US20060081588A1 - Electric pressing iron with user interface - Google Patents
Electric pressing iron with user interface Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20060081588A1 US20060081588A1 US10/959,493 US95949304A US2006081588A1 US 20060081588 A1 US20060081588 A1 US 20060081588A1 US 95949304 A US95949304 A US 95949304A US 2006081588 A1 US2006081588 A1 US 2006081588A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- temperature
- iron
- soleplate
- microcontroller
- graphic display
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Images
Classifications
-
- D—TEXTILES; PAPER
- D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- D06F—LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES
- D06F75/00—Hand irons
- D06F75/08—Hand irons internally heated by electricity
- D06F75/26—Temperature control or indicating arrangements
- D06F75/265—Temperature indicating arrangements; Control knobs
Definitions
- This disclosure relates to an apparatus for presenting a user interface to the user of a steam iron.
- a user interface for an iron includes a graphic display indicating the current temperature selection, user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection, and a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the iron is at the currently selected temperature.
- An iron having a soleplate heated by a heating element includes a temperature sensor disposed to measure the temperature of the soleplate, a graphic display indicating the current temperature selection, user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection, and a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
- the graphic display is located on a forward portion of an iron handle so that it is not blocked or covered by a user's fingers or hand during use.
- the invention further includes a microcontroller in electronic communication with a temperature sensor, a display, user controls and a ready indicator.
- the microcontroller is programmed to control the ready indicator to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
- two or more components in electronic communication with the microcontroller are multiplexed.
- the ready indicator is a dual-color light emitting diode and is adapted to also indicate when the soleplate is or is not at the currently selected temperature.
- the ready indicator is a dual-color light emitting diode (LED) and wherein the microcontroller is programmed to control the ready indicator to indicate when the soleplate is in a first state of being at the currently selected temperature or in a second state of not being at the currently selected temperature by controlling the dual-color LED to emit at different colors for the fist state and the second state.
- LED light emitting diode
- the invention further includes a soleplate heated by a heating element, a temperature sensor disposed to measure the temperature of the soleplate, user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection to any of a quantized set of temperature settings; and a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
- the display shows to the user the names of a quantized set of fabric materials, each material corresponding to a temperature setting.
- the quantized set of fabric materials is synthetic, silk, wool, cotton, and linen.
- a pair of material selector buttons allows a user to scroll either up or down a list of materials to quickly choose the material and corresponding temperature for ironing.
- FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the user interface of the invention.
- FIGS. 2 a and 2 b depict a flowchart of an embodiment of the operation of the invention.
- FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of an embodiment of the invention.
- FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram of an embodiment of a power supply for the invention.
- FIG. 1 there is shown an iron 1 having a handle 2 , the forward portion of which has a user interface for operating the iron.
- the user interface has a pair of temperature adjusting buttons 6 , 7 within easy reach of the user's thumb.
- Other controls 3 may also be provided as is known in the art, such as pump push bottons for selecting water or steam to be sprayed upon the item to be ironed.
- a graphic display 9 such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) is provided in front of the pump push buttons 3 to indicate to the user the currently selected temperature setting with an indicating graphic 4 , in this case by surrounding the currently selected temperature setting by a rectangle as shown in the drawing, though any suitable graphic may be utilized.
- a power indicator lamp 8 and a ready indicator lamp 10 are also provided.
- the user interface, including buttons 6 , 7 , controls 3 , power indicator 8 , display 9 and ready indicator 10 are all located forwardly of handle 2 so that they are not blocked in use by a user's fingers or hand during ironing. That is, the interface is located forwardly of the user grip portion of the handle.
- the indicated temperature setting is OFF.
- the rectangle graphic 4 moves or scrolls up to the next temperature setting (e.g., SYN, meaning synthetic).
- SYN next temperature setting
- the available temperature range is quantized to a fixed set of available temperatures corresponding to a fixed set of fabric materials.
- a preferred set of fabric materials is synthetic, silk, wool, cotton, and linen. Every press of the UP temperature adjusting button 6 causes the rectangle graphic 4 to move up to the next temperature setting until the highest setting is reached. Conversely, every press of the DOWN temperature adjusting button 7 causes the rectangle graphic 4 to decrement or scroll downwardly. In this way, the user is able to adjust the temperature of the iron's soleplate 5 quickly and easily without scrolling through the entire list.
- the device checks to see if the soleplate 5 is already at that temperature. If not, the temperature indicating lamp 10 glows a first color, preferably red, to indicate that the proper temperature has not been reached. When the soleplate heats up or cools down to the selected temperature, the ready indicator lamp 10 changes to a second color, preferably green, to indicate to the user that the iron 1 is ready for use.
- a two-color LED may be used for this purpose.
- one or more beeps from a speaker also be sounded to indicate to the user that the iron 1 is ready for use because it is unlikely that the user will wait around for the iron 1 to reach temperature.
- one or more beeps from a speaker may also be sounded to indicate to the user that the iron 1 is ready for use because it is unlikely that the user will wait around for the iron 1 to reach temperature.
- the iron 1 shut itself off after a period of inactivity.
- the power indicator lamp 8 is caused to flash when an “auto-shutoff” occurs.
- a sonic indicator such as for example by causing the speaker to beep at ten or twenty second intervals.
- FIGS. 2 a and 2 b there is shown an embodiment of a process that may be used to effect the workings of the invention.
- the process may be effected by a microprocessor and embodied in a machine readable code stored upon a tangible medium such as is known in the art of microcomputer architecture.
- the process may be effected by hardware, or by a combination of microprocessing and hardware.
