Henkel Ag & Company, Kgaa

Henkel IP Holding Gmbh

Lars Zuechner

Arnd Kessler

Alexander Mueller

Georg Wawer

Christian Nitsch

Robert Ruiz Hernandez

Thomas Weber

Johannes Zipfel

Thomas Juckel

Clemens Arth

Nadine Franke

Wolfgang Wick

Ingo Hardacker

Peter Schmiedel

Christina Roeleke

Tatiana Schymitzek

Lucile Bonnin

Hans Georg Knuebel

Slavoljub Barackov

Rayko Enz

Volker Hoppe

Nadine Goetz

Thomas Rechenbach

Rudolf Lessmann

A device for use in a household appliance is disclosed. The device includes at least one casing configured to be placed in a treatment chamber of a household appliance. The casing includes at least one output module configured to dispense at least one preparation into the treatment chamber of the household appliance and/or to trigger an output and at least one sensor module configured to determine sensor data characteristic of the condition of the treatment chamber of the household appliance () and/or of the device. The sensor module includes at least one acceleration sensor, wherein the sensor data at least partially represents data determined by the at least one acceleration sensor. The dispensing and/or triggering of the output of the preparation by the at least one output module is based at least partially on the sensor data.

Apparatus with a discharge module and sensor module

Among other things, a procedure is revealed which comprises the following: Detecting one or more pieces of air humidity information indicative of a relative humidity within a treatment room of an air-conducting domestic appliance, wherein the one or more pieces of air humidity information are detected by means of at least one air humidity sensor; and determining drying information indicative of a time of an end of a drying process performed by the air-conducting domestic appliance, wherein the drying information is determined based on the one or more pieces of air humidity information. Also disclosed are a device for executing and/or controlling this process, a system with one or more devices for executing and/or controlling this process and a computer program for executing and/or controlling this process by a processor.

Method and device for an air-guiding domestic appliance

Among other things, a method is disclosed which includes the following: acquiring at least one set of acceleration data indicative of a progression of measured acceleration values; determining status data indicative of a process step within a cleaning program performed by a dishwasher; outputting or causing the output of the determined status data. Further revealed is a device for executing and/or controlling this method, a system with one or more devices for executing and/or controlling this method and a computer program for executing and/or controlling this method by employing a processor.

Monitoring of a washing program of a dishwasher machine

A method is disclosed comprising inter alia a method comprising: acquiring at least one set of sensor data, wherein the at least one set of sensor data is acquired from at least one sensor; determining evaluation data indicative of a condition of a treatment chamber of a household appliance, wherein the evaluation data is determined based at least in part on the acquired set of sensor data; and outputting or causing the output of the determined evaluation data. Furthermore, a device for executing and/or controlling this method, a system with several devices for controlling and/or executing this method and a computer program for executing and/or controlling this method are disclosed.

Determining a state of a domestic appliance

A method performed by one or more devices includes determining an information item indicative of at least one parameter affecting the treatment of a textile with the information item being detected by an information carrier of the textile () and/or a cleaning device (), or a cleaning agent () and the textile (), or the cleaning agent () and the cleaning device, or the cleaning agent () and the textile () and the cleaning device and the information carrier comprises a package, a label, an NFC chip or a combination thereof, determining at least one treatment parameter of the textile based at least in part on the determined information item, and outputting or triggering the outputting of the at least one determined treatment parameter.

Method for determining treatment parameters via an information carrier

A retrofittable sensor unit for controlling a dosing device of a cleaning machine includes an acquisition module having at least one sensor for capturing measurement variables, at least one monitoring unit for determining a current degree of soiling of articles for cleaning on the basis of the captured measurement variables, a communication unit configured to communicate with at least one dosing device, in particular to transmit a dosing command to at least one dosing device depending on the current degree of soiling of the articles for cleaning. The retrofittable sensor unit can be arranged separately from the dosing device.

Retrofittable sensor unit for controlling a dosing device

A device for use in a household appliance is disclosed, the device comprising: at least one casing, wherein the casing is configured to be placed in a treatment chamber of a household appliance; wherein the casing comprises at least one output module, which is configured to dispense at least one preparation into the treatment chamber of the household appliance and/or to trigger an output; and at least one sensor module, which is configured to determine sensor data characteristic of the condition of the treatment chamber of the household appliance and/or of the device; wherein the sensor module comprises at least one sensor, wherein the sensor data at least partially represents information determined by employing the at least one sensor; wherein the data determined by sensor is at least partially indicative of a load condition of the treatment chamber of the household appliance.

