CN116670355A

CN116670355A - Garment care device with valve system

Info

Publication number: CN116670355A
Application number: CN202180087584.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李宝椿; M·阿迪亚; H·A·维斯帕杰特; 康嘉峻; 叶志斌
Original assignee: Koninklijke Philips NV
Current assignee: Fansongni Holdings Ltd
Priority date: 2020-12-04
Filing date: 2021-12-01
Publication date: 2023-08-29
Also published as: PL4229235T3; WO2022117688A1; EP4008832A1; EP4229235A1; EP4229235B1

Abstract

The invention relates to a garment care device (100) and a corresponding method comprising a steam generator (104) for generating steam, the steam generator comprising a steam outlet (105); a soleplate (108) comprising a steam vent (110) in fluid communication with the steam generator; a valve system (V) arranged between the steam outlet and the steam vent for regulating the steam flow between the steam outlet and the steam vent; a sensor (120) for measuring the speed of the garment care device; and a processing unit (122) for controlling the valve system as follows: a) The processing unit is adapted to control the valve system such that the steam flow is within a first steam rate range if the speed is within the first speed range; b) If the speed is within the second speed range, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system such that the steam flow is within the second steam rate range, wherein the first speed range and the second speed range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0, and wherein the first steam rate range and the second steam rate range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0.

Description

Garment care device with valve system

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a garment care device and in particular to controlling the delivery of steam from a garment care device.

The invention can be used in the field of clothing care.

Background

Garment care devices such as garment steamer and steam irons are commonly used to remove wrinkles from fabrics and garments. The wrinkles in such fabrics and garments may vary depending on their responsiveness to the de-wrinkling treatment of such garment care devices.

For example, particularly tough wrinkles may require repeated ironing over a relatively small area where the wrinkles are located.

It is well known that garment care devices have a so-called "steam boost" feature. Steam boosting corresponds to an increase in steam rate and is used, for example, to assist in removing particularly stubborn wrinkles. In some cases, steam pressurization may expedite such removal of wrinkles.

However, the user needs to manually trigger the steam boost during operation of the garment care device to increase the steam rate, which can make use of the device inconvenient.

EP 3 447187 Al discloses a garment care device comprising a sensor for generating an output signal indicative of the movement of the garment care device and a control unit coupled to the sensor. The control unit is adapted to identify and compare a characteristic of the output signal with a characteristic of the predefined displacement pattern, and to adjust at least one operating parameter of the garment care device based on a result of the comparison between the characteristic of the output signal and the characteristic of the predefined displacement pattern.

DE 20 2006 001242U1 discloses a garment care system comprising a steam generator with a steam outlet.

Disclosure of Invention

It is an object of the present invention to propose a garment care device which avoids or alleviates the above-mentioned problems.

The invention is defined by the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments are defined in the dependent claims.

To this end, the garment care device according to the invention comprises:

a steam generator for generating steam, the steam generator comprising a steam outlet,

a soleplate comprising a steam vent in fluid communication with the steam generator,

a valve system arranged between the steam outlet and the steam vent for regulating the steam flow between the steam outlet and the steam vent,

a sensor for measuring the speed of the garment care device,

a processing unit for controlling the valve system as follows:

a) If the speed is within the first speed range, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system, such that the steam flow is within the first steam rate range,

b) If the speed is within the second speed range, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system such that the steam flow is within the second steam rate range, wherein the first speed range and the second speed range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0, and wherein the first steam rate range and the second steam rate range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0.

In this way, steam is delivered at different steam rates depending on the speed of the garment care device. By having the steam rate responsive to the speed, manual adjustment of the steam rate can be avoided. Therefore, user convenience of the garment care device is improved.

In a non-limiting example, the second speed range is higher than the first speed range and the second steam rate range is higher than the first steam rate range. In this case, higher speed movement of the garment care device may indicate that more steam is needed to treat the fabric, such as to remove stubborn wrinkles.

For example, the first speed range is [15;135 cm/sec, and a first steam rate range of [30;99 g/min. In this example, the second speed range is [135;200 cm/sec, and a second steam rate range of [99;170 g/min.

In a non-limiting example, the garment care device may have more than one mode of operation, such as a normal mode and a maximum mode. It should be appreciated that the first range of steam rates and the second range of steam rates may have different ranges of values when the garment care device is in a given mode of operation.

For example:

-when the garment care device is in the normal mode, the first steam rate range is [30;99 g/min, and a second steam rate range of [99;170 g/min.