- the user turns the iron 1 on and the process flows to node 21 where the user interface is initialized by turning the graphic display 9 and the power indicator 8 on, shutting the ready indicator 10 off, and setting the currently selected temperature to “OFF,” meaning that no power is being delivered to the soleplate's heating elements.
- the procedure checks to see if the iron has been inactive for a predetermined period of time, such as thirty seconds, for example. This is achieved with a motion sensor. If so, there is a danger that the material being ironed will scorch. Control would then flow to node 31 where the power to the soleplate 5 is shut off, the power indicator 8 set to flash, and the speaker set to beep at ten second intervals. This would continue until the procedure detects at node 32 that the user has again moved the iron, in which case control flows to node 33 wherein the soleplate 5 is turned on again and the power indicator 8 glows steady.
- a predetermined period of time such as thirty seconds, for example. This is achieved with a motion sensor. If so, there is a danger that the material being ironed will scorch. Control would then flow to node 31 where the power to the soleplate 5 is shut off, the power indicator 8 set to flash, and the speaker set to beep at ten second intervals. This would continue until the procedure detects at node 32 that the user has
- the ready indicator lamp is shut off and the procedure terminates until the user sets another temperature.
- FIG. 3 there is shown a preferred embodiment for the electrical circuit of the invention.
- a major problem with introducing a user interface into the handle of a steam iron is space constraints. Consider that the handle of the average steam iron is narrower than a cell phone. By utilizing multiplexing, as does this circuit, it is possible to pack a great deal of utility into a small space. To perform multiplexing, it is desirable to utilize a microcontroller that is capable of both writing and reading data on the same pin. It is also desirable that the microcontroller have built-in analog-to-digital (A/D) converter capabilities and phase-width-modulation (PWM) capabilities.
- A/D analog-to-digital
- PWM phase-width-modulation
- microcontrollers there are a number of such microcontrollers on the market, such as the PIC16C712 8-bit CMOS microcontroller sold by Microchip Technology, Inc. of Chandler, Ariz.
- the workings and internal architecture of the PIC16C712 are described in Microchip Technology's datasheet designated DS41106, entitled PIC16C712/716, 8-Bit CMOS Microcontrollers with A/D Converter and Capture/Compare/PWM, published 1999, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
- the basic components of the multiplexed circuit of FIG. 3 are the microcontroller 15 , a temperature sensor 11 , a speaker 12 , a motion sensor 16 , the temperature adjusting buttons 6 , 7 , the graphic display 9 , the power indicator 8 , and the ready indicator 10 .
- the microcontroller 15 is driven by a 4 MHz clock X 1 .
- the ready indicator 10 is a dual-color LED, preferably red and green.
- the red element of the ready indicator designated “R” in the schematic shares pins 2 and 3 of the microcontroller 15 with the power indicator 8 .
- the green element of the ready indicator designated “G” shares pin 18 of the microcontroller with the motion sensor 16 .
- the temperature adjusting buttons 6 , 7 and the motion sensor 16 share pins 11 , 10 , and 8 , respectively, of the microcontroller 15 with the LCD graphic display 9 .
- pin 2 is set high to 5 volts so as to supply power to the anodes of the power-indicator 8 and to the red element of the ready indicator 10 through resistors R 15 and R 13 , respectively.
- Pin 3 is rapidly switched between high and low.
- pin 2 of the microcontroller is set high and pin 3 is set low so as to turn on the power indicator 8 and shut off the red element of the ready indicator 10 .
- Pin 18 is set high so as to provide power to the green element of the ready indicator 10 through resistor R 14 . Both pin 2 and pin 3 are rapidly switched between high and low. When pin 2 is low and pin 3 is high, both the power indicator and the red element of the ready indicator 10 are shut off, while the green element of the ready indicator 10 is turned on.
- the microcontroller periodically monitors the motion sensor 16 to ensure the user hasn't walked away and forgotten to shut off the iron.
- pins 18 and 8 of the microcontroller 15 are continuously and rapidly switching between output and input mode so as to poll the motion detector 16 . Polling the motion detector causes the green element of the ready indicator 10 to shut off.
- pins 11 and 12 are also continuously switched between input and output mode so as to poll the temperature adjusting buttons 6 , 7 .
- the temperature adjusting buttons 6 , 7 are provided with buffer resistors, R 15 and R 17 to prevent the signal to the LCD from being quashed during operation of the graphic display 9 .
- the temperature adjusting buttons 6 , 7 will generally be normally-open momentary type switches. Snap-action type switches are preferred.
- the speaker 12 is connected to pin 9 of the PC16C712.
- Pin 9 provides pulse width modulation output (PWM) from the microcontroller's internal capture/compare/PWM (CCP) module. This allows the speaker to be driven at a wide range of frequencies as desired.
- PWM pulse width modulation output
- CCP internal capture/compare/PWM
- the temperature sensor 11 output is analog and is therefore fed into both pins 17 and pin 1 , both of which pins have analog-to-digital capabilities.
- the temperature sensor 11 has a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) meaning the analog output voltage decreases with increasing soleplate temperature.
- NTC negative temperature coefficient
- Such temperature sensors are generally preferred because of their greater accuracy over positive temperature coefficient (PTC) temperature sensors.
- the raw analog signal is fed into pin 17 , while pin 1 receives the analog signal through R 11 , a 1% precision resistor.
- a low-pass filter formed by R 10 and C 4 suppresses any AC noise.
- FIG. 4 shows a power supply that may be used with the invention. Note that the circuitry depicted here links with that of FIG. 3 through the junction J 1 . From left to right in the drawing, AC power 50 is brought in across varistor V 1 , which acts to protect the circuit from surges.
- One AC line 51 connects directly to the heating element 56 while the other line is trifurcated, a first branch 52 leading to the heating element 56 through a relay 55 , the second branch 53 filtered through C 7 , R 25 , and R 26 to the bridge rectifier formed by diodes D 5 , D 6 , D 7 , and D 8 .
