Whirlpool Corporation

Randell Lee Jeffery

Kevin Michael Chase

Ronald L Voglewede

Matthew J Nibbelink

Patrick J Boarman

Darryl C Bodine

Brian K Culley

Tony Lee Koenigsknecht

Eric Joseph Schuh

Rahul Wadke

James R Chisholm

Tyler Douglas Mathews

Kevin Dolezan

Fernando A Ribas Junior

Vinod Jadhav

Shekhar D Jirafe

Richard A McCoy

James William Kendall

Michael S Seeley

Marcus Roland Fischer

Andrew David Litch

Jordan Robert Fountain

Peter Richmond

Ronald Wayne Guess

Anderson Bortoletto

Larry T Bashark

Michael Edward Stagg

Brandon Michael Dawson

Vincent P Anderson

Jonathan C Valentine

Jill C Moeller

Jordan Cohen

Andrew Gilgallon

Dan Medore

Surisack Phouapanya

Martin P Winik

Rodrigo Alexandre Sigwalt

Amy Lauren Siwek

Ryan Dean McCollum

Matthew Russel Schwartz

Brian Wendling

Rahul Mehta

Vashishtha Kadchhud

Greg Hatch

Morounkeji Fatunde

Kitman Chan

A cooking appliance includes a heating surface and an interface console elevated above the heating surface. The interface console includes a viewing window forming an outer surface and an inner surface, opposite the outer surface, and a display device configured to transmit light through the viewing window. The display device is aligned with the viewing window in a spaced-apart configuration forming an insulating passage between the display device and the interior surface. An air intake is in connection with the insulating passage. The insulating passage provides an air flow path extending from a ventilation passage of the cooking appliance, and the ventilation passage extends away from the heating surface and communicates environmental air to the insulating passage.

User interface display for cooking appliance

A household appliance includes a housing; a treating chamber located within the housing and having an access opening; a closure element movable relative to the access opening between opened and closed positions to selectively provide access to the treating chamber through the access opening; a controller associated with the housing and implementing a treating cycle on at least one item in the treating chamber; and a human-machine interface. The HMI includes a first portion associated with the housing and a second portion associated with the closure element. The first portion includes non-touch sensitive indicia. The second portion includes an electrically conductive layer having a touch-sensitive area corresponding to the indicia of the first portion and is arranged to be in register with a corresponding selection area when the closure element is in the closed position.

Household appliance closure element with touch interface

A display apparatus for a cooking appliance includes a first substrate. The first substrate forms an interface surface of the interface console and is designed to be exposed to a heat source of a cooking appliance. A display device is configured to transmit light through the first substrate and is aligned with the first substrate in a spaced-apart configuration. The spaced-apart configuration forms an insulated passage with an interior cavity between the display device and an interior surface of the first substrate. An air intake is in connection with the insulated passage. The interior cavity provides an air flow path extending from an inlet positioned away from the heat source and draws environmental air from the inlet and through the insulated passage.

An apparatus, system, and method of illumination relative to an appliance. A programmable controller activates one or more light sources automatically based on a trigger or sensed condition. The controller dynamically adjusts the one or more light sources in a closed loop fashion.

Controlled, dynamic lighting of interior of appliance

An apparatus, method, and system for automatically turning off an electrically powered actuator in a refrigeration mechanism upon detection of an unwanted condition. In one aspect of the invention, the electrically powered actuator can be the motor of an ice maker/dispenser. The detection can be accomplished by sensing the presence of an object along or near an ice dispensing pathway from the ice maker/dispenser. The unwanted condition could be the presence of the object for more than a preset time period. This would allow to distinguish between an unwanted object such as silverware or clogged ice versus a wanted object such as flowing ice cubes, crushed ice, or shaved ice.

Apparatus, method, and system for automatically turning off an actuator in a refrigeration device upon detection of an unwanted condition

An appliance is configured to establish a communications link through the appliance between a user and a service representative as part of installing, diagnosing and servicing the appliance.

Product service system and method

A refrigerator includes a sensing system for detecting a level and quality of ice cubes in an ice cube storage bin. The sensing system employs a digital image capture device that is coupled to a digital image analyzing system which scans digital images of the ice cube storage bin captured by the digital image capture device to determine a level of ice cubes in the ice cube storage bin. Digital images of the ice cubes are contrasted against a reference image which provides a point of comparison for determining the level of ice cubes in the ice cube storage bin and controlling ice production cycles of the ice maker. The sensing system also analyzes edge portions of the ice cubes to determine ice cube quality.

Ice level and quality sensing system employing digital imaging

A refrigerator includes a dispenser having a dispenser well, a control for regulating a product dispensing operation, and a select fill sensor system for automatically initiating and terminating the dispensing operation. The sensor system includes a touch sensor mounted in the dispenser well and configured to sense the selection of a desired product level. A feedback array indicates the product level selected and tracks the product level within a container during the dispensing operation. The control automatically initiates a product dispensing operation based on the selection of a product level and the presence of the container in the dispenser well, and automatically terminates the dispensing operation when the product level in the container reaches the selected product level. In this manner, a hands-free dispenser is provided that can be utilized regardless of the shape or size of container utilized.

Select fill sensor system for refrigerator dispensers

A refrigerator includes a refrigerator cabinet, a refrigerator compartment disposed within the refrigerator cabinet, a freezer compartment disposed within the refrigerator cabinet, and a battery. There is at least one fan disposed within the refrigerator cabinet and electrically connected to the battery. The battery powers the at least one fan during a power outage to thereby circulate air from the freezer compartment to the refrigerator compartment. The at least one fan may be a direct current operated fan. The refrigerator may also include an inverter and the at least one fan may then be an alternating current operated fan electrically connected to the inverter. The battery may be disposed within the refrigerator cabinet or may be external to the refrigerator cabinet.

Extended cold (battery backup) refrigerator

The present invention relates to an ice dispenser apparatus having an ice storage bin removably mounted to the refrigerator for receiving and storing ice pieces from an ice maker, a metering device for separating individual ice pieces, and a sensing device for detecting the presence of ice pieces. Actuation of a motor causes the metering device to separate individual ice pieces and the sensing device detects ice pieces before, after, or during dispensing.

Ice dispensing and detecting apparatus

A sensing system for a refrigerator dispensing system is used to sense the presence, positioning, height and shape of a container placed in a dispensing well. When the presence of the container is sensed in the dispensing well and the container is properly positioned relative to a dispensing nozzle of the well, a dispensing operation can be performed. The actual dispensing operation is regulated based on the height and shape of the container. In this manner, dispensing operations can only be performed when a container is appropriately arranged in the dispensing well and the dispensing operation will be timely terminated based the size and shape of particular container employed.

Sensor system for a refrigerator dispenser

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Stevensville, MI, United States of America

Randell Lee Jeffery