CN111184437A

CN111184437A - Gesture-controlled liquid heating appliance and gesture control method therefor

Info

Publication number: CN111184437A
Application number: CN201811358445.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 褚涛
Original assignee: Srix Guangzhou Electrical Appliances Co ltd; Strix Ltd
Current assignee: Srix Guangzhou Electrical Appliances Co ltd; Strix Ltd
Priority date: 2018-11-15
Filing date: 2018-11-15
Publication date: 2020-05-22
Also published as: GB2579103A; GB201900502D0

Abstract

A gesture-controlled liquid heating appliance (100) and a method for gesture control thereof, the liquid heating appliance (100) comprising: a gesture sensor (106); a heating element (104); a power supply circuit for the heating element; a microcontroller unit arranged to control a power supply circuit; wherein: the gesture sensor (106) is configured to: sensing an action; determining a recognized gesture corresponding to the sensed motion; and providing a signal corresponding to the recognized gesture to a microcontroller unit; the microcontroller unit is configured to: receiving a signal from a gesture sensor (106) corresponding to the recognized gesture; confirming a command associated with the recognized gesture; and adjusting the power supplied to the heating element (104) by controlling the power supply circuit in accordance with the command.

Description

Gesture-controlled liquid heating appliance and gesture control method therefor

Technical Field

The present invention relates to liquid heating appliances, and more particularly to mechanisms for assisting in the manual control of liquid heating appliances.

Background

Liquid heating appliances such as kettles or instant hot water dispensers are widely used today. These appliances are typically used to heat or boil water by means of a heating element connected to an electrical power source. Kettles are counter-top appliances which generally avoid the need to heat water in a vessel such as a pan and may be cordless or corded. The hot water dispenser may also be a counter top appliance or be connected to a mains water supply.

The cordless kettle includes a container for holding a liquid, and the container is coupleable to a separate base. The base may be connected to a power source. The susceptor may provide electrical current to a heating element immersed in the container or heating the bottom of the container. An advantage of a cordless kettle is that once the liquid has been heated to the desired level, the container of the cordless kettle can be uncoupled from the base and moved to a position remote from the base. For example, cordless kettles can be moved from a kitchen area to a dining area and used to make beverages such as tea or coffee.

The corded kettle does not include a separate base and the current is supplied directly to the heating element rather than via the base. Corded kettles do not have the advantage of independent transport of the container off the base. To supply heated water, the corded kettle needs to be pulled off the power supply, or a cup for receiving heated water needs to be brought, for example, near the kettle. However, corded kettles are still in widespread use because they are generally cheaper than cordless kettles.

Instant hot water dispensers are designed to provide smaller amounts of liquid quickly compared to water kettles. Instead of applying the heating element to a vessel containing still water, the heating element is applied to a conduit containing flowing water. Such an arrangement is commonly referred to as a "flow heater". The pump controls the flow of water. By controlling the water flow rate, the temperature to which the water is heated can be controlled. By controlling the length of time that the pump delivers water, the volume of liquid that is heated can also be controlled. Further structural details of some exemplary flow heaters are provided in WO2011/077135 and WO2013/057506, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Traditionally, people control liquid heating appliances, such as kettles or instant hot water dispensers, by means of physical contact mechanisms using switches, knobs or push buttons. The user may need to physically touch and flip the toggle switch to turn on the appliance. He may need to physically touch and rotate a knob, which may have several predetermined settings, to select the temperature to which the user desires the liquid to be heated. He can touch the button to cause the appliance to maintain any liquid within the appliance at a constant temperature. In the case of instant hot water dispensers, the user may be required to physically touch and rotate a knob to select the volume of water he wishes to heat.

However, this approach of user control by means of a mechanism requiring physical contact with a human hand has disadvantages. They require that the human user be relatively close to the appliance, i.e. within hand reach. If the user is far away, e.g. on the other side of the room, he will not be able to control the appliance.

Further, physical contact control mechanisms are limited in the number of possible forms that the input can take. For example, the button may or may not be pressed. The knob may be in a limited number of angular positions, each position representing a particular user input, the number of possible inputs being generally limited by the physical space available on the appliance for the knob.

Furthermore, physical contact control mechanisms require a degree of manual effort that a user may not wish to expend. It may be desirable to avoid the labor involved in controlling features on physical contact appliances.

