Patent Publication Number: US-8532273-B2

Title: Home appliance and home appliance system

Description:
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/048,794, filed Apr. 29, 2008, which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Field 
     A home appliance and a home appliance system including the home appliance are disclosed herein. 
     2. Background 
     Home appliances are known. However, they suffer from various disadvantages. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the following drawings in which like reference numerals refer to like elements, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a home appliance in the form of a laundry treatment machine according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram showing a control flow of the laundry treatment machine of  FIG. 1  according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 3  is a graph showing unit signals of product information of the laundry treatment machine of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a graph of acoustic signals converted from product information according to an embodiment; 
         FIG. 5  is a graph of acoustic signals converted from product information according to another embodiment; 
         FIG. 6  is a graph of the acoustic signals converted from product information according to another embodiment; 
         FIG. 7  is a graph of the acoustic signals converted from product information according to another embodiment; 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a home appliance system in the form of a laundry treatment machine system W 1  according to an embodiment; and 
         FIG. 9  is a block diagram showing a control flow of the laundry treatment machine system W 1  of  FIG. 8 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Conventionally, when problems with a home appliance occur, a user usually calls a service center to ask for a repairman. However, the repairmen&#39;s visits to the user&#39;s home incurs excessive costs and it is often not easy to deal with problems when doing repairs because no prior information is provided. With the development of technology, a technique of remotely diagnosing fault information using a telephone network has been developed. 
     European Patent No. 0510519 discloses a technique of sending fault information of a home appliance to a service center using a telephone network via a modem connected to the home appliance. With this technique, the modem must be connected to the home appliance. However, a home appliance, such as a laundry treatment machine, may be installed outdoors, and thus, there are location restrictions that must be considered to connect the laundry treatment machine and the telephone network. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,105 discloses a technique of converting fault information of a home appliance into a sound of an audible frequency band using a telephone network and sending the same to a service center via a telephone. However, with this technique, signal interference may occur depending on a surrounding environment in the procedure of converting the fault information of the home appliance into a sound of an audible frequency and then sending the same to a telephone handset, and data loss may occur depending on characteristics of a telephone network in the procedure of sending the sound via the telephone network. Moreover, conventional home appliances have the problem that, since they do not inform users of the point of time when the fault information is output, they cannot correctly transmit the fault information. 
     Moreover, there is a problem that, in the event of damage to product information obtained by reading the sound, it is impossible for a conventional home appliance system to receive an external command signal and retransmit the product information, thereby being unable to deliver correct product information. 
     Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a home appliance and a home appliance system. Embodiments of a home appliance and home appliance system will be described using a laundry treatment machine and a laundry treatment machine system as examples. However, embodiments are not limited to a laundry treatment machine and laundry treatment machine system, but rather, are applicable to other home appliances. Such home appliances may include, for example, a TV, an air conditioner, a washing machine, a refrigerator, an electric rice cooker, or a microwave or conventional oven. 
       FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a laundry treatment machine  110  according to an embodiment. Referring to  FIG. 1 , the laundry treatment machine  110  may include a cabinet  111 , a tub  122  disposed inside the cabinet  111  that performs washing of laundry, a motor (not shown) that drives the tub  122 , a washing fluid supply device (not shown) that supplies washing fluid to the tub  122 , and a drainage device (not shown) that discharges washing fluid outside of the laundry treatment machine  110  after the washing is completed. The cabinet  111  may include a cabinet body  112 , a cabinet cover  113  coupled to the cabinet body  112 , a control panel  116 , including a dial  117  and display  118 , disposed over the cabinet cover  113  that controls operation of the laundry treatment machine  110 , and a top plate  115 . The cabinet cover  113  may include a hole  124  through which laundry may be put into/removed from the tub  122  and a door  114  that rotates to open and close the hole  124 .  FIG. 2  is a block diagram showing a control flow of the laundry treatment machine  110  of  FIG. 1 . Referring to  FIG. 2 , the laundry treatment machine  110  may include an input device  155  including a manipulation device  150  and a selection device  160  that receives input of an external command signal for executing fault diagnosis from the user, a conversion device  180  that converts product information into at least one acoustic signal, a sound output device  181  that outputs a signal sound corresponding to the acoustic signal output from the conversion device  180  to the outside when the external command signal is input from the selection device  160 , and a controller  170  that includes a storage device  140  that stores the product information of the home appliance for the fault diagnosis, loads the product information stored in the storage device  140  and transmits the same to the conversion device  180  when the fault diagnosis is selected through the selection device  160 , and controls a unit conversion time during which the conversion device  180  outputs the product information as the acoustic signal when the acoustic signal is output to the sound output device  181 . The laundry treatment machine  110  may further include a storage device  140  that stores the product information. The storage device  140  may be formed integrally with the control device  170  or separately from the control device  170 . 
