PRESS TO DOCUMENT APPLIANCE ISSUE DETECTION

An issue reporting function of an appliance is provided. Responsive to user activation of a report feature indicating that an issue is being experienced by the appliance, appliance signals and state information are periodically captured into data records. Responsive to deactivation of the report feature, capturing of the appliance signals and the state information is discontinued. The data records are sent to a remote device for analysis.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to a report feature for an appliance that records data from sensors when an issue is occurring, to allow for the sensor data to be evaluated.

BACKGROUND

A customer may review a purchased product. Many reviews are positive, such as a five out of five star rating. Other customers may report lower ratings. Generally, customers give insufficient information to allow for identification of the reason for the rating.

SUMMARY

In one or more illustrative examples, an appliance implementing an issue reporting function includes a controller configured to, responsive to user activation of a report feature indicating that an issue is being experienced by the appliance, periodically capture appliance signals and state information into data records; responsive to deactivation of the report feature, discontinue the capture of the appliance signals and the state information; and send the data records to a remote device for analysis.

In one or more illustrative examples, a method for implementing an issue reporting function of an appliance includes responsive to user activation of a report feature indicating that an issue is being experienced by the appliance, periodically capturing appliance signals and state information into data records; responsive to deactivation of the report feature, discontinuing the capturing of the appliance signals and the state information; and sending the data records to a remote device for analysis.

In one or more illustrative examples, a non-transitory computer-readable medium includes instructions for implementing an issue reporting function for an appliance that, when executed by a controller of the appliance, cause the controller to perform operations including to responsive to user activation of a report feature indicating that an issue is being experienced by the appliance, periodically capture appliance signals and state information into data records; responsive to deactivation of the report feature, discontinue the capture of the appliance signals and the state information; and send the data records to a remote device for analysis.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

When a customer reports an issue of a product at home, oftentimes there is limited documentation of the issue to help an engineer diagnose and solve the issue. This lack of documentation of the issue (e.g., lack of documentation of video, sound, temperatures conditions, etc., when the issue occurred) and inability of the service technician to fully understand the circumstances at the customer site may increase the difficulty in diagnosing, understanding, and correcting the issue.

In some cases, the customer may call a service technician to have the issue corrected. The service technician, in turn, may arrive at the customer site several days later. In the case of an intermittent issue, it is likely that the issue may have at least temporarily disappeared by the time service personnel arrive. Thus, the issue may not be replicated when the service technician is present. This applies often to sound and vibrations issues, in an example. This may also apply for cases where an item inside the appliance is blocking internal airflow but is moved before the technician arrives.

A report feature may be included in the appliance to allow for the saving of specific conditions when the issue is occurring. These conditions may be saved for post-processing and evaluation. The conditions may include the reporting of information from available sensors of the appliance. These sensors may include temperature sensors, power consumption loggers, speed of compressor, fans, etc.) to enable saving a specific condition the issue is occurring to be registered for post-processing and evaluation.

The report feature may be enhanced with additional sensors. In an example, the appliance may include or otherwise access audio/video recording sensors to document further details of the issue. These additional sensors may include microphone and/or cameras, as some possibilities, to capture aspects such as emanating sounds and/or a layout of items in the appliance. These additional sensors may further aid in the diagnosis of issues such as for noise and vibrations issues.

At the time when the issue is occurring, the customer may press a button to activate the report feature. This activation may trigger a controller of the appliance to register the current conditions of the appliance. If the issue stops occurring, the customer may similarly use the similar button to indicate the issue is no longer occurring.

In an example, the issue registering procedure may utilize a pre-defined a maximum time of registration, after which it would stop registering automatically. The timeframe for the registration may be preset by service personnel or an engineer.