-when the garment care device is in the maximum mode, the first steam rate range is [100;160 g/min, and a second steam rate range of [160;170 g/min.

Preferably, the first speed range comprises a first speed sub-range and a second speed sub-range, the speed sub-ranges not overlapping each other, and wherein:

if the speed is within the first speed subrange, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system, such that the steam flow is within the first steam rate subrange,

if the speed is within the second speed subrange, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system such that the steam flow is within the second steam rate subrange.

This provides further control of the steam rate in accordance with the speed of the garment care device.

For example, the first speed subrange is [15;70 cm/sec, and a first steam rate subrange of [30;50 g/min. In this example, the second speed subrange is [70;135 cm/sec, and a second steam rate subrange of [50;99 g/min.

Likewise, it should be understood that the first steam rate subrange and the second speed subrange as described above may also have different value ranges when the garment care device is in different modes of operation.

Preferably, the valve system comprises a first controllable valve and a second controllable valve, the first controllable valve and the second controllable valve being arranged in fluid parallel, the first controllable valve and the second controllable valve each having an open state for letting through steam and a closed state for blocking steam.

Such a valve system enables a particularly convenient way of controlling the steam rate, since the steam rate can be adjusted via four selectable opening/closing arrangements of the first controllable valve and the second controllable valve.

Preferably, the first controllable valve and the second controllable valve have internal orifices of different diameters.

Such a design enables the valve system to deliver steam at various steam rates according to the respective speed ranges (or speed subranges in some examples) that are met by the measured speed of the garment care device.

Alternatively, the first controllable valve and the second controllable valve have internal orifices of the same diameter.

Preferably, the sensor is adapted to measure the speed in a horizontal plane.

If the floor is not horizontal, the speed determination algorithm may process one or more horizontal components of the movement. In some non-limiting examples, when the floor is not horizontal, the measurement speed or stop speed process is ignored.

The sensor is preferably adapted to measure the speed along the longitudinal axis of the soleplate.

The velocity along the longitudinal axis of the soleplate may correspond to a velocity in a direction of interest, the steam rate control being effectively based on the velocity in the direction of interest.

The horizontal plane comprises the x-direction and the y-direction and the velocity is preferably in the x-direction or in the y-direction or the velocity is a vector combination of the velocity component in the x-direction and the velocity component in the y-direction.

In one embodiment, a garment care device comprises:

a handle is arranged on the upper part of the handle,

a presence sensor, arranged in the handle, for detecting whether the user holds the handle,

if the presence sensor detects that the user is not holding the handle, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system such that the steam flow is 0 g/min.

This helps to improve the safety of the garment care device. Because the steam supply is stopped when the user is detected by the presence sensor that the handle is not being held (e.g., to adjust the garment or to change the steamed garment to a garment that has not been steamed yet), waste of steam and energy is also minimized or prevented.

Preferably, the presence sensor is a capacitive sensor. Such a capacitive sensor may be particularly suitable for detecting a user's grip or touch of a handle.

Preferably, the sensor is an acceleration sensor.

When the sensor comprises or is defined by an acceleration sensor (e.g. an accelerometer), the measured acceleration is converted into a velocity. Such conversion may be implemented with a central processing unit, for example, integrated with or separate from the sensor. In some examples, at least a portion of the computation to implement the conversion may be performed in the processing unit.

The processing unit is preferably further configured to control the temperature of the soleplate and/or the steam generator based on the speed measured by the sensor.

In addition to the control provided via the valve system, controlling the temperature of the steam generator provides another way to control the steam rate. Controlling the temperature of the soleplate in this way means that the heat to which the garment is exposed is based on the speed at which the garment care device is moved. This may assist in providing enhanced de-wrinkling conditions.

Preferably, the garment care device comprises a hand unit comprising a base plate and a sensor.

According to another aspect, there is provided a method of controlling steam generation in a garment care device, the method comprising:

a sensor for measuring the speed of the garment care device,

the method comprises the steps of controlling the valve system as follows:

a) If the speed is within the first speed range, the valve system is controlled such that the steam flow is within the first steam rate range,

b) If the speed is within the second speed range, the valve system is controlled such that the steam flow is within the second steam rate range, wherein the first speed range and the second speed range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0, and wherein the first steam rate range and the second steam rate range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0.

There is also provided a computer program product comprising instruction code which, when executed by a processing unit of the garment care device as described above, causes the garment care device to carry out the steps of the method as described above.

