CA-3148795-C - VALIDATION OF ADDITION OF CLEANING CHEMISTRY TO SELF-CLEAN OVEN

Abstract

A system for controlling the initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance may include a detection sensor and a processor in communication with the detection sensor. The detection sensor may be configured to generate detection sensor data based on a sensed condition in a field of detection of the detection sensor which may comprise one or more pre-determined locations. The processor may control the initiation of an appliance cleaning process. The appliance cleaning process may comprise receiving detection sensor data representative of a first time and a second time, generating an initial condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the first time, and generating a new condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the second time. The processor may be additionally configured to compare the initial condition and the new condition and determine if cleaning product is present.

Inventors

• Paul R. Kraus
• Frank Anthony Bocci
• Joseph C. Plante
• Devon Beau Hammel

Assignees

• ECOLAB USA INC.

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20200922

Priority Date

20190927

Claims (20)

1. What is claimed is: 1. A system for controlling an initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance, comprising: a detection sensor, the detection sensor configured to generate detection sensor data based on a sensed condition in a field of detection (FOD) of the detection sensor, wherein the FOD of the detection sensor comprises one or more pre-determined locations in the interior of the appliance, each pre-determined location intended for the receipt of a cleaning product that is used during the cleaning process; and a processor operatively coupled to the detection sensor, the processor being configured to control the initiation of the cleaning process, the control of the initiation of the cleaning process comprising: receiving detection sensor data representative of a first time, the first time being a time when no cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined locations; generating an initial condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the first time; receiving detection sensor data representative of a second time, different than the first time; generating a new condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the second time; comparing the initial condition and the new condition; and determining if cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined locations at the second time based on the comparison of the initial condition and the new condition.
2. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the appliance is an oven; and the oven comprises at least one heating element, and further comprising a first auxiliary sensor, the first auxiliary sensor configured to sense whether the at least one heating element is on or off, and wherein the processor receives detection sensor data representative of the first time when the first auxiliary sensor indicates that the at least one heating element of the oven is off. CA 3148795
3. 3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a second auxiliary sensor, the second auxiliary sensor configured to sense whether a door for the appliance is open or closed, and wherein the processor receives detection sensor data representative of the first time when the second auxiliary sensor indicates that the door of the appliance is open.
4. 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the detection sensor is located underneath the appliance and the FOD of the detection sensor comprises a portion of the bottom of the appliance.
5. 5. The system of claim 4, wherein the one or more predetermined locations comprise a sapphire window.
6. 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the detection sensor is a reflective sensor.
7. 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the detection sensor is a mass sensor.
8. 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the detection sensor is a two prong detection mechanism.
9. 9. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a user interface; and the processor further configured to receive, via the user interface, instructions to initiate the cleaning process.
10. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to: determine if an appliance pre-cleaning process has been performed; if the processor determines the appliance pre-cleaning process has not been performed, prompt, via the user interface, to initiate the appliance pre-cleaning process; and wherein the processor receives detection sensor data representative of the first time when the processor determines that the appliance pre-cleaning process has been performed. CA 3148795
11. 11. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to prompt a user, via the user interface, to place a cleaning product at the one or more pre-determined locations after receiving detection sensor data representative of the first time.
12. 12. The system of claim 11, wherein if the processor determines the cleaning product is not present at the second time, prompt a user, via the user interface, to place the cleaning product at the one or more pre-determined locations after receiving sensor data representative of the second time.
13. 13. The system of claim 11, wherein if the processor determines the cleaning product is present at the second time, initiate the cleaning process of the interior of the appliance.
14. 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the system comprises a two prong detection mechanism configured to sense whether or not the cleaning product has been placed at the one or more predetermined locations; and wherein the processor determining that the cleaning product is present at the second time comprises receiving a signal from the two prong detection mechanism representative of the cleaning product having been placed at the one or more predetermined locations.
15. 15. The system of claim 1, wherein: generating the initial condition based on the received sensor data representation of the first time comprises a statistical analysis of the sensor data; and generating the new condition based on the received sensor data representative of the second time comprises a statistical analysis of the sensor data.
16. 16. The system of claim 15, wherein: the sensor data representative of the first time comprises sensor data over a first period of time; and the sensor data representative of the second time comprises sensor data over a second period of time, same as the first period of time; wherein CA 3148795 the statistical analysis of the sensor data for generating the initial condition comprises averaging the sensor data over the first period of time, and the statistical analysis of the sensor data for generating the new condition comprises averaging the sensor data over the second period of time; and wherein each of the first period of time and the second period of time is between 5 and 30 seconds.
17. 17. The system of claim 1, wherein the cleaning product is composed of one or more blocks or the cleaning product is composed of a powder.
18. 18. A method for controlling the initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance, the method comprising: receiving sensor data from a detection sensor representative of a first time, the first time being a time when no cleaning product is present within a field of detection (FOD) of the detection sensor, wherein the FOD of the detection sensor comprises one or more pre-determined locations in the interior of the appliance, each pre-determined location intended for the receipt of the cleaning product used during the cleaning process; generating an initial condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the first time; receiving sensor data from the detection sensor representative of a second time, different than the first time; generating a new condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the second time; and determining if cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined locations at the second time based on the comparison of the initial condition and the new condition.
19. 19. The method of claim 18, further comprising: receiving sensor data from a first auxiliary sensor representative of whether a heating element is on or off based on the received sensor data from the first auxiliary sensor, wherein the heating element configured to heat the interior of the appliance; CA 3148795 determining whether the heating element is on or off, and initiating the cleaning process for the interior of the appliance if the heating element is determined to be off.
20. 20. The method of claim 18, further comprising: receiving sensor data from a second auxiliary sensor representative of whether a door for the appliance is open or closed; wherein the door for the appliance is openable to access the interior of the appliance and closable to close off the interior of the appliance; and determining whether the door for the appliance is open or closed based on the received sensor data from the second auxiliary sensor, and initiating the cleaning process for the interior of the appliance if the door for the appliance is determined to be closed.