FIG.1illustrates an example refrigerator100implementing issue reporting functionality. The refrigerator may be of the French-door bottom mount type, but it is understood that this disclosure could apply to any type of refrigerator, such as a side-by-side, two-door bottom mount, or top-mount type. As shown inFIG.1, the refrigerator100may include a number of storage compartments. The storage compartments may include a fresh food compartment102, a drawer compartment104, and a freezer compartment106. Each of the compartments102,104,106may be divided by a mullion or other divider configured to insulate the compartments102,104,106from one another for independent temperature control. Additionally, one or more of the compartments102may be controlled to adjust in temperature such that the compartments102may be implemented to store frozen or fresh items.

The fresh food compartment102may be accessed by opening one or both fresh food compartment doors108. The freezer compartment106may be accessed by pulling the freezer handle outwards as a drawer. The drawer compartment104may similarly be accessed by pulling the drawer handle.

A control panel110may be integrated into one of the fresh food compartment doors108. The control panel110may include digital controls or an external display to allow users to adjust the temperature and monitor the status of the refrigerator100. Using the control panel110, the user may be able to interact with various functions of the refrigerator100.

FIG.2illustrates a schematic view200of operation of a controller202of the refrigerator100. Generally, the refrigerator100operates by circulating cool air throughout the interior using a refrigeration system that includes a compressor, condenser coils, an evaporator, and a refrigerant. The compressor pumps refrigerant between the condenser and evaporator coils. The condenser coils release heat to the outside while the evaporator coils absorb heat from the interior of the refrigerator100, creating a cooling effect.

The controller202includes electronics configured to receive inputs from various sensors of the refrigerator100and manages the operation of the compressor, fans, and other components. Based on the sensor inputs, the controller202may adjust the cooling capacity of the refrigeration system and ensure that the desired temperature is maintained within the refrigerator100.

The controller202may receive state information regarding a plurality of inputs. For example, the controller202may be electrically connected to various temperature sensors, such as a fresh food temperature sensor204configured to measure the temperature inside the fresh food compartment102, a drawer temperature sensor206configured to measure the temperature inside the drawer compartment104, a freezer temperature sensor208configured to measure the temperature inside the freezer compartment106, an ambient temperature sensor210configured to measure the room temperature outside the compartments102, and an ice maker temperature sensor212configured to measure the temperature of the ice maker, if so equipped.

The controller202may also receive state information from various user-movable components of the refrigerator100. For example, the controller202may receive state signals from a fresh food compartment door switch214for monitoring whether the fresh food compartment doors108are open or closed, a drawer compartment switch216for monitoring whether the drawer compartment104is open or closed, a freezer compartment switch218for monitoring whether the freezer compartment106is open or closed. If one or more of the switches214,216,218are open for a predefined period of time, the controller202may raise an alert, in an example.

The controller202may also receive information indicative of the preferred temperatures to maintain in the compartments102,104,106. For instance, the controller202may receive a fresh food set point input220for determining the temperature at which the fresh food compartment102is set by a user, a drawer set point input222for determining the temperature at which the drawer compartment104is set by the user, and a freezer set point input224for determining the temperature at which the freezer compartment106is set by the user.

The controller202may also receive state information from other components as well. For example, the controller202may receive a damper state input226for monitoring the state of the damper. The controller202may also receive a defrost state input228for monitoring the state of the defrost. The controller202may also receive an ice maker state input230for monitoring the state of the ice maker. The controller202may also receive a power consumption input232for monitoring the power consumption of the various components of the refrigerator100. The power consumption input232may be measured using a built-in power meter or may be estimated based on the current compressor state of the refrigerator100in an example.

Based on the received inputs, the controller202is configured to control various aspects of the operation of the refrigerator100. For instance, the controller202may provide a compressor control234signal configured to control the operation of the compressor, an evaporator fan signal236for controlling the speed of the evaporator fan, a damper control signal238for controlling the operation of one or more dampers, and a defrost signal240for controlling one or more heaters for defrosting components where icing or condensation is not desired.