The embodiments described herein with respect to the garment care device apply to the method and computer program product, and the embodiments described herein with respect to the method and computer program product (e.g., control logic used in such computer program product) apply to the garment care device.

A detailed explanation and other aspects of the invention will be given below.

Drawings

Specific aspects of the invention will now be explained with reference to the embodiments described below and considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like parts or sub-steps are designated in like manner:

figure 1 depicts a garment care device according to one example,

fig. 2 depicts a portion of an exemplary garment care device, including a steam generator and valve system,

figure 3 depicts a hand unit of an exemplary garment care device,

figure 4 provides a process diagram of the speed and direction of movement of at least a portion of an exemplary garment care device,

FIG. 5 provides a flow chart of control logic for controlling an exemplary garment care device, and

fig. 6 schematically depicts a two-dimensional coordinate transformation for assessing velocity in a direction of interest.

Detailed Description

A garment care device is provided, comprising a steam generator for generating steam. The steam generator comprises a steam outlet. The soleplate comprises a steam vent in fluid communication with the steam generator. A valve system is disposed between the steam outlet and the steam vent for regulating steam flow between the steam outlet and the steam vent. The sensor measures a parameter related to movement of at least a portion of the garment care device, and the processing unit controls the valve system and/or the steam generator to control delivery of steam based on the measured parameter.

Fig. l depicts a garment care device 100 according to one example. The garment care device 100 comprises a water tank 102 for containing water. A steam generator 104 for generating steam is in fluid communication with the water tank 102.

The steam generator 104 comprises a steam outlet 105. The steam leaves the steam generator 104 via a steam outlet 105.

As shown in fig. 1, water is pumped from the water tank 102 to the steam generator 104 by a pump 106. In the steam generator 104, steam is generated from water pumped by the pump 106 to the steam generator 104. To this end, the steam generator 104 comprises a heating element (not visible), such as a resistive heating element, arranged to heat water therein to generate steam.

The garment care device 100 further comprises a bottom panel 108. The bottom panel 108 has or may be considered to define a surface for treating fabric.

As shown in FIG. 1, the bottom plate 108 defines a plurality of steam vents 110. The steam vent 110 is in fluid communication with the steam generator 104, as will be explained in more detail below. The fluid communication between the steam generator 104 and the steam vents 110 allows steam generated in the steam generator 104 to be supplied to the fabric adjacent to (e.g., in contact with) the soleplate 108.

The steam vents 110 may be arranged, for example, in a manner that distributes steam to different portions of the fabric.

Although fig. 1 shows a garment care device 100 having three steam vents, this is for illustration purposes only, and any suitable alternative number of steam vents 110 are contemplated, such as two, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, or more.

In the non-limiting example shown in fig. 1, the garment care device 100 comprises a deaerator arrangement 109 between the pump 106 and the steam generator 104. The deaerator arrangement 109 comprises a check valve 109A for preventing back flow from the steam generator 104 to the water tank 102, and a valve 109B for regulating the flow of water around the circuit back to the water tank 102, as shown.

The exemplary garment care device 100 shown in fig. 1 includes a base 112 and a hand unit 114. The base 112 includes the water tank 102, the steam generator 104, and the pump 106. The hand unit 114 includes a base plate 108 as shown. The hose cord 116 includes steam pipes (not visible) for conveying steam from the steam generator 104 to the steam vents 110. The hose cord 116 is preferably flexible to facilitate movement of the manual unit 114 while maintaining a supply of steam from the steam generator 104 to the steam vent 110.

Furthermore, the garment care device 100 need not include the base 112 and hand unit 114 assembly shown in fig. 1. In other examples, components of the garment care device 100 are included in the hand unit 114 and a separate base is not required.

More generally, the garment care device 100 includes a valve system V disposed between the steam outlet 105 and the steam vent 110. Valve system V regulates the flow of steam between steam outlet 105 and steam vent 110.

The valve system V preferably comprises a first controllable valve V1 and a second controllable valve V2 arranged in fluid parallel. The first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2 each have both an open state for allowing the steam to pass through and a closed state for blocking the steam.

Such a valve system V enables a particularly convenient way of controlling the steam rate, since the steam rate can be adjusted via four selectable opening/closing arrangements of the first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2. This example valve system V will be discussed in more detail below with reference to fig. 2.

In this regard, it should be noted that in the example shown in fig. 1, the valve system V is included in the base 112. However, this should not be seen as limiting. At least a portion of the valve system V (e.g., the first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2) may be positioned elsewhere in the garment care device 100.