In addition, physical contact control mechanisms are unsanitary. For example, if two people physically touch the same button on a kettle, bacteria from one person may be transferred to the other person.

Physical or mechanical contact control mechanisms are also prone to wear. Over time, such control devices may become rigid, difficult to use, or physically damaged. Furthermore, such contact-based control mechanisms require the user to actually touch a portion of the kitchen appliance. In the case of a kettle or instant hot water dispenser, this may require the user to touch a portion of the heat in the appliance or exposed to the expelled steam. This may result in injury from heat or burns.

The applicant has realised that the above mentioned disadvantages of physical contact can be avoided if the liquid heating appliance can be controlled by a person without the need for physical contact by the person.

Disclosure of Invention

Viewed from a first aspect, the present invention provides a gesture-controlled liquid heating appliance comprising:

a gesture sensor;

a heating element;

a power supply circuit for the heating element; and

a microcontroller unit arranged to control a power supply circuit;

wherein:

the gesture sensor is configured to:

sensing an action;

determining a recognized gesture corresponding to the sensed motion; and

providing a signal corresponding to the recognized gesture to a microcontroller unit;

and is

The microcontroller unit is configured to:

receiving a signal corresponding to the recognized gesture from a gesture sensor;

confirming a command associated with the recognized gesture; and

the power supplied to the heating element is regulated by controlling the power supply circuit in accordance with the command.

A first aspect of the invention extends to a method for gesture control of a liquid heating appliance, the method comprising:

sensing motion proximate to the liquid heating appliance;

determining a recognized gesture corresponding to the sensed motion;

confirming a command associated with the recognized gesture; and

adjusting the supply of electrical power to the heating element of the liquid heating appliance in accordance with the command.

Thus, it will be seen by those skilled in the art that the liquid heating appliance of the present invention may advantageously be controlled by means of gestures, such as gestures made by a human hand. Gesture control avoids the need to approach the appliance to control it; reduced manpower, more sanitary, less wear, and safer to use than conventional contact control appliances.

In some embodiments, the appliance is a kettle. In a subset of the embodiments, the appliance is a cordless kettle. The cordless kettle may include a liquid container and a base that may be coupled to the liquid container. The base may be connected to an external power source and may include a gesture sensor and/or a microcontroller unit. In a further subset of embodiments, the appliance is a corded kettle. The corded jug may comprise a body comprising a gesture sensor and/or a microcontroller unit. In embodiments where the appliance is a kettle, the appliance may comprise a handle, and the gesture sensor and/or microcontroller unit may be located in the handle.

Thus, the key components of the invention, the gesture sensor and the microcontroller unit, may be, but are not limited to, located in the base of the kettle (if any), or in the handle of the kettle, or elsewhere in the body of the kettle.

In an alternative embodiment, the appliance is a heated liquid dispenser comprising a pump and a flow heater. The heating element may be configured to heat a flowing liquid driven by the pump through the flow heater. The microcontroller unit may be configured to control the pump to (i) stop the flow of liquid through the flow heater; and/or (ii) varying the flow rate of the liquid through the flow heater. Additionally or alternatively, the microcontroller unit may be configured to control the heating element, for example to stop heating and/or to adjust the heating power.

Although examples of cordless kettles, corded kettles and heated liquid dispensers have been presented, those skilled in the art will recognize that the principles of the present invention may be applied to any liquid heating appliance for heating edible liquids, including (but not limited to): water, milk and beverages such as tea or coffee.

In one set of embodiments, some of the commands that a human user may issue to a liquid heating appliance via gestures may be (i) to increase the desired temperature of the liquid; (ii) (ii) reducing the desired temperature of the liquid or (iii) maintaining the temperature of the liquid at a desired level. In embodiments where the liquid heating appliance is a heated liquid dispenser, the command may additionally or alternatively be to set a desired volume of liquid to be heated by the flow heater.

Some examples of gestures that may be performed by one or more human hands and that may be detected by a gesture sensor include: moving upwards; moving downwards; moving to the left; moving to the right; and move in an arc shape. In some embodiments, movement of only one hand is sensed. In a set of overlapping embodiments, the motion of both hands may be sensed.