The controller202may also include a communications interface242. The communications interface242may provide for wired and/or wireless communications between the controller202and external devices. For instance, the communications interface242may support wireless connections over protocols such as Wi-Fi, cellular, or BLUETOOTH, or wired connections such as via universal serial bus (USB) or Ethernet. The communications interface242may be used for various purposes, such as transferring information off the controller202to an external device, or receiving information from an external device to the controller202.

In addition to the inputs to control the operation of the refrigerator100and the communications interface242, the controller202may optionally be configured to include additional auxiliary sensors. These auxiliary sensors may be unnecessary for control of the operation of the refrigerator100but may be useful for diagnosing issues that may occur outside of normal operation.

In an example, the auxiliary sensors may include one or more image capture devices244. The image capture devices244may include visible light cameras, infrared imaging cameras, 3D imaging devices such as light detection and ranging (LIDAR), or other forms of image capture device244such as wireless backscatter image detectors. The image capture devices244may be arranged within the compartments102,104,106to provide coverage of the internal spaces where customers may place food items. The image capture devices244may accordingly allow the controller202to receive information indicative of the presence and locations of items and within the compartments102,104,106.

The image capture devices244may be placed in various manners. In some examples, the image capture devices244may be embedded inside one or more of top, side, rear, or bottom walls of the compartments102,104,106, embedded inside doors or drawers to the compartments102,104,106, or embedded within shelves of the refrigerator100. In another example, the image capture devices244may be removable devices that are placed within the refrigerator100by a user and are plugged into the refrigerator100or are configured to wirelessly send image data top the refrigerator100(e.g., via the communications interface242).

In another example, the auxiliary sensors may include one or more sound capture devices246. The sound capture devices246may include hardware such as microphones or accelerometers. The sound capture devices246may be placed in various locations within the refrigerator100, such as on the frame of the refrigerator100, as well as on or nearby various components of the refrigerator100most likely to generate sounds, such as the fans, the compressor, the ice maker, etc. Several sound capture devices246may be placed throughout the refrigerator100to allow for location of sounds, e.g., by allowing for identification of where sounds are the loudest or when the sounds occur first.

FIG.3illustrates an example detail300of the control panel110. As shown inFIG.3, and with confined reference toFIG.2, the controller202may receive inputs from the control panel110, allowing users to adjust the temperature and monitor the status of the refrigerator100. The control panel110may show information such as the current temperature of the fresh food compartment102and or the freezer compartment106and may also show the temperature settings and any alarms or warnings. The user may adjust the temperature settings through buttons or a touch screen interface. Some refrigerators100also may allow users to control and monitor other features through the control panel110. For example, some models have a vacation mode that turns off the cooling system to conserve energy while the refrigerator100is unoccupied. Other models have a door alarm that alerts the user if the door has been left open for an extended period of time (e.g., as detected based on the fresh food compartment door switch214, drawer compartment switch216, or freezer compartment switch218).

As shown, the control panel110includes control buttons302A-G for operating various functions (collectively control buttons302). The control panel110also includes an ice dispenser304for the dispensing of ice from the ice maker responsive to pressure on an ice lever306, and a water dispenser308for the dispensing of a quantity of water responsive to pressure on a water lever310or pressing a water dispense button312. The control panel110may also include a display screen314, that includes various elements that may be illuminated or not illuminated to illustrate the current mode or status of the refrigerator100.

The control buttons302may include, for example, an ice type control button302A for choosing between cubes or crushed ice, a light control button302B for toggling lighting settings, a temperature control button302C for selecting temperature settings to adjust the fresh food set point input220, drawer set point input222, and/or freezer set point input224, an options control button302D for configuring various features such as fast cool, ice maker on and off, or sabbath mode, a lock control button302E for deactivating the control buttons302and the ice and dispensers304,308, a fill control button302F for selecting the quantity of water to be dispensed from the water dispenser308.