More generally, the garment care device 100 includes a sensor 120 for measuring the speed of the garment care device 100 (in other words, measuring the speed of at least a portion of the garment care device 100 (e.g., the hand unit 114)).

The sensor 120 may include any suitable motion sensor for measuring the speed of at least a portion of the garment care device 100. For example, the sensor 120 includes an accelerometer, such as a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) accelerometer.

When the sensor 120 comprises or is defined by an accelerometer (e.g., a MEMS accelerometer), the measured acceleration is converted to a velocity. Such conversion may be implemented with a central processing unit, for example, integrated with or separate from the sensor 120. In some examples, at least a portion of the computation for the conversion may be performed in the processing unit 122. The use of such an accelerometer to measure the speed of at least a portion of the garment care device 100 (e.g., the hand unit 114 including the base 108) will be described in more detail below with reference to fig. 4-8 and 10.

The processing unit 122 included in the garment care device 100 is configured to control the valve system V as follows:

a) If the speed is within the first speed range, the processing unit 122 is adapted to control the valve system V, such that the steam flow is within the first steam rate range,

b) If the speed is within the second speed range, the processing unit 122 is adapted to control the valve system V such that the steam flow is within the second steam rate range.

The first and second speed ranges do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0, and the first and second steam rate ranges do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0.

In this manner, steam is delivered at different steam rates depending on the speed of at least a portion of the garment care device 100.

In a non-limiting example, the second speed range is higher than the first speed range and the second steam rate range is higher than the first steam rate range. In this case, higher speed movement of the garment care device 100 may indicate that more steam is needed to treat the fabric, such as to remove stubborn wrinkles.

For example, the first speed range is [15;135 cm/sec, and a first steam rate range of [30;99 g/min. In this example, the second speed range is [135;200 cm/sec, and the second steam rate range is [99;170 g/min.

For example:

when the garment care device is in the normal mode, the first steam rate range is [30;99 g/min, and a second steam rate range of [99;170 g/min.

When the garment care device is in the maximum mode, the first steam rate range is [100;160 g/min, and a second steam rate range of [160;170 g/min.

Preferably, the first speed range includes a first speed sub-range and a second speed sub-range, the two sub-ranges not overlapping each other, and:

if the speed is within the first speed subrange, the processing unit 122 is adapted to control the valve system V, such that the steam flow is within the first steam rate subrange,

if the speed is within the second speed subrange, the processing unit 122 is adapted to control the valve system V such that the steam flow is within the second steam rate subrange.

This provides further control of the steam rate in accordance with the speed of at least a portion of the garment care device 100.

Controlling the steam flow by the processing unit 122 sending a control signal to the valve system V provides an efficient way of adjusting the steam rate. In particular, the valve system V may enable vapor delivery of the garment care device 100 to be relatively quickly responsive to the speed of at least a portion 100 of the garment care device 100.

The processing unit 122 can be implemented in a variety of ways in software and/or hardware to perform the various functions required. A processor is one example of a processing unit 122 employing one or more microprocessors that may be programmed using software (e.g., microcode) to perform these functions. However, the processing unit 122 may be implemented with or without a processor, and may also be implemented as a combination of dedicated hardware for performing certain functions and a processor (e.g., one or more programmed microprocessors and associated circuitry) for performing other functions.

Examples of controller components that may be employed in various embodiments of the present disclosure include, but are not limited to, conventional microprocessors, application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), and Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs).

In some examples, the processing unit 122 is associated with one or more storage media, such as volatile and non-volatile computer memory, such as RAM, PROM, EPROM and EEPROM. The storage medium may be encoded with one or more programs that, when executed on one or more processors and/or controllers, perform the required functions. Various storage media may be fixed within processing unit 122 or may be transportable such that the one or more programs stored thereon are loaded into processing unit 122.

In the exemplary garment care device 100 shown in fig. 1, the processing unit 122 is included in the base 112, but other suitable locations for the processing unit 122 are contemplated, such as in the hand unit 114.

When the processing unit 122 is included in the base 112, the sensor 120 may be connected to the processing unit 122 in any suitable manner, such as via wiring (not visible) included in the hose line 116.

Preferably, the garment care device 100 includes a handle 124 for grasping by a user to assist the user in moving the base plate 108 relative to the fabric to be treated. Thus, the handle 124 may be included in the hand unit 114.