     The conversion device  180  may include an encoder  180   a  and a modulator  180   b . The encoder  180   a  may encode each bit of the product information into symbols. The modulator  180   b  may modulate the symbols to an analog signal. The modulated signal, e.g. the at least one acoustic signal may then be output to the sound output device  181 . The sound output device  181  may receive the modulated signal, e.g. the at least one acoustic signal, and output the same as a sound. 
     The modulator  180   b  may modulate the symbols using, for example, any one of a frequency shift keying method, an amplitude shift keying method, or a phase shift keying method. The frequency shift keying method is a modulation method that modulates a data value of the product information onto a signal of a predetermined frequency. The amplitude shift keying method is a modulation method that varies a level of amplitude in response to a data value. The phase shift keying method is a modulation method that varies a phase according to a data value of the product information. 
     When the laundry treatment machine  110  is operated, product information of the laundry treatment machine  110  may be generated. The product information may be sent to the controller  170 . The product information may be made up of unit signals. Further, the product information may include at least one of operating information or fault information of the laundry treatment machine  110 . The operating information may include information required for the operation of the laundry treatment machine  110 , such as information about a washing stroke, a dehydration stroke, and a rinsing stroke of the laundry treatment machine  110 . The fault information may be selected from fault information generated during each operation when the operation of the laundry treatment machine  110  is performed and mechanical fault information of the laundry treatment machine  110 . 
     The controller  170  may transmit the product information to the conversion device  180 . The transmitted product information may be converted into at least one acoustic signal in the conversion device  180 . The sound output device  181  may receive the at least one acoustic signal and output the same as the sound corresponding to the at least one acoustic signal. 
     Meanwhile, the sound output device  181  may be, for example, a speaker, a buzzer, or any other means for output a sound. 
     Additionally, the user may input an operation control command through the manipulation device  150 . When the operation control command is input, the controller  170  controls the at least one acoustic signal converted and output by the conversion device  180  so that the user may be notified of the outputting of the sound. The configuration of the at least one acoustic signal will be described below in detail. 
       FIG. 3  is a graph showing unit signals of product information of the laundry treatment machine  110  of  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 4  is a graph of acoustic signals converted from product information according to an embodiment. Like reference numerals have been used to indicate like elements. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the product information may comprise unit signals. The unit signals may include a first unit signal S 1  and a second unit signal S 2  different from the first unit signal S 1 . Meanwhile, the product information may be formed of a combination of the unit signals. The controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to output an acoustic signal F 1  corresponding to the first unit signal S 1  during a first unit conversion time T 1  and an acoustic signal F 2  corresponding to the second unit signal S 2  during a second unit conversion time T 2  different from the first unit conversion time T 1 . Meanwhile, the acoustic signal F 1  corresponding to the first unit time S 1  and the acoustic signal F 2  corresponding to the second unit signal S 2  may have same frequency. 
     That is, when the first unit signal S 1  of the product information is input into the conversion device  180 , an acoustic signal F 1  corresponding to the first unit signal S 1  having at least one frequency may be converted and output. Also, when the second unit signal S 2  of the product information is input into the conversion device  180 , the controller  170  may generate an acoustic signal F 2  corresponding to the second unit signal S 2  having at least one frequency. Also, since the at least one frequency is the same, the controller device  170  may control the signals such that the first unit conversion time T 1  during which the acoustic signal F 1  corresponding to the first unit signal S 1  is output and the second unit conversion time T 2  during which the acoustic signal F 2  corresponding to the second unit signal S 2  is output are different from each other. The output sounds may be output during a time period different from each other. Therefore, the sounds output by being converted from the product information may enable the inverse conversion and collection of the product information. 