The control buttons302further include a report control button302G. When a customer notices an issue with the refrigerator100, the user may press the control button302G to activate a reporting feature. This reporting feature may allow for the logging of the specific conditions when the issue is occurring. The logged conditions may be saved for post-processing and evaluation. The conditions may include the recording of information from the available sensors of the refrigerator100as well as the state and other auxiliary data available to the controller202, such as that discussed with respect toFIG.2.

It should be noted that while the report control button302G is shown as integrated into the control buttons302of the control panel110, this is merely an example. In other examples, the report control button302G may be implemented as a submenu to the one of the other control buttons302, such as under the options control button302D. In yet another example, the report control button302G may be implemented separately from the control panel110, such as on the side of the refrigerator100or at another location on the refrigerator100.

FIG.4Aillustrates an example400A of a user indicating that an issue is occurring with the refrigerator100. At the time when the issue is occurring, the customer may press the report control button302G to activate the recording feature. This activation may trigger the controller202to begin to register the current conditions of the refrigerator100. Additionally, an indication402may be displayed in the display screen314illustrating that the refrigerator100is now logging information that is being captured during the occurrence of the issue. For instance, the user may press the report control button302G responsive to hearing an unusual noise emanating from the refrigerator100.

FIG.4Billustrates an example400B of the user indicating that the issue has stopped occurring with the refrigerator100. If the issue stops occurring, the customer may similarly use the report control button302G to indicate the issue is no longer occurring. For instance, the user may press the report control button302G responsive to noticing that the unusual noise is no longer emanating from the refrigerator100. In such a case, the indication402may be updated to indicate that logging continues, but that the logged data is indicative of a case where the issue is no longer occurring. In doing so, the user may be able to provide a record of the operation of the refrigerator100that is annotated to indicate which recorded information was captured during the occurrence of the issue, as well as which recorded information was captured when the issue was not occurring. This annotated logging may be used to provide information to aid a service technician and/or an engineer to diagnose and resolve the issue.

FIG.5illustrates an example500of the elements that maybe included in data records502captured in the report mode. The data records502may include various aspects as mentioned above, such as a fresh food temperature504as captured by the fresh food temperature sensor204, a drawer temperature506captured by the drawer temperature sensor206, a freezer temperature508captured by the freezer temperature sensor208, an ambient temperature510captured by the ambient temperature sensor210, an ice maker temperature512measured by the ice maker temperature sensor212, a fresh food door state514captured by the fresh food compartment door switch214, a drawer door state516captured by the drawer compartment switch216, a freezer door state518captured by freezer compartment switch218, the fresh food set point input220, the drawer set point input222, the freezer set point input224, the damper state input226, the defrost state input228, the ice maker state input230, the power consumption input232, the compressor control234indicative of the compressor state, the evaporator fan signal236indicative of the evaporator fan speed, any damper control signals238being sent, and any defrost signals240being sent.

The data records502may also include an issue occurrence status520. The issue occurrence status520may be indicative of whether the data record502is indicating state information that was captured during the occurrence of the issue. For instance, the issue occurrence status520may be set to true responsive to the user selecting the report control button302G to begin recording, and may be set to false (or true) responsive to the user additionally selecting the report control button302G to toggle the status whether the issue is occurring, as shown inFIGS.4A-4B. This may accordingly allow the data record502to be annotated by the user to indicate which data records502represent information when the issue was occurring, and which data records502represent information when the issue was not occurring.

The data records502may also include a timestamp522indicative of the time and/or date at which the data record502was captured. This may allow the data records502to be correlated with outside information for the same time, as well as to generally track when the issue occurred. For instance, if an issue manifests at the same time on different days, then that may be relevant in identifying the cause of the issue

The data records502may also include one or more data identifiers524. In an example, the data record502may include an identifier of a make and/or model of the refrigerator100. In another example, the data record502may include an identifier of a serial number of the refrigerator100.

