Patent ID: 7836708

Claim:
A water filter identification system for a refrigerator comprising a refrigeration compartment, said water filter identification system comprising: a manifold assembly positioned within said refrigeration compartment and operatively coupled to a water dispensing system; a monitoring device coupled to said manifold assembly, said monitoring device comprising at least one sensor; a filter assembly comprising a filter housing removably mounted to said manifold assembly, said filter housing defining a plurality of cavities within an interface surface of said filter housing and comprising two or more indicators selectively positioned within a corresponding cavity of said plurality of cavities, said interface surface defining a central void, said plurality of cavities and said two or more indicators circumferentially surrounding said central void, said filter assembly configured to be compatible with any suitable filter medium; said two or more indicators in signal communication with said at least one sensor with said filter housing mounted onto said manifold assembly for facilitating identification of said filter assembly and an identification of a filter medium within said filter assembly; and a controller configured to identify said filter assembly and said filter medium based on data within a signal received from said sensor, said data comprising location information of the two or more indicators and a presence of an electrical current within each of the two or more indicators, said controller further configured to operate said water dispensing system based on the identification of said filter assembly and said filter medium.