- the output from the bridge rectifier is clamped down to 12 volts by Zener diode ZD 1 and the output smoothed out with electrolytic capacitor C 8 .
- This provides a 12 volt DC power supply.
- This 12 volt DC source is divided down by resistors R 29 and R 28 , clamped to 5 volts by Zener diode ZD 2 , and smoothed out by electrolytic capacitor C 9 . This provides the 5 volt DC power supply.
- the third branch 54 runs through resistor R 30 and goes back to FIG. 3 through pin 4 of the junction J 1 . Referring back to FIG. 3 , it can be seen that this signal is divided down and filtered by resistor R 19 and capacitor C 6 . Diodes D 3 and D 4 clamp the signal to within 5 volts. The signal is then fed into pin 7 of the microcontroller for use as an external timer signal.
- pin 6 of the microcontroller is used to turn the power to the heating element 56 on and off.
- the pin 6 output runs through resistor R 12 and to pin 3 of the junction J 1 . Referring back to FIG. 4 , it can be seen that this signal then runs through line 57 to transistor Q 2 through resistor R 31 . By bringing this line high and activating the transistor Q 2 , the relay 50 is thereby closed to provide power to the heating element 56 .
Abstract
An interface for an iron has a graphic display indicating the current temperature selection, user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection, and a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the iron is at the currently selected temperature.
Description
- 1. Field of the Invention
- This disclosure relates to an apparatus for presenting a user interface to the user of a steam iron.
- 2. Description of the Related Art
- It is known in the art of steam irons to provide some indication to the user of the temperature of the iron soleplate. Such indicators are of an analog nature, usually mechanical, such as is described in Risacher, G., U.S. Pat. No. 3,488,873, for a FABRIC CONDITIONING DEVICE, issued Jan. 13, 1970.
- It is also known to provide a lamp to indicate when the soleplate has reached temperature, such as is described in Greco, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,261,120, for an ELECTRIC PRESSING IRON HAVING INDICATING READY LIGHT WITH IMPROVED SWITCH MEANS, issued Apr. 14, 1981.
- With the advent of modern electronics, it is desirable to provide to the user an interface that permits selection of the iron operating temperature and an indicator as to when the soleplate is at the proper temperature for the fabric to be ironed with a degree of precision unobtainable with conventional electromechanical means.
- A user interface for an iron includes a graphic display indicating the current temperature selection, user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection, and a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the iron is at the currently selected temperature.
- An iron having a soleplate heated by a heating element includes a temperature sensor disposed to measure the temperature of the soleplate, a graphic display indicating the current temperature selection, user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection, and a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
- In another aspect of the invention, the graphic display is located on a forward portion of an iron handle so that it is not blocked or covered by a user's fingers or hand during use.
- The invention further includes a microcontroller in electronic communication with a temperature sensor, a display, user controls and a ready indicator. The microcontroller is programmed to control the ready indicator to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
- In another aspect of the invention, two or more components in electronic communication with the microcontroller are multiplexed.
- In another aspect of the invention, the ready indicator is a dual-color light emitting diode and is adapted to also indicate when the soleplate is or is not at the currently selected temperature.
- In another aspect of the invention, the ready indicator is a dual-color light emitting diode (LED) and wherein the microcontroller is programmed to control the ready indicator to indicate when the soleplate is in a first state of being at the currently selected temperature or in a second state of not being at the currently selected temperature by controlling the dual-color LED to emit at different colors for the fist state and the second state.
- The invention further includes a soleplate heated by a heating element, a temperature sensor disposed to measure the temperature of the soleplate, user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection to any of a quantized set of temperature settings; and a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
- In another aspect of the invention, the display shows to the user the names of a quantized set of fabric materials, each material corresponding to a temperature setting.
- In another aspect of the invention, the quantized set of fabric materials is synthetic, silk, wool, cotton, and linen.
- In another aspect of the invention, a pair of material selector buttons allows a user to scroll either up or down a list of materials to quickly choose the material and corresponding temperature for ironing.