The data records502may also include auxiliary sensor data526. In an example, the refrigerator100may include data from the image capture devices244and/or sound capture devices246(if the refrigerator100is so equipped) to document further details of the issue. These additional sensors may allow the refrigerator100to capture aspects such as emanating sounds and/or the layout of items in the refrigerator100. Sensor data from these additional sensors may be included in the data records502as auxiliary sensor data526to further aid in the diagnosis of issues.

The data records502, as augmented, may be stored to a data log528. The data log528may be maintained to a memory of the controller202, for example. In one example, the controller202may periodically sample the state and inputs and may store the recent data records502in the data log528until a capacity is reached. This sample period may be every second, every minute, etc. As additional data records502are added, the oldest data records502may be deleted to stay within the capacity.

FIG.6illustrates an example600of communication of the data log528to remote devices for analysis. The refrigerator100may be configured to utilize the communications interface242to communicate over a network602, such as a Wi-Fi network or a cellular network, to which various remote devices are connected such as a remote server604and/or a smartphone606. The refrigerator100may additionally or alternately be configured to communicate directly with the remote device, such as a direct connection to the smartphone606or other technician device in proximity to the refrigerator100. Regardless of approach, the data log528may be provided to the remote device using the communications interface242. This may allow a technician to read the data log528, and analyze the data captured when the issue occurred as well as when the issue was not occurring.

FIG.7illustrates an example process700for the operation of the refrigerator100implementing issue reporting functionality. In an example, the process700may be performed by the controller202in the context of the refrigerator100discussed in detail herein.

At operation702, the controller202determines whether the report feature is activated. In an example, the controller202may receive selection of the report control button302G from the control panel110of the refrigerator100. If such a selection was received, control passes to operation704.

At operation704, the controller202sets the issue occurrence status520. In an example, responsive to activation of the report feature, the controller202may set the issue occurrence status520to a value that indicates that an issue is occurring, such as true.

At operation706, the controller202captures appliance signals and state information into a data record502. In an example, the controller202may periodically capture appliance signals and state information into data records502. An example of such capture is discussed with respect toFIG.5. As shown inFIGS.4A-4B, the controller202may also update the display screen314to provide an indication402illustrating that the refrigerator100is now logging information, as well as indicating the issue occurrence status520. In another example, the controller202may log data regardless of whether an issue is noted by the user. This may allow for data before the user indicated the issue to be made available as well for analysis.

At operation708, the controller202augments the data record502with the issue occurrence status520. In an example, the controller202may include the issue occurrence status520in the data record502, such that the data record502is annotated to indicate that it includes data captured contemporaneously with the occurrence of the issue.

At operation710, the controller202augments the data record502with auxiliary sensor data526, if available. In an example, the controller202may augment the data record502with audio captured from a sound capture device246internal to the refrigerator100. In an example, the controller202may augment the data record502with image data captured from an image capture device244configured to image a compartment102,104,106of the refrigerator100.

At operation712, the controller202adds the data record502to the data log528. For example, the controller202may store the data record502into the data log528augmented with a timestamp522of the data record502.

At operation714, the controller202determines whether the report timer has expired. In an example, the issue registering procedure may utilize a pre-defined a maximum time of registration, after which the data records502are automatically no longer registered. The timeframe for the registration may be preset into the refrigerator100. If the timeout has elapsed, control passes to operation716to discontinue the capture of data record502. After operation716, control returns to operation702.

If the timer at operation714has not elapsed, control proceeds to operation718. At operation718, the controller202determines whether additional input to the report feature has occurred. For instance, if the user again selects the report control button302G, control passes to operation720to toggle the status of whether the issue is occurring, as shown inFIGS.4A-4B(e.g., in this case to set the issue occurrence status520from true to false). This may accordingly allow the data records502to be annotated by the user to indicate which data records502represent information when the issue was occurring, and which data records502represent information when the issue was not occurring. The indication402displayed to the display screen314may also be updated to indicate the updated issue occurrence status520. In some examples, each time the report control button302G is pressed during the capture the status of the issue occurrence status520is again toggled. In some examples, each time the report control button302G is pressed during the capture resets the timer to extend the time until the capture is completed. After operation720, control proceeds back to operation706. If no such input occurs at operation718, control passes from operation718to operation706.