     Meanwhile, the controller  170  may control the unit conversion times T 1  and T 2  according to the operation control command input by the user via the manipulation device  150 . That is, when the user inputs the operation control command through the manipulation device  150 , the controller  170  may set the first unit conversion time T 1  and the second unit conversion time T to be different from each other. Hence, the conversion device  180  may output the acoustic signals through the above-stated procedure. 
       FIG. 5  is a graph of acoustic signals F 1  and F 2  according to another embodiment. Like reference numerals have been used to indicate like elements. The following description is focused on differences from the previous embodiment, and repetitive disclosure has been omitted. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , the controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to output a separation signal F 3  during a separation time T 3  between the first unit conversion time T 1  and the second unit conversion time T 2  in order to separate the acoustic signal F 1  corresponding to the first unit signal S 1  and the acoustic signal F 2  corresponding to the second unit signal S 2 . That is, when the first unit signal S 1  is input into the conversion device  180 , the conversion device  180  may convert the first unit signal S 1  into the acoustic signal F 1  corresponding to the first unit signal S 1  and outputs it during the first unit conversion time T 1 . Upon completion of the conversion of the first unit signal S 1 , the conversion device  180  may output a separation signal F 3  during the separation time T 3 . Upon completion of the outputting of the separation signal F 3 , the conversion device  180  may convert the second unit signal S 2  into the acoustic signal F 2  corresponding to the second unit signal S 2  and output it during the second unit conversion time T 2 . The first unit conversion time T 1  and the second unit conversion time T 2  may be controlled in a different manner. Therefore, even if the acoustic signal F 1  corresponding to the first unit signal S 1  and the acoustic signal F 2  corresponding to the second unit signal S have the same frequency, they may be separated by the separation signal F 3 . Also, since the first unit conversion time T 1  and the second unit conversion time T 2  may be different from each other, the acoustic signals F 1  and F 2  may be discriminated externally. 
     Meanwhile, the separation signal F 3  may not have a frequency. That is, a sound corresponding to the separation signal F 3  may be mute. 
       FIG. 6  is a graph of acoustic signals F 1  and F 2  according to another embodiment. Like reference numerals have been used to indicate like elements. The following description is focused on differences from the previous embodiments, and repetitive disclosure has been omitted. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , the at least one frequency may include a plurality of frequencies. The plurality of frequencies may include a first frequency corresponding to a first unit signal S 1  and a second frequency different from the first frequency and corresponding to a second unit signal S 2 . That is, when the first unit signal S 1  is input, the controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to convert an acoustic signal F 4  corresponding to the first unit signal so as to have the first frequency. On the other hand, when the second unit signal S 2  is input, the controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to convert an acoustic signal F 5  corresponding to the second unit signal and having the second frequency. Also, the controller  170  may control the acoustic signal F 4  corresponding to the first unit signal and containing the first frequency to be output during a first unit conversion time T 4 . The controller  170  may control the acoustic signal F 5  corresponding to the second unit signal and containing the second frequency to be output during a second unit conversion time T 5 . Also, the controller  170  may control the first unit conversion time T 4  and the second unit conversion time T 5  to be different from each other. Therefore, in the laundry treatment machine  110 , the sounds corresponding to the acoustic signals F 4  and F 5  may have different frequencies from each other, and may be externally output for different time periods. That is, since the signals may be externally output for different time periods, even if it is not easy to discriminate between the first frequency and the second frequency, the sounds may be discriminated based on the unit conversion times T 4  and T 5 . As a result, the sounds may be effectively delivered. 