-
FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the user interface of the invention. -
FIGS. 2 a and 2 b depict a flowchart of an embodiment of the operation of the invention. -
FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of an embodiment of the invention. -
FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram of an embodiment of a power supply for the invention. - Referring to
FIG. 1 there is shown aniron 1 having ahandle 2, the forward portion of which has a user interface for operating the iron. The user interface has a pair oftemperature adjusting buttons Other controls 3 may also be provided as is known in the art, such as pump push bottons for selecting water or steam to be sprayed upon the item to be ironed. - A
graphic display 9, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), is provided in front of thepump push buttons 3 to indicate to the user the currently selected temperature setting with an indicating graphic 4, in this case by surrounding the currently selected temperature setting by a rectangle as shown in the drawing, though any suitable graphic may be utilized. Apower indicator lamp 8 and aready indicator lamp 10 are also provided. The user interface, includingbuttons controls 3,power indicator 8,display 9 andready indicator 10 are all located forwardly ofhandle 2 so that they are not blocked in use by a user's fingers or hand during ironing. That is, the interface is located forwardly of the user grip portion of the handle. - In operation, upon startup the indicated temperature setting is OFF. When the user presses the UP temperature adjusting
button 6, therectangle graphic 4 moves or scrolls up to the next temperature setting (e.g., SYN, meaning synthetic). As shown, it is preferable to use the names of materials to be ironed rather than actual temperatures, so as to make use of the device friendly to the user. The result is that the available temperature range is quantized to a fixed set of available temperatures corresponding to a fixed set of fabric materials. - As shown in the drawings, a preferred set of fabric materials is synthetic, silk, wool, cotton, and linen. Every press of the UP temperature adjusting
button 6 causes therectangle graphic 4 to move up to the next temperature setting until the highest setting is reached. Conversely, every press of the DOWN temperature adjustingbutton 7 causes therectangle graphic 4 to decrement or scroll downwardly. In this way, the user is able to adjust the temperature of the iron'ssoleplate 5 quickly and easily without scrolling through the entire list. - When the user first selects a temperature setting, the device checks to see if the
soleplate 5 is already at that temperature. If not, thetemperature indicating lamp 10 glows a first color, preferably red, to indicate that the proper temperature has not been reached. When the soleplate heats up or cools down to the selected temperature, theready indicator lamp 10 changes to a second color, preferably green, to indicate to the user that theiron 1 is ready for use. A two-color LED may be used for this purpose. - It is also preferable that one or more beeps from a speaker also be sounded to indicate to the user that the
iron 1 is ready for use because it is unlikely that the user will wait around for theiron 1 to reach temperature. Of course, rather than utilizing a two-color lamp, one may substitute a pair of lamps or even do without any lamps and simply provide an additional graphic on the LCDgraphic display 9 to indicate the temperature is appropriate and ready for ironing. - It is also preferred that the
iron 1 shut itself off after a period of inactivity. In a preferred embodiment, thepower indicator lamp 8 is caused to flash when an “auto-shutoff” occurs. Likewise, one may substitute an additional graphics on thegraphic display 9 to indicate power and auto-shutoff. In addition it is also desirable to have a sonic indicator, such as for example by causing the speaker to beep at ten or twenty second intervals. - Referring to
FIGS. 2 a and 2 b there is shown an embodiment of a process that may be used to effect the workings of the invention. The process may be effected by a microprocessor and embodied in a machine readable code stored upon a tangible medium such as is known in the art of microcomputer architecture. Alternatively, the process may be effected by hardware, or by a combination of microprocessing and hardware. - Beginning at
node 20, the user turns theiron 1 on and the process flows tonode 21 where the user interface is initialized by turning thegraphic display 9 and thepower indicator 8 on, shutting theready indicator 10 off, and setting the currently selected temperature to “OFF,” meaning that no power is being delivered to the soleplate's heating elements. - Upon the user pressing the UP and DOWN
temperature adjusting buttons node 22, control flows tonode 23 where the currently selected temperature is adjusted accordingly and displayed on thegraphic display 9. Power is applied to the soleplate and control flows tonode 24 and loops throughnode 25, thereby causing theready indicator 10 to glow red until the soleplate reaches the currently selected temperature. - When the soleplate reaches the currently selected temperature, control flows to
node 26 wherein the ready indicator glows green and speaker is beeped twice. Controls flows through node A to the flowchart ofFIG. 2 b. - Optionally, at
node 30, the procedure checks to see if the iron has been inactive for a predetermined period of time, such as thirty seconds, for example. This is achieved with a motion sensor. If so, there is a danger that the material being ironed will scorch. Control would then flow tonode 31 where the power to thesoleplate 5 is shut off, thepower indicator 8 set to flash, and the speaker set to beep at ten second intervals. This would continue until the procedure detects atnode 32 that the user has again moved the iron, in which case control flows tonode 33 wherein thesoleplate 5 is turned on again and thepower indicator 8 glows steady. - Control now flows to
nodes ready indicator 10 to glow red until the currently selected temperature is reached. When the currently selected temperature is reached, the ready indicator glows green and control flows back tonode 30. - If no inactivity is indicated, control flows to
node 38 to detect a temperature adjustment. If the user has adjusted the temperature up or down (other than to the OFF setting), control flows tonode 40 where the currently selected temperature is set to the new value and displayed on thegraphic display 9. Control then flows throughnodes node 36. - If the user did not select a different temperature, control flows to
node 39 to determine if the user has selected the OFF setting. If not, control flows back tonode 30. If so, control flows through node B back toFIG. 2 a. - Referring again to
FIG. 2 a, control flows in through node B intonode 28 wherein the LCD display is set to indicate OFF and power is cut off to the soleplate. Atnode 29, the ready indicator lamp is shut off and the procedure terminates until the user sets another temperature. - Referring to