The gesture sensor and the microcontroller unit may have functional components to enable recognition of gestures and inference of issued commands. In particular, the gesture sensor may include a motion sensor and a gesture database. The gesture sensor may be configured to determine the recognized gesture by comparing the sensed motion to gestures stored in a gesture database. The microcontroller unit may comprise a command database and the microcontroller unit may be configured to acknowledge the command by means of the command database. Each stored gesture may be associated with at least one stored command in a command database.

In some embodiments, the appliance includes an audio/visual output for the liquid heating appliance. The audio/visual output may provide information to the user. In a subset of embodiments, the audio/visual output may be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) for displaying one or more of: (i) the desired temperature of the liquid; and (ii) the actual temperature of the liquid. At least in embodiments where the liquid heating appliance is a heated liquid dispenser, the LCD may optionally display a desired volume of liquid to be heated. Further, in one or more possibly overlapping embodiments, the LCD may optionally display status information relating to, for example, heating pattern or heating time and/or confirming the operating status of the appliance.

Drawings

Certain preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1A shows a side view of a cordless kettle with a base comprising a gesture sensor according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 1B shows a plan view of the cordless kettle shown in FIG. 1A;

figure 1C shows a side view of the base of the cordless kettle shown in figure 1A;

FIG. 1D illustrates a plan view of the base shown in FIG. 1C;

FIG. 2A shows a side view of a corded jug including a gesture sensor according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2B shows a plan view of the corded kettle shown in FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of an instant hot water dispenser with a gesture sensor according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

4A-4F illustrate different kinds of gestures that may be used to control a liquid heating appliance;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating various components of a gesture-controlled liquid heating appliance according to some embodiments; and

fig. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method of controlling a liquid heating appliance by means of a human hand gesture.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1A illustrates a cordless kettle 100 controllable by hand gestures according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The cordless kettle 100 includes a container 102 to receive an edible liquid, such as water. A heating element 104 is located in the cavity directly below the container 102 to heat the water. In other embodiments, the heating element 104 may be located within the container 102.

The cordless kettle 100 further comprises a base 110, the base 110 being capable of being coupled and uncoupled to the container 102. Base 110 receives power from a cable 112 that may be connected to a power source (not shown). When the base 110 is coupled with the container 102, the base 110 is capable of transmitting power from the power source to the heating element 104. Base 110 may be coupled with container 102 by means of cordless electrical connector 114 (shown in fig. 1C and 1D). The cordless electrical connector 114 may be configured to provide power from the base 110 to the heating element 104 of the container 102. Once the water is heated, container 102 may be removed from base 110 and moved to a location remote from base 110; for example, the container 102 may be moved away from the base 110 located in the kitchen area to a dining area for making a beverage such as tea or coffee using water.

The base 110 further includes a gesture sensor 106 for sensing hand gestures of a human hand. Some examples of such gestures are illustrated in fig. 4A-4F. Fig. 4A shows the upward movement of the hand. Fig. 4B shows the downward movement. Fig. 4C shows a leftward motion. Fig. 4D shows a rightward movement. Fig. 4E shows movement in an arc shape. Fig. 4F shows both hands moving in an arc shape. It is to be understood that the gesture examples illustrated in fig. 4A-4F are not exhaustive, and other types of recognizable gestures will be readily known or apparent to those skilled in the art.

The gesture sensor 106 is capable of sensing and classifying gestures. Each type of gesture may be associated with a unique command. As an example, the first command may be a command to start boiling water and the second command may be a command to stop boiling water. An upward movement of the hand may correspond to a first command, and a downward movement of the hand may correspond to a second command.

The gesture sensor 106 may be active when the cordless kettle 100 is connected to a power source. Continuing with the present example, if a person approaches the cordless kettle 100 and waves his hand upward, the gesture sensor 106 classifies the gesture and determines that a command to begin boiling water has been made. The gesture sensor 106 then sends an appropriate signal to a microcontroller unit (not shown in fig. 1A-1D) embedded in the base 110 of the cordless kettle 100. The microcontroller unit then adjusts the power supplied to the heating element 104 to execute the command. In this case, since the command is to start boiling water, the microcontroller unit regulates the power supply such that maximum power is provided to the heating element 104.

