General Electric Company

Trane Cac, Inc.

Transport International Pool, Inc.

Rollie Richard Herzog

John Steven Holmes

Wolfgang Daum

Robert Marten Bultman

Mark Robert Mathews

Custis L Stamp, Jr

Jerry J Queen, Ii

Thomas Arthur Brownell

Tam Nolan

Tim Holder

Ahmed Elasser

Walter Whipple

Ljubisa Dragoljub Stevanovic

Richard E Hornung

Qiao Lu

Steven James Gray

Craig Iung-Pei Tsai

Thomas Bernard Breen

Matthew Graham Taylor

Gary Lester Chastine

John August Sedovic

Michael A Brennan

Peter Brand

Robert Leonard Fulks

Michael Edward Johnson

Lisa Gay Smith

Martin Mtichell Zentner

Wayne William Mihailov

Joanna Marie Diederich

A control system for a refrigeration system having a refrigeration compartment and a quick chill/thaw pan. A main controller board, electrically connected to a temperature adjustment board and a dispenser board through the serial communications bus, controls the temperature of the refrigeration compartment and the quick chill/thaw pan. The control system accepts a plurality of inputs to determine a refrigeration mode and to execute a plurality of software algorithms to control the refrigeration compartment as both a chill pan to rapidly chill food and beverage items without freezing and a thaw pan to timely thaw frozen items at controlled temperature levels.

Electronics architecture for a refrigerator quick chill and quick thaw system

A detection apparatus for detecting refrigerator door openings is coupled to at least one switch configured to be activated by a door opening. When the door is opened, the switch is activated and inputs a signal to the detection apparatus. The detection apparatus rectifies the signal; and phase-shifts the rectified signal so that it leads or lags the line voltage. The shifted output signal is fed to a processor that detects the opening of the door based upon the shifted signal. Signals output by a plurality of switches that generate a signal when activated mixed using an opto-coupler. Relative impedance of the lead and lag circuits may be adjusted to differentiate a phase shift of one shifted signal relative to another signal. The processor converts a value in degrees of phase shifting of the mixed signal to a time value, and based upon the time value, the processor determines which of the doors is open.

Methods and apparatus for detecting refrigerator door openings

A refrigeration system includes a first refrigeration chamber, a second refrigeration chamber in flow communication with said the first refrigeration chamber, a sealed system for producing desired temperature conditions in the first refrigeration chamber and the second refrigeration chamber, and a controller operatively coupled to the sealed system. The controller is configured to accept a plurality of user-selected inputs including at least a first refrigeration chamber temperature and a second refrigeration chamber temperature, and to execute a plurality of algorithms to selectively control the first refrigeration chamber at a temperature above the second refrigeration chamber and at a temperature below the second chamber. Various control algorithms are provided for maintaining desired temperature conditions in the refrigeration chambers.

Refrigerator system and software architecture

A control system for an appliance utilizing a plurality of peripheral devices includes a controller and a communications bus coupled to the plurality of peripheral devices and to the controller. The controller is configured to receive data from the peripheral devices over the communications bus and transmit control operations to the peripheral devices based on the data received. The communications bus reduces overall wiring requirements due to elimination or reduction of power wiring of the peripheral devices, facilitates distributed displays and human machine interfaces, and allows model differentiation with late point identification by a population of bus connections with a sensor, display, interface, or a blank. A data collision detection scheme is also provided to ensure proper communication along the bus.

Appliance sensor and man machine interface bus

Refrigerator&mdash;electronics architecture

An adaptive defrost control includes a microcomputer for controlling the initiation and termination of a defrost operation based, at least in part, on opening of the fresh food door and the freezer door. The control monitors the compressor run time and the fresh food and freezer door open times and adjusts the time until defrost accordingly. A pre-chill operation cools the freezer prior to defrosting the evaporator coils so that the defrost heat will have less of an affect on the maximum temperature after defrost, and enables the freezer compartment to be maintained at a temperature a few degrees higher than with known refrigerators, providing energy savings.

Defrost control

A method for controlling speed in a pulse-width-modulation-controlled motor powered by a load voltage source is provided. The method includes the steps of measuring the motor load voltage, and setting a pulse-width-modulation duty cycle based on the measured voltage.

DC motor speed control system

An electronic controller for an automatic icemaker includes a thermistor coupled to an icemaker mold, a first transducer coupled to a rake, a second transducer coupled to a feeler arm, and a processor. Time and temperature dependent calculations are summed at successive time intervals and compared to a predetermined value to determine when ice is frozen and ready for harvesting. Harvesting is delayed a pre-selected time based upon the position of the feeler arm to avoid premature harvesting. A harvest fix algorithm is executed when ice is not harvested within a predetermined time period by operating a heater at an elevated temperature and by de-energizing a motor. A water fill algorithm determines whether the mold is full of water based upon a change in the thermistor reading.