FIG. 3 , there is shown a preferred embodiment for the electrical circuit of the invention. A major problem with introducing a user interface into the handle of a steam iron is space constraints. Consider that the handle of the average steam iron is narrower than a cell phone. By utilizing multiplexing, as does this circuit, it is possible to pack a great deal of utility into a small space. To perform multiplexing, it is desirable to utilize a microcontroller that is capable of both writing and reading data on the same pin. It is also desirable that the microcontroller have built-in analog-to-digital (A/D) converter capabilities and phase-width-modulation (PWM) capabilities. There are a number of such microcontrollers on the market, such as the PIC16C712 8-bit CMOS microcontroller sold by Microchip Technology, Inc. of Chandler, Ariz. The workings and internal architecture of the PIC16C712 are described in Microchip Technology's datasheet designated DS41106, entitled PIC16C712/716, 8-Bit CMOS Microcontrollers with A/D Converter and Capture/Compare/PWM, published 1999, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety. - The basic components of the multiplexed circuit of
FIG. 3 are themicrocontroller 15, atemperature sensor 11, aspeaker 12, amotion sensor 16, thetemperature adjusting buttons graphic display 9, thepower indicator 8, and theready indicator 10. Themicrocontroller 15 is driven by a 4 MHz clock X1. - The
ready indicator 10 is a dual-color LED, preferably red and green. In this case, the red element of the ready indicator, designated “R” in the schematic shares pins 2 and 3 of themicrocontroller 15 with thepower indicator 8. Likewise, the green element of the ready indicator, designated “G”shares pin 18 of the microcontroller with themotion sensor 16. Thetemperature adjusting buttons motion sensor 16 share pins 11, 10, and 8, respectively, of themicrocontroller 15 with the LCDgraphic display 9. - By sharing microcontroller pins in this fashion, a number of components may be operated using a minimal amount of space. By way of rapid multiplexing, it is possible to give the appearance to the user that all these components are operating independently. For example, consider the case where the user has made a selection and is waiting for the iron to reach temperature. In this case, the
power indicator 8 should be glowing steadily and theready indicator 10 should be glowing red. To do this,pin 2 is set high to 5 volts so as to supply power to the anodes of the power-indicator 8 and to the red element of theready indicator 10 through resistors R15 and R13, respectively.Pin 3 is rapidly switched between high and low. Whenpin 3 is high, thepower indicator 8 shuts off and the red element of theready indicator 10 turns on (because transistor Q1 is activated). Whenpin 3 is low, thepower indicator 8 turns on and the red element of theready indicator 10 shuts off. By alternatingpin 3 fast enough, the illusion is created to the user that both thepower indicator 8 and theready indicator 10 are glowing steadily simultaneously. - When the iron has reached temperature, the
power indicator 8 should glow steadily and theready indicator 10 should glow green. To do this,pin 2 of the microcontroller is set high andpin 3 is set low so as to turn on thepower indicator 8 and shut off the red element of theready indicator 10.Pin 18 is set high so as to provide power to the green element of theready indicator 10 through resistor R14. Bothpin 2 andpin 3 are rapidly switched between high and low. Whenpin 2 is low andpin 3 is high, both the power indicator and the red element of theready indicator 10 are shut off, while the green element of theready indicator 10 is turned on. - The microcontroller periodically monitors the
motion sensor 16 to ensure the user hasn't walked away and forgotten to shut off the iron. Hence, pins 18 and 8 of themicrocontroller 15 are continuously and rapidly switching between output and input mode so as to poll themotion detector 16. Polling the motion detector causes the green element of theready indicator 10 to shut off. In addition, pins 11 and 12 are also continuously switched between input and output mode so as to poll thetemperature adjusting buttons graphic display 9 goes blank, but this occurs so rapidly that the illusion is created to the user that thepower indicator 8 and the green element of theready indicator 10 are glowing steadily, thegraphic display 9 is always functioning without so much as a flicker, the motion sensor is always standing watch, and thetemperature adjusting buttons power indicator 8, a dual-color LED 10, amotion detector 16, a pair ofswitches graphic display 9 may all be operated apparently simultaneously with only eight microcontroller pins. - Note that the
temperature adjusting buttons graphic display 9. Thetemperature adjusting buttons - As to the other components, the
speaker 12 is connected to pin 9 of the PC16C712.Pin 9 provides pulse width modulation output (PWM) from the microcontroller's internal capture/compare/PWM (CCP) module. This allows the speaker to be driven at a wide range of frequencies as desired. Thetemperature sensor 11 output is analog and is therefore fed into bothpins 17 andpin 1, both of which pins have analog-to-digital capabilities. In the schematic as shown, thetemperature sensor 11 has a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) meaning the analog output voltage decreases with increasing soleplate temperature. Such temperature sensors are generally preferred because of their greater accuracy over positive temperature coefficient (PTC) temperature sensors. The raw analog signal is fed intopin 17, whilepin 1 receives the analog signal through R11, a 1% precision resistor. A low-pass filter formed by R10 and C4 suppresses any AC noise. -
FIG. 4 shows a power supply that may be used with the invention. Note that the circuitry depicted here links with that ofFIG. 3 through the junction J1. From left to right in the drawing,AC power 50 is brought in across varistor V1, which acts to protect the circuit from surges. OneAC line 51 connects directly to theheating element 56 while the other line is trifurcated, afirst branch 52 leading to theheating element 56 through arelay 55, thesecond branch 53 filtered through C7, R25, and R26 to the bridge rectifier formed by diodes D5, D6, D7, and D8. The output from the bridge rectifier is clamped down to 12 volts by Zener diode ZD1 and the output smoothed out with electrolytic capacitor C8. This provides a 12 volt DC power supply. This 12 volt DC source is divided down by resistors R29 and R28, clamped to 5 volts by Zener diode ZD2, and smoothed out by electrolytic capacitor C9. This provides the 5 volt DC power supply. - The
third branch 54 runs through resistor R30 and goes back toFIG. 3 throughpin 4 of the junction J1. Referring back toFIG. 3 , it can be seen that this signal is divided down and filtered by resistor R19 and capacitor C6. Diodes D3 and D4 clamp the signal to within 5 volts. The signal is then fed intopin 7 of the microcontroller for use as an external timer signal. - The output of
pin 6 of the microcontroller is used to turn the power to theheating element 56 on and off. Thepin 6 output runs through resistor R12 and to pin 3 of the junction J1. Referring back toFIG. 4 , it can be seen that this signal then runs throughline 57 to transistor Q2 through resistor R31. By bringing this line high and activating the transistor Q2, therelay 50 is thereby closed to provide power to theheating element 56. - While various values, scalar and otherwise, may be disclosed herein, it is to be understood that these are not exact values, but rather to be interpreted as “about” such values, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Further, the use of a modifier such as “about” or “approximately” in this specification with respect to any value is not to imply that the absence of such a modifier with respect to another value indicated the latter to be exact.
