the treating chamber for a selected cycle of operation based on the sensor output.
6. The laundry treating appliance of claim 5 wherein the volume of treating chemistry is reduced by the amount of treating chemistry indicated by the sensor output.
7. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 wherein the cabinet further comprises a fascia at least partially defining the access opening, having the actuator disposed on the fascia.
8. The laundry treating appliance of claim 7 wherein the treating chemistry conduit is adjacent the actuator.
9. The laundry treating appliance of claim 8 wherein the treating chemistry conduit passes through the fascia.
10. The laundry treating appliance of claim 9 wherein the treating chemistry conduit is directed toward the treating chamber.
11. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 wherein the treating chemistry conduit is fluidly coupled to a bulk treating chemistry reservoir.
12. The laundry treating appliance of claim 11 further comprising a pump fluidly coupling the bulk treating chemistry reservoir and the treating chemistry conduit.
13. The laundry treating appliance of claim 1 wherein the treating chemistry station further comprises a water conduit, providing for a mixed discharge of water and treating chemistry form the treating chemistry station.
14. A stain station for a laundry treating appliance having a treating chamber for treating laundry according to a cycle of operation, the stain station comprising:
one or more nozzles for dispensing a volume of treating chemistry to the treating chamber; and at least one actuator disposed on the laundry treating appliance for selectively dispensing treating chemistry from one or more of the nozzles.
15. The stain station of claim 14 further comprising at least one sensor providing a sensor output indicative of an amount of treating chemistry dispensed through one or more nozzles.
16. The stain station of claim 15 further comprising a controller operably coupled to the at least one sensor to receive the sensor output and reduce the treating chemistry supplied to the treating chamber for a selected cycle of operation based on the sensor output.
17. The stain station of claim 14 wherein the stain station is fluidly coupled to a bulk treating chemistry reservoir.
18. The stain station of claim 17 further comprising a pump fluidly coupling the bulk treating chemistry reservoir.
19. A method of treating laundry in a laundry treating appliance according to a selected cycle of operation, the method comprising:
determining an amount of treating chemistry dispensed during a pre-treating operation to define a determined amount of pre-treating chemistry; reducing a predetermined amount of treating chemistry for the selected cycle of operation based on the determined amount of pre-treating chemistry to define a reduced treating chemistry amount; and dispensing the reduced treating chemistry amount during an execution of the selected cycle of operation.
20. The method of claim 19 wherein the reduced treating chemistry amount is equal to a difference between the predetermined amount and the determined amount.