The command to start boiling water or stop boiling water is only an example and there is no limit to the number of types of commands that the gesture sensor 106 can sense or that the microcontroller unit can execute. For example, a temperature setting command may be made to increase the desired temperature of the liquid or decrease the desired temperature of the liquid. In this case, instead of commanding boiled water or commanding the cordless kettle 100 not to heat water, the temperature of the water may be more finely controlled. Upon receiving the temperature setting command, if the microcontroller unit senses that the water is below the desired temperature, it will energize the heating element 104 to heat the liquid; on the other hand, if the microcontroller unit senses that the water is above the desired temperature, it will de-energize the heating element 104.

Another command that may be issued to the cordless kettle 100 by means of the gesture sensor 106 and the microcontroller unit may be to maintain the temperature of any liquid in the container 102 at a desired level. When this command is issued, the microcontroller unit may alternately energize and de-energize the heating element 104. When the temperature of the liquid falls below a desired level, the microcontroller unit may energize the heating element 104. When the temperature of the liquid rises above a desired level, the microcontroller unit may de-energize the heating element 104. In this way, the microcontroller unit can maintain the temperature of the liquid at a desired level. Such "keep warm" operations are well known in the art.

The base 110 illustrated in fig. 1A-1D may also include an audio/visual output 108. In some embodiments, the audio/visual output 108 may be an LCD display. In one set of overlapping implementations, the audio/visual output 108 may be a speaker. The LCD display or the speaker may provide information to the human user, such as the current temperature of the liquid, or the desired temperature of the liquid, or the operating state of the cordless kettle 100.

Thus, the cordless kettle 100 of the first embodiment shown in fig. 1A-1D is capable of sensing a gesture made by a human hand and subsequently determining a command associated with the gesture. The microcontroller unit then adjusts the power supplied to the heating element 104 to execute the command. In this way, a gesture controlled kettle according to the first embodiment is provided.

Fig. 2A and 2B illustrate a corded jug 200 controllable by hand gestures according to a second embodiment of the invention. The corded kettle 200 includes a container 202 to receive an edible liquid, such as water. A heating element 204 is located in the cavity directly below the container 202 to heat the water. In other embodiments, the heating element 204 may be submerged within the container 202.

In the second embodiment, the corded kettle 200 does not include a base. The heating element 204 is directly connected to the power source via a cable 212. Without a base, the container 202 of the corded kettle 200 cannot be transported away from the power source as long as the cable 212 is plugged into the power source, meaning that heated water may need to be supplied while the corded kettle 200 remains close to the power source.

The corded jug 200 of the second embodiment also includes a gesture sensor 206 for sensing hand gestures of a human hand, as described above with respect to the gesture sensor 106 of the first embodiment, the description of the gesture sensor 106 also applies to the gesture sensor 206. However, in this embodiment, the gesture sensor 206 is located on the handle 214 of the corded kettle 200 or embedded in the handle 214, rather than in the base as is the case with the cordless kettle 100.

In the second embodiment, rather than positioning the audio/visual output 108 in the base 110 as in the first embodiment, the audio/visual output 208 is positioned on the handle 214 or embedded in the handle 214. The above description of the audio/visual output 108 of the first embodiment also applies to the second embodiment.

Thus, the corded kettle 200 of the second embodiment, as shown in fig. 2A-2B, is substantially identical to the cordless kettle 100 of the first embodiment, except that the corded kettle 200 of the second embodiment does not have a base and the gesture sensor 206 and the audio/visual output 208 of the corded kettle 200 are located on or embedded in the handle 214.

It is to be understood that the first and second embodiments are not limiting and that the invention includes a cordless kettle that incorporates one or more of a gesture sensor and an audio/visual output in the kettle handle.

Fig. 3 schematically illustrates an instant hot water dispenser 300 controllable by hand gestures of a human hand according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Unlike kettles that heat still water, the instant hot water dispenser 300 heats water or liquid flowing through a conduit. The flow rate of the water and the volume of water heated are controllable. As mentioned above, such a device for heating a flowing liquid is called a "flow heater".

The instant hot water dispenser 300 of fig. 3 includes a tank 302 containing water to be heated. A conduit or pipe 324 carries water from the tank 302 to a dispensing outlet 326, the dispensing outlet 326 here shown above a hand-held container such as a cup 350. The pump 322 is located between the tank 302 and the dispensing outlet 326 of the conduit 324. The pump 322 is configured to be able to (i) stop or start the flow of water between the tank 302 and the dispensing outlet 326; and/or (ii) increase or decrease the flow rate of water in the conduit 324 between the tank 302 and the dispensing outlet 326.