In addition to the sensor 120, the garment care device 100 preferably includes a presence sensor 126 disposed in the handle 124 for detecting whether the user is holding the handle 124. In this case, if the presence sensor 126 detects that the user is not holding the handle 124, the processing unit 122 is adapted to control the valve system V such that the steam flow is 0 g/min.

This helps to improve the safety of the garment care device 100. Because the steam supply is stopped when the user is detected by the presence sensor 126 that the handle 124 is not being held (e.g., to adjust a garment or to change a steamed garment to a garment that has not been steamed yet), waste of steam and energy is also minimized or prevented.

The presence sensor 126 may be of any suitable design or may be of any suitable type capable of detecting whether the user is holding the handle 124. For example, the presence sensor 126 includes or is defined by a touch sensor configured to detect a user's grip on the handle 124.

Preferably, the presence sensor 126 comprises or is a capacitive sensor. Such capacitive sensors may be particularly suitable for detecting a user's grip or touch on handle 124.

As shown in fig. 1, the presence sensor 126 is preferably disposed within the handle 124, on the handle 124, or near the handle 124. For example, the presence sensor 126 is arranged on the underside of the handle 124 such that a grip is detected when a user's hand and/or finger reaches the underside when gripping the handle 124. Alternatively, the presence sensor 126 is arranged to detect contact with the upper side of the handle 124.

In an example where the valve system V comprises a first controllable valve V1 and a second controllable valve V2, the processing unit 122 is adapted to control both the first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2 to be closed in order to limit the steam flow to 0 g/min.

The control of the steam rate based on speed may be considered an "automatic mode" of the garment care device 100. The presence sensor 126 (e.g., a capacitive sensor) may be considered to implement steam on/off control. The combination of inputs from the sensor 120 and the presence sensor 126 may be used, for example, to enhance steam stop performance in an automatic mode. An example of this is provided in table 1 below.

Table 1:

fig. 2 depicts the steam generator 104 and the valve system V of the example garment care device 100. In this non-limiting example, the valve system V includes a first controllable valve V1 and a second controllable valve V2 arranged in fluid parallel, or may be considered to be defined by a first controllable valve V1 and a second controllable valve V2 arranged in fluid parallel. The first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2 each have both an open state for allowing the passage of steam and a closed state for blocking the steam, as briefly described above with respect to fig. 1.

The arrow in fig. 2 points in the downstream direction towards the steam discharge opening 110.

The first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2 (e.g., electrically-operated valves, such as Combi AC electrically-operated valves) are built into the common valve housing VH and are thereby provided in separate components of the garment care device 100.

The first controllable valve V1 has a first internal orifice and the second controllable valve V2 has a second internal orifice. In a first example, the diameter of the first internal orifice is different from the diameter of the second internal orifice.

Such a design enables the valve system V to conveniently deliver steam at various steam rates according to the respective speed ranges or in some examples speed subranges satisfied by the measured speed of the garment care device 100.

For example, the first internal orifice has a diameter of 3mm and the second internal orifice has a diameter of 2mm. In such an example, various vapor rates that may be delivered are shown in table 2 below.

Table 2:

as shown in table 2 above, in a non-limiting example, when the device is operating in the normal mode, the "low steam" and "medium steam" correspond to values within the first steam rate subrange and the second steam rate subrange, respectively, described previously, when the speeds are in the first speed subrange and the second speed subrange, respectively.

In addition to controlling the configuration of the first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2, the steam rate may also be set according to, for example, the selected temperature of the steam generator 104.

The higher steam generator 104 temperature may be set for the maximum mode and the lower steam generator 104 temperature may be set for the normal mode. Such maximum mode and normal mode may be user selectable, for example, via a user interface included in the garment care device 100.

More generally, in at least some examples, the processing unit 122 is configured to control heating elements included in the steam generator 104. Such control of the heating element by the processing unit 122 is, for example, responsive to movement (e.g., speed) measured by the sensor 120 of at least a portion of the garment care device 100 and/or responsive to user selection entered via a user interface included in the garment care device 100.

Alternatively, the first controllable valve V1 and the second controllable valve V2 each have an internal orifice of the same diameter. For example, the diameter of both the first and second internal orifices is 2mm or 3mm.

This makes the steam rate control system simpler, albeit with less selectable steam rate than in a scenario where the first internal orifice of the first controllable valve V1 is different from the diameter of the second internal orifice of the second controllable valve V2.