Icemaker electronic control methods and apparatus

An improved system and method for controlling the temperature of a resistance heater in a heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (&ldquo;HVAC&rdquo;) system is disclosed. The control circuit and method includes three separate thermostats per heater leg and are designed to trip at three, sequential pre-selected temperatures to address certain issues associated with prior art designs for thermal overload protection. One of the thermostats is of an automatically resettable type wherein the remaining two are of a &ldquo;one-shot&rdquo; design and will remain open until there is human intervention.

HVAC heater power and control circuit

An air flow control arrangement for a side-by-side refrigerator which results in temperature variations, both spatial and temporal, of approximately about .+-.1.degree. F. in the fresh food compartment, is described. Such air flow control also is believed to even further reduce the internal 'sweat' in the fresh food compartment. In one embodiment, and with respect to a side-by-side refrigerator, the middle duct in the center mullion wall is closed off, and a duct is added in the center mullion wall, or could be installed as a separate duct outside the mullion, connecting a supply port in the top, back, left hand corner in fresh food compartment to a position in the evaporator chamber. The added duct also seals off direct airflow between the evaporator chamber and the fresh food compartment. An auxiliary air flow control fan located in a port in the center mullion wall controls air flow through the fresh food compartment, and ducts located in a middle portion of the center mullion wall are provided to allow cool air in freezer compartment to flow into fresh food compartment. Manually set dampers may be located in these ducts to control the amount of air flow from the freezer compartment to the fresh food compartment. Cool freezer air also may flow through the center mullion wall lower duct into the fresh food compartment.

Air flow control in a side-by-side refrigerator

A refrigerator includes at least a first compartment cooled to a first temperature and a second compartment cooled to a second temperature, and a multiplex damper system disposed in a cooling-air passage so as to selectively direct the cooling-air flow from the refrigeration apparatus to the compartments. The multiplex damper system comprises a single movable control damper mounted in the cooling-air passage and a drive control system responsive to the cooling demands of the respective compartments and that is coupled to the single control damper so as to selectively dispose the control damper in a plurality of respective air flow positions. The range of air flow positions includes a first compartment-only air flow position, a second compartment-only air flow position, and at least one divided-flow position in which cooling air flow is proportionally directed into both the first and the second compartments.

Refrigerator multiplex damper system

Microprocessor controlled apparatus is provided for automatically diagnosing faults in a heat pump system. Temperature sensors located at strategic points in the system are read periodically in accordance with a preprogrammed diagnostic routine. Temperature measurements preferably representing comparison of two temperature readings that produce temperature differentials outside pre-established tolerance limits are stored with a fault identification representative of the corresponding fault measurement. A service technician can read the fault data from storage by activation of control means for that purpose whereby the nature of the causative fault or faults can readily be determined.

Automatic fault diagnostic apparatus for a heat pump air conditioning

A microprocessor based control for a heat pump system providing at least two setback temperature settings individually selected by the system user to be effective during different time periods of the day, also individually selectable by the user. In the event of conflicting setback temperature settings during an overlap in the selected time periods, the microprocessor is programmed to implement the setback temperature that provides the most energy efficient operation of the system. Additionally, the microprocessor automatically assures that any setback temperature settings are at least a minimum temperature differential away from the normal temperature setting in the more energy efficient direction. This override provision is effective whether the invalid setback temperature settings are initially inserted by the user or are the result of a subsequent change in the normal temperature setting.

Control apparatus for an air conditioning system providing a plurality

A method of controlling energy usage of a multi-state heat pump system in which the system includes a preprogrammed microprocessor-based controller which places and maintains the system in the most energy efficient mode of operation consistent with achieving a desired room temperature level within a reasonable period of time. The controller responds to actual room temperature and a user-inserted temperature setting to place the heat pump system into an operating state indicated by a predetermined set of operating state criteria which establishes the required operating state and the timing of state changes. Changing to higher (less energy efficient) operating states is enabled only when periodic checks of the rate of change of room temperature indicate the desired temperature will not be achieved in a selected time period. The user-inserted temperature setting is modified as a function of outside temperature extremes to modify the target temperature to which the heat pump system operates to further improve energy efficiency of the system.

Microcomputer control for heat pump system

A microprocessor based heat pump control apparatus having a user-operated system console and a system function controller is provided in which normal operating target temperature settings are automatically converted to an expanded operating temperature range (standby operating mode), having preset upper and lower target temperature settings, in response to predetermined operating conditions within the system. The system function controller is preprogrammed to respond to a predetermined number of invalid data signal communications emanating from the user-operated console to switch into the standby operating mode. Provision is made for the user to insert a standby mode instruction at the user-operated console. Provision is also made for the system controller to enter standby during a power-up sequence when invalid user-inserted volatile data is sensed from storage means used to retain the volatile data during the power-off time period.

Growing community of inventors

Louisville, KY, United States of America

Rollie Richard Herzog