- Changes and modifications can be made by those skilled in the art to the embodiments as disclosed herein and such examples, illustrations, and theories are for explanatory purposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims. Further, the abstract of this disclosure is provided for the sole purpose of complying with the rules requiring an abstract so as to allow a searcher or other reader to quickly ascertain the subject matter of the disclosures contained herein and is submitted with the express understanding that it will not be used to interpret or to limit the scope or the meaning of the claims.
Claims (24)
1. A user interface for an iron, comprising:
an electronic graphic display indicating a current temperature selection;
user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection; and
a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the iron is at the currently selected temperature.
2. The user interface of claim 1 wherein the graphic display is a liquid crystal display.
3. An iron, comprising:
a soleplate heated by a heating element;
a temperature sensor disposed to measure the temperature of the soleplate;
an electronic graphic display indicating a current temperature selection;
user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection; and
a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the graphic display is a liquid crystal display.
5. The apparatus of claim 3 , further comprising:
a motion sensor; and
a power indicator adapted to indicate that power to the heating element has been shut off after the motion detector detects no movement of the iron for a preselected period of time.
6. The apparatus of claim 3 , further comprising:
a microcontroller in electronic communication with the temperature sensor, the graphic display, the user controls and the ready indicator; and
wherein the microcontroller is programmed to control the ready indicator to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the graphic display is a liquid crystal display.
8. The apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising:
a motion detector in electronic communication with the microcontroller; and
wherein the microcontroller is programmed to shut off the heating element after the motion detector detects no movement of the iron for a preselected period of time.
9. The apparatus of claim 6 further comprising a power indicator in electronic communication with the microcontroller and wherein the microcontroller is programmed to indicate with the power indicator that the heating element is shut off after the motion detector detects no movement of the iron for a preselected period of time.
10. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein two or more components in electronic communication with the microcontroller are multiplexed.
11. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the ready indicator is a dual-color light emitting diode and is adapted to also indicate when the soleplate is or is not at the currently selected temperature.
12. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the ready indicator is a dual-color light emitting diode (LED) and wherein the microcontroller is programmed to control the ready indicator to indicate when the soleplate is in a first state of being at the currently selected temperature or in a second state of not being at the currently selected temperature by controlling the dual-color LED to emit at different colors for the fist state and the second state.
13. An iron, comprising:
a soleplate heated by a heating element;
a temperature sensor disposed to measure the temperature of the soleplate;
user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection to any of a quantized set of temperature settings; and
a ready indicator adapted to indicate when the soleplate is at the currently selected temperature.
14. The iron of claim 13 further comprising a display showing the currently selected temperature.
15. The iron of claim 14 wherein the display shows to the user the names of a quantized set of fabric materials, each material corresponding to a temperature setting.
16. The iron of claim 15 wherein the quantized set of fabric materials is synthetic, silk, wool, cotton, and linen.
17. A user interface for an iron, comprising:
user controls for selecting an ironing temperature; and
a ready indicator for indicating when an iron has reached said ironing temperature, said indicator comprising a color changing lamp.
18. The interface of claim 17 , wherein said color changing lamp comprises a light emitting diode.
19. An iron, comprising:
a handle having a grip portion; and
a user interface mounted on the handle forwardly of the grip portion.
20. The iron of claim 19 , wherein the user interface comprises a graphic display.
21. The iron of claim 20 , further comprising a spray push button located forwardly of the handle, and forwardly of the graphic display.
22. The iron of claim 20 , wherein the graphic display corresponds to a temparature selected by a user.
23. A user interface for an iron, comprising:
an electronic graphic display indicating a current temperature selection; and
user controls for adjusting the current temperature selection, said user controls comprising a first selector for scrolling upwardly through a list of temperature selections and a second selector for scrolling downwardly through said list of temperature selections.
24. The user interface of claim 23 , wherein said temperature selections are identified as a list of fabrics corresponding to said list of temperature selections.
Priority Applications (3)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US10/959,493 US20060081588A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2004-10-05 | Electric pressing iron with user interface |
US11/140,129 US20060081589A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2005-05-27 | Electric pressing iron with ready light and pop-up power switch |
