Laundry treating appliance with remotely controlled airflow and method of operating the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10697104-B2
Application number	US-201715685603-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 24, 2017
Priority date	Jul 10, 2013
Publication date	Jun 30, 2020
Grant date	Jun 30, 2020

Abstract

The souring of wet laundry in a laundry treating appliance may be retarded by sending an alert signal indicative of an ending of a cycle of operation from the laundry treating appliance to a remote electronic device. The appliance may receive an authorization signal from the electronic device indicative of an instruction to execute an anti-sour cycle. An anti-sour cycle comprising the energizing of a fan to flow air through a laundry treating chamber may be automatically initiated for the laundry treating appliance.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for retarding souring of wet laundry in a laundry treating appliance having a rotating drum at least partially defining a laundry treating chamber in which laundry is received for treatment according to an automatic cycle of operation, the method comprising:
initiating the cycle of operation;
sending from the laundry treating appliance to an electronic device remote from the laundry treating appliance, during the cycle of operation, an alert signal indicative of an ending of the cycle of operation; and
upon receiving an authorization signal to enable an anti-sour cycle from the remote electronic device prior to the ending of the cycle of operation, automatically initiating the anti-sour cycle for the laundry treating appliance comprising energizing of a fan to flow air through the laundry treating chamber, and upon failing to receive the authorization signal from the remote electronic device, not initiating the anti-sour cycle;
wherein the sending of the alert signal comprises sending the alert signal only when the anti-sour cycle selected on a user interface of the laundry treating appliance.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the anti-sour cycle comprises flowing unheated air through the treating chamber.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the anti-sour cycle comprises rotating the drum to reposition the laundry.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the rotating the drum is intermittent.

5. The method of claim 2 wherein the flowing of air comprises only the flowing of unheated air through the treating chamber.

6. The method of claim 2 wherein the flowing of air is intermittent.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the alert signal comprises a status signal for the cycle of operation.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the status signal comprises a remaining time for the cycle of operation.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising displaying a countdown timer on the electronic device based on the remaining time.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein the status signal comprises a completion signal for the cycle of operation.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving the alert signal as input to an application being executed on a processor of the electronic device.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising generating the authorization signal from the application in response to a user input on the electronic device.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the laundry treating appliance comprises a clothes washer.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the laundry treating appliance comprises only a clothes washer.

Assignees

• Whirlpool Co

Inventors

• Ficke Steven D
• Heine Gregory T
• Lieto Gregory S

Classifications

• D06F34/05 Primary

  for wireless communication between components, e.g. for remote monitoring or control · CPC title

• D06F2105/46

  Drum speed; Actuation of motors, e.g. starting or interrupting · CPC title

• D06F2105/06

  Recirculation of washing liquids, e.g. by pumps or diverting valves · CPC title

• D06F2103/02

  Characteristics of laundry or load · CPC title

• D06F34/32

  characterised by graphical features, e.g. touchscreens · CPC title