Returning to operation702, if the report feature is not activated, control proceeds to operation722. At operation722, the controller202determines whether to send the data log528to a remote device. In an example, the controller202may determine whether a remote device, such as a remote server604or smartphone606has connected to the communications interface242of the controller202. If so, control proceeds to operation724to send the data log528to the remote device. After operation724, control returns to operation702. If no such device is connected at operation722, control passes from operation722to operation702.

Thus, at the time when an issue is occurring, a customer may press the report control button302G to activate a report feature. This activation may trigger the controller202to register the current conditions of the refrigerator100. If the issue stops occurring, the customer may similarly use the report control button302G to indicate the issue is no longer occurring. By capturing such information, the refrigerator100may provide documentation of the issue to a remote device to help an engineer diagnose and solve the issue. This documentation (e.g., video, sound, temperatures conditions, etc., when the issue occurred) may allow the service technician to understand the circumstances at the customer site, which may aid in diagnosing, understanding, and correcting the issue.

FIG.8illustrates an example800of a computing device802for implementing issue reporting functionality. Referring toFIG.8, and with reference toFIGS.1-7, the controller202may be an example of such a computing device802. As shown, the computing device802may include a processor804that is operatively connected to a storage806, a network device808, an output device810, and an input device812. It should be noted that this is merely an example, and computing devices802with more, fewer, or different components may be used.

The processor804may include one or more integrated circuits that implement the functionality of a central processing unit (CPU) and/or graphics processing unit (GPU). In some examples, the processors804are a system on a chip (SoC) that integrates the functionality of the CPU and GPU. The SoC may optionally include other components such as, for example, the storage806and the network device808into a single integrated device. In other examples, the CPU and GPU are connected to each other via a peripheral connection device such as peripheral component interconnect (PCI) express or another suitable peripheral data connection. In one example, the CPU is a commercially available central processing device that implements an instruction set such as one of the x86, ARM, Power, or microprocessor without interlocked pipeline stages (MIPS) instruction set families.

Regardless of the specifics, during operation the processor804executes stored program instructions that are retrieved from the storage806. The stored program instructions, accordingly, include software that controls the operation of the processors804to perform the operations described herein. The storage806may include both non-volatile memory and volatile memory devices. The non-volatile memory includes solid-state memories, such as not AND (NAND) flash memory, magnetic and optical storage media, or any other suitable data storage device that retains data when the system is deactivated or loses electrical power. The volatile memory includes static and dynamic random-access memory (RAM) that stores program instructions and data during operation of the refrigerator100.

The GPU may include hardware and software for display of at least two-dimensional (2D) and optionally three-dimensional (3D) graphics to the output device810. The output device810may include a graphical or visual display device, such as an electronic display screen, projector, printer, or any other suitable device that reproduces a graphical display. As another example, the output device810may include an audio device, such as a loudspeaker or headphone. As yet a further example, the output device810may include a tactile device, such as a mechanically raiseable device that may, in an example, be configured to display braille or another physical output that may be touched to provide information to a user.

The input device812may include any of various devices that enable the computing device802to receive control input from users. Examples of suitable input devices that receive human interface inputs may include keyboards, mice, trackballs, touchscreens, voice input devices, graphics tablets, and the like.

The network devices808may each include any of various devices that enable the refrigerator100to send and/or receive data from external devices over networks. Examples of suitable network devices808include an Ethernet interface, a Wi-Fi transceiver, a cellular transceiver, or a BLUETOOTH or BLUETOOTH low energy (BLE) transceiver, or other network adapter or peripheral interconnection device that receives data from another computer or external data storage device, which can be useful for receiving large sets of data in an efficient manner.