CA002522025A CA2522025A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2005-10-04 | Electric pressing iron with user interface |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US10/959,493 US20060081588A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2004-10-05 | Electric pressing iron with user interface |
Related Child Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/140,129 Continuation-In-Part US20060081589A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2005-05-27 | Electric pressing iron with ready light and pop-up power switch |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20060081588A1 true US20060081588A1 (en) | 2006-04-20 |
Family
ID=36141719
Family Applications (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US10/959,493 Abandoned US20060081588A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2004-10-05 | Electric pressing iron with user interface |
US11/140,129 Abandoned US20060081589A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2005-05-27 | Electric pressing iron with ready light and pop-up power switch |
Family Applications After (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/140,129 Abandoned US20060081589A1 (en) | 2004-10-05 | 2005-05-27 | Electric pressing iron with ready light and pop-up power switch |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (2) | US20060081588A1 (en) |
CA (1) | CA2522025A1 (en) |
Cited By (11)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20080052970A1 (en) * | 2006-09-06 | 2008-03-06 | Chang Sup Lee | Talking iron |
CN101858032A (en) * | 2009-04-08 | 2010-10-13 | 蔡龙威 | Electric iron with a synchronizing temperature display |
US20110225858A1 (en) * | 2010-03-22 | 2011-09-22 | Sears Brands, Llc | System and method for using color to indicate a state of a home appliance, such as an iron |
US20160053429A1 (en) * | 2014-03-13 | 2016-02-25 | Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc. | Gravity-Fed Combined Iron and Steamer |
US20160319477A1 (en) * | 2014-11-26 | 2016-11-03 | International Business Machines Corporation | Automated selection of settings for an ironing device |
EP3447185A1 (en) * | 2017-08-25 | 2019-02-27 | Koninklijke Philips N.V. | Garment care device with light indicators |
EP3447186A1 (en) * | 2017-08-25 | 2019-02-27 | Koninklijke Philips N.V. | Device with single user actuator for the selection of operating modes |
EP3540114A1 (en) * | 2018-03-13 | 2019-09-18 | Electrolux Appliances Aktiebolag | Iron with user interface |
IT201900002287A1 (en) * | 2019-02-18 | 2020-08-18 | De Longhi Appliances Srl | IRON |
US11286612B2 (en) * | 2019-09-05 | 2022-03-29 | Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc. | Iron with heat control display on handle |
US11945245B2 (en) * | 2019-08-18 | 2024-04-02 | Cricut, Inc. | Heat press, components, apparatuses, systems, and methods |
Families Citing this family (4)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US8091257B2 (en) * | 2009-03-31 | 2012-01-10 | Freescale Semiconductor, Inc. | Steam iron with acceleration and tilt detection |
JP5752274B2 (en) * | 2011-02-03 | 2015-07-22 | ユーロプロ・オペレイティング・エルエルシー | Steam equipment |
CN103668920A (en) * | 2013-11-28 | 2014-03-26 | 谢虹 | Mini-sized electric iron |
WO2019224568A2 (en) * | 2018-05-19 | 2019-11-28 | Sabtaan Khaled | Protection against hazards and problems of irons |
Citations (13)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US2208432A (en) * | 1935-12-10 | 1940-07-16 | Seaboard Commercial Corp | Electric flatiron |
US2235891A (en) * | 1940-04-01 | 1941-03-25 | American Electrical Heater Co | Electric iron |
US2527767A (en) * | 1948-09-04 | 1950-10-31 | Hoover Co | Signaling means for electric irons |
US2569259A (en) * | 1945-04-21 | 1951-09-25 | August C Purpura | Electric flatiron |
US3224122A (en) * | 1962-11-09 | 1965-12-21 | Sunbeam Corp | Pressing iron |
US3237325A (en) * | 1964-03-06 | 1966-03-01 | Proctor Silex Corp | Electric spray iron |
US3488873A (en) * | 1968-07-15 | 1970-01-13 | Westinghouse Electric Corp | Fabric conditioning device |
US4115935A (en) * | 1977-05-16 | 1978-09-26 | General Electric Company | Plastic steam iron |
US4261120A (en) * | 1978-06-20 | 1981-04-14 | Scovill Inc. | Electric pressing iron having indicating ready light with improved switch means |
US4686352A (en) * | 1984-04-27 | 1987-08-11 | John Zink Company | Electronic pressing iron |
US4897527A (en) * | 1985-05-09 | 1990-01-30 | John Corby Limited | Press for fabrics |
US5495093A (en) * | 1993-02-05 | 1996-02-27 | Edsyn, Inc. | Soldering apparatus processor having temperature selection, calibration and heating control of tip |
US6396027B1 (en) * | 2001-07-31 | 2002-05-28 | Tsann Kuen Usa, Inc. | Pressing iron with electroluminescent temperature status indicator |
Family Cites Families (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US1365186A (en) * | 1919-05-16 | 1921-01-11 | Balda Jose A Oca | Electric iron |
US4745260A (en) * | 1986-01-22 | 1988-05-17 | Black & Decker Inc. | Automatic switching apparatus for an electric appliance |
US4727240A (en) * | 1986-08-11 | 1988-02-23 | Black & Decker Inc. | Electric iron with dual automatic cutoff |
-
2004
- 2004-10-05 US US10/959,493 patent/US20060081588A1/en not_active Abandoned
-
2005
- 2005-05-27 US US11/140,129 patent/US20060081589A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2005-10-04 CA CA002522025A patent/CA2522025A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (14)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US2208432A (en) * | 1935-12-10 | 1940-07-16 | Seaboard Commercial Corp | Electric flatiron |
US2235891A (en) * | 1940-04-01 | 1941-03-25 | American Electrical Heater Co | Electric iron |
US2569259A (en) * | 1945-04-21 | 1951-09-25 | August C Purpura | Electric flatiron |
US2527767A (en) * | 1948-09-04 | 1950-10-31 | Hoover Co | Signaling means for electric irons |
US3224122A (en) * | 1962-11-09 | 1965-12-21 | Sunbeam Corp | Pressing iron |
US3237325A (en) * | 1964-03-06 | 1966-03-01 | Proctor Silex Corp | Electric spray iron |
US3488873A (en) * | 1968-07-15 | 1970-01-13 | Westinghouse Electric Corp | Fabric conditioning device |