Fig. 3 provides a perspective view of the hand unit 114 of the garment care device 100. In this non-limiting example, the sensor 120 and the presence sensor 126 are assembled into the handle 124 of the hand unit 114.

More generally, by locating the sensor 120 and/or the presence sensor 126, if the presence sensor 126 is included in the handle 126 in the garment care device 100, the risk of damaging such components, for example, due to heat from the steam generator 104 or due to water leakage from the water tank 102, may be reduced.

A printed circuit board assembly 128 including a sensor 120 (e.g., a MEMS accelerometer) is mounted in the handle 124 within the first housing portion 130.

The printed circuit board assembly 128 also includes electronics included in the presence sensor 126. In this example, the presence sensor 126 includes a capacitive sensor. The capacitive flexure 132 of the capacitive sensor is built into the top cover 137 of the handle 124. The capacitive flex 132 is disposed over the second housing portion 134, the second housing portion 134 surrounding the printed circuit board assembly 128 with the first housing portion 130. An elastomeric or rubber material 136 is also included to fill the air gap that would otherwise exist within the top cap 137 of the handle 124.

Fig. 4 provides a schematic illustration of the processing of the movement speed and direction of at least a portion of the garment care device 100. In this non-limiting example, the sensor 120 comprises or is defined by an accelerometer, in particular a MEMS accelerometer. In this non-limiting example, raw data from the MEMS accelerometer is processed via firmware.

The raw data from the MEMS accelerometer in this example is a 3-axis digital linear accelerometer output, as indicated by arrow 146 in fig. 4. The firmware typically retrieves the newly acquired raw acceleration data from the MEMS accelerometer at 10 millisecond sampling intervals.

Block 148 in fig. 4 represents smoothing the raw data via mobile averaging of multiple samples (e.g., 8 samples). The moving average data is used as input data for further processing. In particular, as indicated by the arrow 150, the data of the moving average is transmitted in a block 152 to an algorithm for speed detection and ironing stroke direction detection.

Arrow 154 represents the speed detection output. Arrow 156 represents the ironing stroke direction detection output.

The algorithm for detecting the speed will now be explained. The following should be considered as a non-limiting example, and it should be emphasized that the speed may be determined in any suitable manner from the data collected by the sensor 120.

In this non-limiting example, the moving average data is integrated with velocity in discrete time and further integrated with position. The working principle of discrete numerical integration is as follows:

new speed = previous speed + acceleration a time step, where the time step corresponds to the time it takes for the firmware to retrieve and process the newly acquired data, typically 10 milliseconds.

The accelerometer may report values of millig, where g is the gravitational acceleration of the earth-9.8 m/s ² . The values of speed and position in the firmware are in cm/sec and cm. Such use of non-s.i. units in this case facilitates the use of integer arithmetic.

The firmware may estimate the approximate tilt of the hand unit 114 based on the acceleration seen in the z-direction. This is used to indicate that the hand unit 114 is not horizontal in the dataThe integrator is disabled, in other words, the count is stopped and its value is reset. This helps to prevent accumulation of a relatively large integrated value due to a relatively large acceleration due to gravity and inclination. Acceleration due to earth gravity is 9.8m/s ² Whereas the typical acceleration due to the user's ironing stroke during high force ironing is only-2 m/s ² . Thus, any portion of the gravitational acceleration that cannot be filtered out (whether by tilt detection or by filtering) may be detrimental to accurate velocity estimation.

Thus, more generally, the sensor is preferably adapted to measure the speed in a horizontal plane.

If the floor 108 is not horizontal, the velocity algorithm may work on one or more horizontal components of the movement. In some non-limiting examples, when the floor 108 is not horizontal, the measurement speed is ignored or the speed process is stopped.

For example, the method may employ one or more additional decision trees to reduce or eliminate the effects of gravitational acceleration.

Returning to this exemplary velocity algorithm, the firmware may model the accelerometer/tracker as a unit mass, with a "spring" that applies a restoring force to "track" or "follow" the position of the accelerometer. Eigenfrequency of the mass spring systemWhere f is the eigenfrequency, m is the mass, and k is the spring constant) determines the hysteresis (in model space) of the mass following accelerometer. The more loose the spring, the weaker the tracking aggressiveness. Table 3 below summarizes some of the advantages and disadvantages associated with the selection of model springs.

Table 3:

in a specific non-limiting example, the eigenfrequency is selected to be 0.1Hz. This may provide a reasonable trade-off between the advantages and disadvantages summarized in table 3 with respect to typical movements performed when ironing. The parameter may be fine tuned, for example to different eigenfrequencies.