Device comprising an output module and/or a sensor module

A method for the dosing of cleaning agents in cleaning machines, including the steps: receiving control information items, wherein the control information items are dependent on information about a cleaning machine; determining the progress of a cleaning operation; dosing of cleaning agent depending on the received control information items and the determined progress of the cleaning operation; wherein the information about the cleaning machine can be determined via a sensor-based automatic recognition.

Method for the dosing of cleaning agents

In particular, a method performed by one or more devices is disclosed, the method comprising: obtaining an intensity information item representative of a spectral image resulting from a soiling of a textile and/or from at least one part of a textile; determining at least one output variable dependent on the soiling of the textile and/or at least one property of the textile from the intensity information item, wherein the output variable is determined by employing an adaptive evaluation algorithm, in particular an artificial neural network, wherein parameters of the adaptive evaluation algorithm are calibrated based on a plurality of training cases; outputting or triggering outputting of the at least one output variable. Furthermore, a device and a system for performing the subject method is disclosed.

Detecting an impurity and/or a property of at least one part of a textile

A method performed by one or more devices is disclosed. The method includes obtaining a geometry information item representative of a spatial location of a plurality of points of a surface of a textile (), determining at least one treatment parameter for treating the textile () at least partially based on a geometry information item, and outputting or triggering an output of the at least one treatment parameter.

Determination of treatment parameters via a geometry information item of a textile

In particular, a method performed by one or more devices is disclosed, the method comprising: obtaining a first intensity information item () representative of a spectral image () resulting from an soiling () of a textile (); obtaining a second intensity information item () representative of a spectral image () characteristic of at least one property of at least one part of the textile (); determining at least one treatment parameter, wherein the determination of the treatment parameter takes place dependent both on the composition of the soiling () from the first intensity information item () and on the at least one property of at least the part of the textile () from the second Intensity information item (); and outputting or triggering an outputting of the at least one treatment parameter.

Method and device for ascertaining a treatment parameter of a textile using an impurity composition and a textile property

Among other things, a method is disclosed which comprises the following: acquiring at least one set of acceleration data indicative of a progression of measured acceleration values; determining at least one set of evaluation data at least partially based on the acquired acceleration data, wherein determining the evaluation data comprises determining whether one or more characteristic actions have been performed by a user, and if so, performing the following: storing an action data representing the one or more actions that is included in the determined evaluation data or is at least a part of the determined evaluation data; and outputting or causing the output of the determined evaluation data. A device for executing and/or controlling this method, a system with one or more devices for executing and/or controlling this method and a computer program for executing and/or controlling this method by a processor are further disclosed.

Monitoring of loading and/or unloading of dishwasher machines

A method for setting a time of a release of a cleaning agent during a cleaning cycle in a household appliance includes obtaining an evolution over time of a local parameter inside the appliance, the local parameter comprising an acceleration induced by the cycle or a temperature inside the appliance; obtaining reference patterns of evolutions of the local parameter during a cycle comprising different cleaning steps including a step adapted for releasing the cleaning agent at a predetermined adapted time; comparing the evolution of the local parameter to the reference patterns and identifying a cleaning step within the cycle when a similarity between a reference pattern and the evolution is above a predetermined threshold, and setting the release of the agent at the predetermined adapted time within the identified cleaning step when the identified step corresponds to a step adapted for releasing the agent.

Method for setting a time of a release of a cleaning agent during a cleaning cycle in a household appliance

The disclosure relates to a method including capturing and/or obtaining a reservoir information item at a dispensing module for a detergent and/or cleaning agent, with the reservoir information item representative of at least one property of a reservoir for the detergent and/or cleaning agent, an application specification for the detergent and/or cleaning agent contained in the reservoir, and/or a property of the detergent and/or cleaning agent contained in the reservoir, and the reservoir is connected or connectable to the dispensing module. The method further includes determining and/or causing the determination of a dispensing control information item depending at least in part on the reservoir information item, with the dispensing control information item configured to at least partly control the dispensing of the detergent and/or cleaning agent by the dispensing module.

Dosing method for a dispensing module

A method is provided for monitoring a supply of a cleaning agent. The method includes performing a check of whether the supply of the cleaning agent is likely to be used up. The check is based, at least in part, on quantity information which is representative of an amount of the cleaning agent in a user's supply and on consumption information which is indicative of the user's expected consumption behavior with respect to the cleaning agent. Further, a device is provided for performing the method for monitoring the supply of the cleaning agent.

Growing community of inventors

Langenfeld, Germany

Lars Zuechner