       FIG. 7  is a graph showing of acoustic signals F 4  and F 5  according to another embodiment. Like reference numerals have been used to indicate like elements. The following description is focused on the differences from the above-stated embodiments. 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , the controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to output a separation signal F 6  during a separation time T 6  between an acoustic signal F 4  corresponding to a first unit signal S 1  and an acoustic signal F 5  corresponding to a second unit signal S in order to separate the acoustic signal F 4  from the acoustic signal F 5 . That is, when a first unit signal S 1  is input into the conversion device  180 , the controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to output an acoustic signal F 4  having a first frequency. Upon completion of the outputting of the acoustic signal F 4  having the first frequency, the controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to output a separation signal F 6  during a separation time T 6 . Also, upon completion of the separation signal F 6 , the controller  170  may control the conversion device  180  to output an acoustic signal F 5  having a second frequency. Therefore, the acoustic signals F 4  and F 5  may be respectively output during the unit conversion times T 4  and T 5  different from each other, and discriminated by the separation signal F 6 , thus making the signals corresponding to the acoustic signals F 4  and F 5  efficiently discriminated from each other. 
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a home appliance system in the form of a laundry treatment machine system W 1  according to an embodiment.  FIG. 9  is a block diagram showing a control flow of the laundry treatment machine system W 1  of  FIG. 8 . As discussed above, embodiments are not limited to the laundry treatment machine system W 1 , but rather, may be configured for any kind of home appliance. The laundry treatment machine system W 1  according to this embodiment will be discussed hereinbelow. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 8 and 9 , the laundry treatment machine system W 1  may include a laundry treatment machine  210 , an input device including a manipulation device  150  and a selection device  260  that receives input of an external command signal for executing fault diagnosis from the user, a conversion device  280  that converts product information into at least one acoustic signal, a sound output device  281  that outputs a signal sound corresponding to the acoustic signal output from the conversion device  280  to the outside when the external command signal is input from the selection device  260 , a controller  270  that includes a storage device  240  that stores the product information of the home appliance for the fault diagnosis, loads the product information stored in the storage device  240  and transmits the same to the conversion device  280  when the fault diagnosis is selected through the selection device  260 , and controls a unit conversion time during which the conversion device  280  outputs the product information as the acoustic signal when the acoustic signal is output to the sound output device  281 , and a management device  290  that receives the sound and inversely converts the sound into the product information based on the sound. The conversion device  280 , the sound output device  281 , and the controller  270  may be formed separately from the laundry treatment machine  210 , or may be included in the laundry treatment machine  210 . 
     The laundry treatment machine  210  may include the same or similar components as described in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The management device  290  may include a transmission/reception device  291  that transmits and receives the sound output to the outside from the sound output device  281  of the laundry treatment machine  210 , a signal conversion device  292  that inversely converts the sound received from the transmission/reception device  291  into the product information, a management device controller  293  that reads the converted product information, a management device storage device  294  that stores the product information read by the management device controller  293 , and a repair terminal  295  that transmits the product information read by the management device controller  293  to a repairman. 
     A method for converting the product information of the laundry treatment machine  210  into an acoustic signal to output the same and outputting a sound corresponding to the acoustic signal and a control flow thereof are the same or similar to those as described with respect to  FIG. 2 . Further, a method for converting the product information into an acoustic signal is also the same or similar to those as described with respect to  FIGS. 3 to 7 . 
     The sound output from the sound output device  281  may be transmitted to the management device  290  via a communications network  296 . Further, the laundry treatment machine system W 1  may further include an external terminal  230  connected to the management device  290  and the communications network  296 . The external terminal  230  may include any device capable of transmitting the sound output from the sound output device  281 , such as a wired phone, a wireless phone, or a mobile phone, to the management device  290 . The user may input the sound output from the sound output device  281  into the external terminal  230 . In contrast to the description of  FIG. 2 , the sound input from the external terminal  230  may be converted into a voice signal, and the voice signal may be inversely converted into the product information. The inversely-converted product information may be compared with previously input data to be linked to the repairman. 