The heating element 304 is disposed in good thermal contact with the conduit 324. The heating element 304 may heat water flowing within the conduit 324 when power is supplied from a power source (not shown). In use, a human user may specify the volume of water to be heated and the temperature to which he desires the water to be heated.

The instant hot water dispenser 300 includes a microcontroller unit (MCU)320 configured to control a pump 322. The MCU 320 can control the volume of liquid dispensed into the cup 350 at the outlet 326 by controlling the pump 322. Specifically, the MCU 320 may control the pump 322 to start the flow of water. When the desired amount of water has been dispensed, the MCU 320 controls the pump 322 to stop the flow of water.

To vary the temperature to which the water is heated, the MCU 320 can control the pump 322 to set the flow rate of the water in the conduit 324. The faster the water flows in the conduit 324, the less time the water spends near the heating element 304. Thus, faster flow means that the water is heated for less time, thereby reducing the temperature to which the water is heated. Conversely, the slower the water flows in the conduit 324, the longer the water spends near the heating element 304. Thus, a slower flow means that the water is heated for more time, thereby increasing the temperature to which the water is heated.

The MCU 320 may also control the power provided to the heating element 304 to regulate the temperature to which the water in the conduit 324 is heated. To this end, the MCU 320 may switch the power to the heating element 304 on or off, or may decrease or increase the voltage provided to the heating element 304 to decrease or increase the temperature to which it is heated.

The instant hot water dispenser 300 further includes a gesture sensor 306 for sensing hand gestures of a human hand. Some examples of such gestures are illustrated in fig. 4A-4F, which have been described above. The gesture sensor 306 operates in the same manner as the

gesture sensor

106 or 206 described above with respect to fig. 1A-1D and 2A-2B.

As in the first and second embodiments, the gesture sensor 306 of the third embodiment is capable of classifying sensed gestures. Each type of gesture may be associated with a unique command. As an example, the first command may be a command to increase the amount of desired hot water and the second command may be a command to decrease the amount of desired hot water. An upward movement of the hand may correspond to a first command, and a downward movement of the hand may correspond to a second command.

Embodiments in which the appliance is a kettle may have no command for setting the amount of hot water to be heated. This is because, in a kettle, the volume of water heated is typically manually controlled by a human user pouring water into the kettle container.

Continuing with the present example, if a human approaches the instant hot water dispenser 300 and waves his hand upward, the gesture sensor 306 classifies the gesture as an upward motion of the hand. The gesture sensor 306 then sends an appropriate signal to the MCU 320, which signal represents the category of gesture sensed. The MCU 320 then determines that the command associated with the upward moving gesture is to increase the desired amount of water. The MCU 320 then controls the pump 322 and the heating element 304 such that a desired amount of water is dispensed into the cup 350 at a desired temperature.

Thus, for example, a gesture may correspond to the following command: (i) fill cup 350 to the brim (MCU 320 can be programmed to fill a typical cup with approximately 300ml of water) (ii) start dispensing water or (iii) stop dispensing water. If a gesture is made to fill a cup, a single gesture may cause the instant hot water dispenser 300 to fill the cup to the brim. If a gesture is made to start dispensing, a different gesture needs to be made to cause the instant hot water dispenser 300 to stop dispensing.

As in the previous embodiments, there is no limit to the number of gesture types that the gesture sensor can sense and classify, and there is no limit to the number of command types associated with each gesture type that the MCU can execute.

The instant hot water dispenser 300 may also have an LCD display 308 which may, for example, display the current desired water temperature and the current actual water temperature, as in the previous embodiment, or which may display the desired dispense volume or operating status. In general, the instant hot water dispenser 300 may be equipped with any number of audio/visual output components (such as, for example, speakers) to communicate with a human user.

Thus, the third embodiment includes an instant hot water dispenser 300 that can be gesture controlled by a human hand.

The cordless kettle 100 of the first embodiment, the corded kettle 200 of the second embodiment, and the instant hot water dispenser 300 of the third embodiment are merely examples. The appliance of the invention may be any appliance capable of heating any liquid, for example an edible liquid.

Fig. 5 illustrates the structure of a general gesture controlled liquid heating appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 6 shows a flow chart of a general method of controlling a liquid heating appliance by means of gestures. The two figures will now be described together.