US4115935A (en) * | 1977-05-16 | 1978-09-26 | General Electric Company | Plastic steam iron |
US4261120A (en) * | 1978-06-20 | 1981-04-14 | Scovill Inc. | Electric pressing iron having indicating ready light with improved switch means |
US4686352A (en) * | 1984-04-27 | 1987-08-11 | John Zink Company | Electronic pressing iron |
US4686352B1 (en) * | 1984-04-27 | 1993-12-14 | Sunbeam Corporation | Electronic pressing iron |
US4897527A (en) * | 1985-05-09 | 1990-01-30 | John Corby Limited | Press for fabrics |
US5495093A (en) * | 1993-02-05 | 1996-02-27 | Edsyn, Inc. | Soldering apparatus processor having temperature selection, calibration and heating control of tip |
US6396027B1 (en) * | 2001-07-31 | 2002-05-28 | Tsann Kuen Usa, Inc. | Pressing iron with electroluminescent temperature status indicator |
Cited By (26)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US7923661B2 (en) * | 2006-09-06 | 2011-04-12 | Chang Sup Lee | Talking iron |
US20080052970A1 (en) * | 2006-09-06 | 2008-03-06 | Chang Sup Lee | Talking iron |
CN101858032A (en) * | 2009-04-08 | 2010-10-13 | 蔡龙威 | Electric iron with a synchronizing temperature display |
EP2239367A1 (en) * | 2009-04-08 | 2010-10-13 | Lung Wai Choi | Electric iron with a synchronizing temperature display |
US20100257761A1 (en) * | 2009-04-08 | 2010-10-14 | Lung Wai Choi | Electric iron with a synchronizing temperature display |
US20110225858A1 (en) * | 2010-03-22 | 2011-09-22 | Sears Brands, Llc | System and method for using color to indicate a state of a home appliance, such as an iron |
US8397406B2 (en) * | 2010-03-22 | 2013-03-19 | Sears Brands, L.L.C. | System and method for using color to indicate a state of a home appliance, such as an iron |
US8752311B2 (en) | 2010-03-22 | 2014-06-17 | Sears Brands, L.L.C. | System and method for using color to indicate a state of a home appliance, such as an iron |
US9624620B2 (en) * | 2014-03-13 | 2017-04-18 | Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc. | Gravity-fed combined iron and steamer |
US20160053429A1 (en) * | 2014-03-13 | 2016-02-25 | Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc. | Gravity-Fed Combined Iron and Steamer |
US9994993B2 (en) | 2014-11-26 | 2018-06-12 | International Business Machines Corporation | Automated selection of settings for an ironing device |
US9879373B2 (en) * | 2014-11-26 | 2018-01-30 | International Business Machines Corporation | Automated selection of settings for an ironing device |
US20160319477A1 (en) * | 2014-11-26 | 2016-11-03 | International Business Machines Corporation | Automated selection of settings for an ironing device |
US10689794B2 (en) | 2014-11-26 | 2020-06-23 | International Business Machines Corporation | Automated selection of settings for an ironing device |
EP3447186A1 (en) * | 2017-08-25 | 2019-02-27 | Koninklijke Philips N.V. | Device with single user actuator for the selection of operating modes |
WO2019038284A1 (en) | 2017-08-25 | 2019-02-28 | Koninklijke Philips N.V. | Garment care device with light indicators |
WO2019038256A1 (en) | 2017-08-25 | 2019-02-28 | Koninklijke Philips N.V. | Device with single user actuator for the selection of operating modes |
CN111051601A (en) * | 2017-08-25 | 2020-04-21 | 皇家飞利浦有限公司 | Device with a single user actuator for selecting an operating mode |
CN111295474A (en) * | 2017-08-25 | 2020-06-16 | 皇家飞利浦有限公司 | Garment care device with light indicator |
EP3447185A1 (en) * | 2017-08-25 | 2019-02-27 | Koninklijke Philips N.V. | Garment care device with light indicators |
RU2728650C1 (en) * | 2017-08-25 | 2020-07-30 | Конинклейке Филипс Н.В. | Device with one user mechanism of switch for selection of operating modes |
EP3540114A1 (en) * | 2018-03-13 | 2019-09-18 | Electrolux Appliances Aktiebolag | Iron with user interface |
IT201900002287A1 (en) * | 2019-02-18 | 2020-08-18 | De Longhi Appliances Srl | IRON |
WO2020170283A3 (en) * | 2019-02-18 | 2020-10-29 | De' Longhi Appliances S.R.L. Con Unico Socio | Iron and assembly method |
US11945245B2 (en) * | 2019-08-18 | 2024-04-02 | Cricut, Inc. | Heat press, components, apparatuses, systems, and methods |
US11286612B2 (en) * | 2019-09-05 | 2022-03-29 | Hamilton Beach Brands, Inc. | Iron with heat control display on handle |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
US20060081589A1 (en) | 2006-04-20 |
CA2522025A1 (en) | 2006-04-05 |
Similar Documents
Publication | Publication Date | Title |
---|---|---|
CA2522025A1 (en) | Electric pressing iron with user interface | |
RU2417278C2 (en) | System for garment care | |
AU2009230727B2 (en) | Hair Dryer | |
RU2011102766A (en) | KETTLE AND BASE | |
CA1280143C (en) | Electronic temperature control for cordless iron | |
US20050098192A1 (en) | Electronic controlled hair styling appliance with display device | |
US5852279A (en) | Clothes iron with automatic shut off system controlled by multiple switches | |
US8752311B2 (en) | System and method for using color to indicate a state of a home appliance, such as an iron | |
CN210055627U (en) | Cooking utensil | |
US10002723B2 (en) | Switch | |
US20050097773A1 (en) | Method and apparatus for appliance display | |
EP3540114B1 (en) | Iron with user interface | |
JPH0676946A (en) | Collective heating device | |
KR200297677Y1 (en) | An electric curling iron | |
KR100215035B1 (en) | Microwave oven | |
JP2004321307A (en) | Cooker | |
JP3430799B2 (en) | Iron | |
KR200266456Y1 (en) | Electric rice cooker having a back light | |
KR200442397Y1 (en) | A Steam Iron | |
JP2003257600A (en) | Heating cooker | |
CA2549138A1 (en) | Electric pressing iron with ready light and pop-up power switch | |
JP3055367B2 (en) | Cordless iron | |
JPH07102280B2 (en) | Electric iron | |
JPH03268795A (en) | Steam iron | |
JPH10113287A (en) | Electric hot water pot |
Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: SUNBEAM PRODUCTS, INC., FLORIDA Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:BOWSER, JOHN O.;GRIFFITH, CHRISTINA;ZIMMERMAN, ANDREA;REEL/FRAME:015876/0615;SIGNING DATES FROM 20040929 TO 20040930 |
|
STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |