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The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.

The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.

Patent No.:

US 11182123 B1

PDFFull Text
Date of Patent:
Nov. 23, 2021

Filed:

Mar. 09, 2020

User-interface system for a laundry appliance

Applicant:

Whirlpool Corporation, Benton Harbor, MI (US);

Inventors:

Marcus R. Fischer, Stevensville, MI (US);

Alexander Halbleib, Benton Harbor, MI (US);

James Mann, St. Petersburg, FL (US);

Joel M. Sells, Watervliet, MI (US);

Assignee:

Whirlpool Corporation, Benton Harbor, MI (US);

Attorney:

Price Heneveld LLP

Primary Examiner:

Beau D Spratt

Int. Cl.
CPC ...
D06F 37/28 (2006.01); G10L 15/22 (2006.01); G06F 3/16 (2006.01); D06F 34/32 (2020.01); D06F 34/08 (2020.01); D06F 23/02 (2006.01); G06F 3/01 (2006.01); H04R 1/02 (2006.01); H04R 1/32 (2006.01); H04R 3/00 (2006.01); D06F 105/60 (2020.01);
U.S. Cl.
CPC ...
G06F 3/167 (2013.01); D06F 23/02 (2013.01); D06F 34/08 (2020.02); D06F 34/32 (2020.02); D06F 37/28 (2013.01); G06F 3/016 (2013.01); G10L 15/22 (2013.01); H04R 1/028 (2013.01); H04R 1/326 (2013.01); H04R 3/005 (2013.01); D06F 2105/60 (2020.02); G10L 2015/223 (2013.01);
Abstract

A laundry appliance includes a cabinet. A door is coupled to the cabinet. The door is operable between an opened position and a closed position. An audio interface is disposed on the door. The audio interface includes a microphone for receiving a voice command and a speaker for projecting an audio output. A visual interface is disposed on the door. The visual interface is configured to display a message in response to at least one of the voice command and the audio output. A microcontroller is disposed on the door. The microcontroller is operably coupled to the audio interface and the visual interface. A proximity sensor is configured to communicate sensed information to the microcontroller. The microcontroller is configured to activate at least one of the audio interface and the visual interface in response to the sensed information.

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