Whirlpool Corporation

Andre O Pires

Richard A McCoy

Matthew Peter Ebrom

Mark Eugene Glotzbach

Christopher S Moes

Joel Adam Luckman

Matthew J Nibbelink

Gale Richard Horst

Rodrigo C Castaldo

Randy L Jeffery

Anthony E Jenkins

Patrick J Glotzbach

Wallace J Elston, Iii

Andrew D Whipple

Nelson J Ferragut

Randy A Voss

Eduardo K Yamakawa

Cesario Zimmerman

A substance communicating device for use in conjunction with an appliance or a system including an appliance and a substance communicating device. The substance communicating device has a service connector component operably engageable with a service connector component of the appliance to permit the communication of a substance between the appliance and the substance communicating device. Information related to the substance can be communicated to the appliance and used to affect the physical cycle of operation of the appliance.

Substance communicating device with activatable connector and cycle structure

A network includes a client and an appliance configured to perform an operation cycle on an article using a consumable. Information associated with the consumable can be exchanged between the appliance and the client across the network.

Appliance and a consumable holder in a network

A consumable holder for use in an appliance configured to perform an operation cycle related to a consumable in the consumable holder, in response to a cycle structure, has or is enabled to acquire information about the cycle structure. The information about the cycle structure can be communicated to the appliance for use by the appliance to change the cycle structure and thereby change the operation cycle related to the consumable.

Consumable holder with a cycle structure for an appliance

A consumable holder is provided for use in an appliance configured to perform an operation cycle related to a consumable in the consumable holder. The consumable holder has or is enabled to acquire information associated with itself or the consumable, and further includes a converter configured to transform the information to a cycle structure. Thus, the consumable holder can communicate with a cycle engine to create or modify a cycle structure for use by the appliance to perform an operation cycle related to the consumable.

Consumable holder with converter

A smart coupler for connecting two networks has a processor, a memory, a means to connect to a first network, a means to connect to a second network, and a power source. The first network has a client, and the memory has information which must be transferred to the client to enable the client to be usefully operable relative to the second network.

Smart coupling device

A network includes a smart coupler having a processor, a memory with software, and a power source to energize the processor and the memory, and an appliance configured to perform an operation on a physical article. The appliance is one that consumes at least some of a resource in performing the operation. The network also includes a source of information about the resource. The smart coupler is in communication with the appliance and the source, and the processor and memory operate to request a change to the operation of the appliance in response to a resource parameter or a request communicated by the source.

Network for changing resource consumption in an appliance

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Andre O Pires