Dampers may also be included in the model. Such a damper helps to prevent the dynamics of the model itself from affecting the estimated speed. For example, a damping ratio of 0.707 may help prevent peaking at the resonant frequency of the tracker without significantly slowing down the tracker:

here, 2ζ=2×0.707=1.414, where ζ is a damping ratio

This way of calculating the damper r maintains the damping ratio independent of the selected eigenfrequency (which may vary depending on the selected spring rate/looseness).

Non-limiting examples of the results of the algorithm for speed measurement are provided in table 4 below.

Table 4:

the processing unit 122 is configured to adjust the steam rate based on the measured speed, as described previously. Table 5 below provides one non-limiting example detailing the application of speed detection in regulating steam rate.

Table 5:

in the case of a pressurized steam generator ironing system, reiterate, in addition to using a valve system V comprising a first controllable valve V1 and a second controllable valve V2, the steam rate increase or decrease can also be controlled via the set temperature of the steam generator 104.

Fig. 5 provides a flowchart of at least a portion of an exemplary method of controlling steam generation in the garment care device 100. Block 200 of the control logic shown in fig. 5 corresponds to the sensor 120 (e.g., MEMS accelerometer described above) detecting movement of the garment care device 100 and processing the data to provide an estimate of the speed.

Block 202 corresponds to presence sensor 126 (e.g., a capacitive sensor) detecting whether a user is holding handle 124. Block 202 may include processing raw data collected from, for example, a capacitive sensor.

Decision block 204 corresponds to whether the user is holding or touching handle 124 as detected by presence sensor 126. If the answer to decision block 204 is "N" (i.e., NO), then steam output is stopped in block 206. If the answer to the decision block is "Y" (i.e., yes), then the steam output is controlled in block 206 based on the measured/estimated velocity, as previously described.

Table 6 below provides an overview of the control logic for the steam output based on the different states according to another non-limiting example.

Table 6:

in this example, the control logic operates as follows:

1. the user moves the iron.

2. In block 200, the firmware processes raw data from the sensor 120 (e.g., MEMS accelerometer) using a function that checks for motion detection status. The steam output states are "REST" (in which no steam is generated), "short_stream" (in which the steam rate is set to "low steam"), "medium_stream" (in which the steam rate is set to "normal steam"), and "long_stream" (in which the steam rate is set to "high steam").

3. In block 202, the firmware processes raw data from the presence sensor 126 (e.g., capacitive sensor) using the function of the grip or touch of the inspection handle 124. If the handle 124 is detected as being held/touched, the control logic will continue to flow down to the subsequent processing of the steam generator 104 control and/or the steam rate output control in block 206. If no touch is detected, the detected motion state will be reset to REST so that no steam is generated and flow down to subsequent processing in block 206.

4. In block 206, the firmware processes the boiler control and steam rate output control based on the results of 3.

When the detected motion state transitions, a delay is preferably added, for example in the order of 1 to 2 seconds, in which the current state is maintained. This helps to prevent switching too frequently between setting thresholds.

More generally, the velocity is preferably in the x-direction, or in the y-direction, or the velocity is a vector combination of a velocity component in the x-direction and a velocity component in the y-direction.

In at least some examples, absolute speed may be used as the speed. For example, the absolute velocity may be calculated as a Pythagorean sum.

The components in the x-direction and the y-direction may be calculated by integrating and filtering the raw values from the sensor 120 (e.g., accelerometer).

Combining the components in the x-direction and the y-direction allows the coordinate axes to be rotated to obtain any combination of x and y, depending on the use case.

Although the movement of the hand unit 114 will tend to be in the horizontal plane, the same principle can also be used to combine the components in the z-direction so that the calculation can be simplified by aligning the z-axis of the sensor with the z-axis of the base plate and then ignoring it in the velocity estimation calculation, as previously described.

The estimated velocity is along x (v _x ) And y direction (v) _y ) As reported by sensor 120 (e.g., accelerometer). Any direction in the x-y plane can be designated as the direction of interest by a two-dimensional coordinate transformation, for example for steam rate control purposes.

Along the direction of interest (v _i ) And a direction (v) orthogonal to the direction of interest _o ) The speed of (2) is estimated as:

v _i ＝v _x cos(α)+v _y sin(α)

V _O ＝-V _x sin(α)+v _y cos(α)

wherein alpha is v _i And v _x The angle between them is shown in fig. 6.