     That is, regarding the control flow of the management device  290 , as described in  FIGS. 3 to 7 , when the conversion device  280  outputs the acoustic signals, the sound output device  281  may output a sound corresponding to the acoustic signals to outside of the laundry treatment machine  210 . The output sound may be transmitted to the management device  290  through the external terminal  230  by the user. The transmitted sound may be received by the transmission/reception device  291 . Meanwhile, the transmission/reception device  291  may output the sound generated from the management device  290  to the outside, as well as receive the sound. The received sound may be transmitted to the signal conversion device  292 . In the transmission procedure, the sound may be converted into an acoustic signal and transmitted. The transmitted acoustic signal may be converted into the product information in the signal conversion device  292 . The procedure of converting the transmitted acoustic signal may be done in a reverse manner to that described in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . The converted product information may be transmitted to the management device controller  293 . The management device controller  293  may store preset data therein. Therefore, the management device controller  293  may compare the preset data and the converted product information. If it is judged that the converted product information is different from the preset data, the management device controller  293  may transmit the converted product information to the repairman through the repair terminal  295 . Further, the management device controller  293  may store the converted product information in the management device storage device  294 . Therefore, a fault history or operation information of the laundry treatment machine  210  used by the user may be saved. 
     Meanwhile, the management device controller  294  may judge whether the converted product information is correctly transmitted or not, as well as compare the converted product information with the preset data. The converted product information may be damaged by external disturbing factors as they are transmitted to the management device controller  294 . If the management device controller  294  may judge that the converted product information is damaged, the management device controller  294  may transmit a re-transmit command indicating the damage of the converted product information to the signal conversion device  293 . The transmitted re-transmit command may be converted into a management device acoustic signal corresponding thereto in the signal conversion device  293 . The converted management device acoustic signal may be transmitted to the transmission/reception device  291 . The transmitted management device acoustic signal may be transmitted as a sound corresponding to the management device acoustic signal to the laundry treatment machine  291  through the external terminal  230 . The transmitted sound may be transmitted to an acoustic input device  252 , such as a microphone, and the re-transmit command may be converted through an inverse conversion device  251  and transmitted to the controller  270 . Upon receipt of the re-transmit command, the controller  270  may re-transmit the product information to the conversion device  280 . The re-transmitted product information may be output to the outside of the laundry treatment machine  210  again through the sound output device  2 S 1  in a reverse manner as that described in  FIGS. 3 to 7 . Therefore, even when damaged product information is transmitted to the management device  290 , the laundry treatment machine system W 1  may receive the re-transmit command and repetitively transmit correct product information. Further, the laundry treatment machine system W 1  may ensure correct repair of the laundry treatment machine  210  by correctly sending the product information. 
     Embodiments disclosed herein provide a home appliance and a home appliance system that convert product information into an acoustic signal and effectively output a sound corresponding to the acoustic signal to the outside. 
     Embodiments disclosed herein further provide a home appliance system that may include a home appliance that converts product information into an acoustic signal containing at least one frequency and outputs a signal to the outside, and controls a unit conversion time during which a conversion unit or device outputs the product information as the acoustic signal when the acoustic signal converted in the conversion unit is output to an output unit or device, and a management device that receives the sound output to the outside and inversely converting the sound into the product information based on the sound. 
     The home appliance and home appliance system according to embodiments disclosed herein allow a user to eliminate a sound output to the outside through a manipulation unit or device. Accordingly, the home appliance may correctly output the sound after eliminating factors disturbing the sound. 
     Accordingly, the home appliance system may effectively read product information of the home appliance based on the above information. Also, it is possible to acquire correct information of the home appliance by having damaged product information re-transmitted by transmitting an external command signal to the home appliance again. 
     Any reference in this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “example embodiment,” etc., means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. The appearances of such phrases in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with any embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the purview of one skilled in the art to effect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other ones of the embodiments. 
     Although embodiments have been described with reference to a number of illustrative embodiments thereof, it should be understood that numerous other modifications and embodiments can be devised by those skilled in the art that will fall within the spirit and scope of the principles of this disclosure. More particularly, various variations and modifications are possible in the component parts and/or arrangements of the subject combination arrangement within the scope of the disclosure, the drawings and the appended claims. In addition to variations and modifications in the component parts and/or arrangements, alternative uses will also be apparent to those skilled in the art.