The liquid heating appliance 500 comprises a gesture sensor 502, the gesture sensor 502 comprising a motion sensor 504 and a gesture database 506. The liquid heating appliance 500 further comprises an MCU 510 connected to the output 508 of the gesture sensor 502, and wherein the MCU 510 comprises a command database 512. The MCU 510 is configured to control the heating element power supply circuit 514 and the audio/visual output 516.

In use, the gesture sensor 502 monitors motion proximate to the implement 500 by means of the motion sensor 504 (step 602 of fig. 6). When a motion is sensed (step 604), the gesture sensor 502 compares the sensed motion to a library of gestures stored in a gesture database 506 (step 606). If the sensed motion corresponds to one of the pre-recorded gestures, the gesture sensor 502 identifies the particular gesture that has been made (step 608). The gesture sensor 502 then outputs a signal corresponding to the recognized gesture to the MCU.

The MCU 510 receives the signal from the gesture sensor 502 and compares the recognized gesture to a library of commands in a command database 512 (step 610). If the recognized gesture corresponds to one of the commands in the database, the MCU acknowledges that a particular command has been made (step 612). The MCU 510 then controls the heating element power circuit 514 and/or the audio/visual output 516 accordingly (step 614).

Thus, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that embodiments of the present invention provide a liquid heating appliance that can be gesture controlled by a human hand. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the specific embodiments described herein are merely exemplary and that many variations within the scope of the invention are contemplated.

Claims

1. A gesture-controlled liquid heating appliance comprising:

a gesture sensor;

a heating element;

a power supply circuit for the heating element; and

a microcontroller unit arranged to control the power supply circuit;

wherein:

the gesture sensor is configured to:

sensing an action;

determining a recognized gesture corresponding to the sensed motion; and

providing a signal corresponding to the recognized gesture to the microcontroller unit;

and is

The microcontroller unit is configured to:

receiving a signal from the gesture sensor corresponding to the recognized gesture;

confirming a command associated with the recognized gesture; and

adjusting power supplied to the heating element by controlling the power supply circuit in accordance with the command.

2. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the appliance is a kettle.

3. The appliance of claim 2, wherein the kettle is a cordless kettle comprising:

a liquid container; and

a base couplable with the liquid container;

wherein the base is connectable to an external power source; and is

The gesture sensor and/or the microcontroller unit are located in the base.

4. An appliance according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the kettle comprises a handle, wherein:

the gesture sensor and/or the microcontroller unit are located in the handle.

5. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the appliance is a heated liquid dispenser comprising a pump and a flow heater, wherein:

the heating element is configured to heat a flowing liquid driven by the pump through the flow heater, an

The microcontroller unit is configured to control the pump to: (i) stopping the flow of liquid through the flow heater; and/or (ii) varying the flow rate of liquid through the flow heater.

6. The appliance of any one of claims 1 to 3 and 5, wherein the command is one or more of:

increasing the desired temperature of the liquid;

lowering the desired temperature of the liquid; and

the temperature of the liquid is maintained at a desired level.

7. The appliance of claim 5, wherein the command comprises setting a desired volume of liquid to be heated by the flow heater.

8. The appliance of any of claims 1-3 and 5, wherein the gesture sensor is configured to sense one or more of the following gestures performable by one or more human hands:

moving upwards;

moving downwards;

moving to the left;

moving to the right; and

moving in an arc shape.

9. The appliance of any one of claims 1 to 3 and 5, wherein:

the gesture sensor comprises a motion sensor and a gesture database, and the gesture sensor is configured to determine the recognized gesture by comparing the sensed motion to gestures stored in the gesture database; and

the microcontroller unit comprises a command database and is configured to confirm the command by means of the command database, each stored gesture being associated with at least one stored command in the command database.

10. The appliance of any one of claims 1 to 3 and 5, further comprising an audio/visual output for the liquid heating appliance to provide information to a user.

11. The appliance of claim 10, wherein the audio/visual output comprises a liquid crystal display for displaying one or more of:

the desired temperature of the liquid;

the actual temperature of the liquid; and

the desired volume of liquid to be heated.

12. A method for gesture control of a liquid heating appliance, the method comprising:

sensing motion proximate to the liquid heating appliance;

determining a recognized gesture corresponding to the sensed motion;

confirming a command associated with the recognized gesture; and

adjusting the supply of power to the heating element of the liquid heating appliance in accordance with the command.