The sine and cosine coefficients may be pre-evaluated, for example at compile time, rather than at run time, to perform the coordinate transformation.

The adaptive threshold rules may then be applied to the calculated direction of interest, rather than the pure x or y directions.

Some cases of this coordinate transformation are listed in table 7 below.

Table 7:

the above-described embodiments are merely illustrative and are not intended to limit the technical methods of the present invention. Although the invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that the technical method of the invention may be modified or equivalently replaced without departing from the scope of the claims of the invention. In particular, although the invention has been described on the basis of a garment care device, it can be applied to any household appliance having a steam generator, such as a steam vacuum cleaner. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. Any reference signs in the claims shall not be construed as limiting the scope.

Claims

1. A garment care device (100), comprising:

a steam generator (104) for generating steam, the steam generator comprising a steam outlet (105),

a soleplate (108) comprising a steam vent (110) in fluid communication with the steam generator,

a valve system (V) arranged between the steam outlet and the steam vent for regulating the steam flow between the steam outlet and the steam vent,

a sensor (120) for measuring the speed of the garment care device,

a processing unit (122) for controlling the valve system as follows:

a) If the speed is within a first speed range, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system such that the steam flow is within a first steam rate range,

b) If the speed is within a second speed range, the processing unit is adapted to control the valve system such that the steam flow is within a second steam rate range, wherein the first speed range and the second speed range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0, and wherein the first steam rate range and the second steam rate range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0.

2. The garment care device (100) of claim 1, wherein the first speed range comprises a first speed sub-range and a second speed sub-range, the speed sub-ranges not overlapping each other, and wherein:

the processing unit (122) is adapted to control the valve system (V) such that the steam flow is within a first steam rate subrange if the speed is within the first speed subrange,

the processing unit (122) is adapted to control the valve system (V) such that the steam flow is within a second steam rate subrange if the speed is within the second speed subrange.

3. The garment care device (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the valve system (V) comprises a first controllable valve (V1) and a second controllable valve (V2), the first controllable valve (V1) and the second controllable valve (V2) being arranged in fluid parallel, each having an open state for letting through steam and a closed state for blocking the steam.

4. A garment care device (100) according to claim 3, wherein the first controllable valve (V1) and the second controllable valve (V2) have internal orifices of different diameters.

5. The garment care device (100) according to claim 4, wherein:

if the speed is within the first speed range, only the first controllable valve (V1) is in an open state, or

If the speed is within the first speed range, only the second controllable valve (V2) is in an open state, or

If the speed is within the second speed range, both the first controllable valve (V1) and the second controllable valve (V2) are in an open state.

6. A garment care device (100) according to claim 3, wherein the first controllable valve (V1) and the second controllable valve (V2) have internal orifices of the same diameter.

7. The garment care device (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sensor (120) is adapted to measure the speed in a horizontal plane.

8. The garment care device (100) according to claim 7, wherein the sensor (120) is adapted to measure the speed along a longitudinal axis of the soleplate (108).

9. The garment care device (100) according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the horizontal plane comprises an x-direction and a y-direction, the speed being in the x-direction or the y-direction, or the speed being a vector combination of a speed component in the x-direction and a speed component in the y-direction.

10. The garment care device (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the garment care device comprises:

a handle (124),

a presence sensor (126) arranged in the handle for detecting whether the handle is held by a user,

the processing unit (122) is adapted to control the valve system (V) such that the steam flow is 0 g/min if the presence sensor detects that the user does not hold the handle.

11. The garment care device (100) according to claim 10, wherein the presence sensor (126) is a capacitive sensor.

12. The garment care device (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sensor (120) is an acceleration sensor.

13. The garment care device (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the processing unit (122) is configured to control the temperature of the soleplate (108) and/or the steam generator (104) based on the speed measured by the sensor (120).

14. The garment care device (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the garment care device comprises a hand unit (114) comprising the base plate (108) and the sensor (120).

15. A method of controlling steam generation in a garment care device (100), the garment care device (100) comprising:

a sensor (120) for measuring the speed of the garment care device,

the method comprises the step of controlling the valve system as follows:

a) If the speed is within a first speed range, controlling the valve system such that the steam flow is within a first steam rate range,

b) If the speed is within a second speed range, the valve system is controlled such that the steam flow is within a second steam rate range, wherein the first speed range and the second speed range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0, and wherein the first steam rate range and the second steam rate range do not overlap each other and both are strictly greater than 0.