Description

VALIDATION OF ADDITION OF CLEANING CHEMISTRY TO SELF-CLEAN OVEN RELATED MATTERS [0001] This application claims the benefit of US Provisional Patent Application No. 62/906,997, filed September 27, 2019. TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] This disclosure generally relates to automated cleaning devices, systems, and methods. More specifically, this disclosure relates to systems and methods for initiating a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance. BACKGROUND [0003] Poor maintenance for ovens, such as rotisserie ovens, can lead to the buildup of congealed fat or grease throughout the interior of the oven. Excessive buildup of such particles may result in unevenly cooked food or unwanted particles blowing throughout the interior of the oven and settling on the food. [0004] Routinely cleaning the ovens can help negate or even eliminate such problems. Persistent and consistent cleaning can help ensure the longevity of the oven. Unfortunately, most cleaning operations can be fairly inconsistent, such as different amounts of cleaning product used and cleaning products being placed in different locations. Inconsistent cleaning operations can lead to the oven being improperly cleaned. SUMMARY [0005] In general, various embodiments relating to systems and methods for controlling the initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance are disclosed herein. Such embodiments can be used in an exemplary application to facilitate a thorough cleaning and/or sanitization of an appliance, for instance, the interior of an oven. [0006] One embodiment includes a system for controlling the initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance. In this embodiment, the system includes a detection sensor and a processor. The detection sensor is configured to generate detection sensor data based on a sensed condition in a field of detection (FOD) of the detection sensor. The FOD of the WO 2021/061641 PCT/0S2020/051995 detection sensor may comprise one or more pre-determined locations in the interior of the appliance and each pre-determined location can also be intended for the receipt of a cleaning product to be used during the cleaning process. The processor can be operatively coupled to the detection sensor and configured to control the initiation of an appliance cleaning process. The initiation of the appliance cleaning process may comprise receiving detection sensor data representative of a first time; generating an initial condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the first time; receiving detection sensor data representative of a second time; generating a new condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the second time; comparing the initial condition and the new condition; and determining if cleaning product is present at one or more of the one or more pre-determined locations at the second time. In some instances, the first time may be a time when no cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined conditions and the second time may be a time different than the first time. [0007] In further embodiments, the detection sensor may be placed underneath the appliance. In some instances, at least one of the one or more predetermined locations may comprise a window (e.g. sapphire window). In some embodiments, the detection sensor may be at least one of a reflective sensor, a mass sensor, and a two prong detection mechanism. [0008] Another embodiment may include a method for controlling the initiation of a cleaning process for an interior of an appliance. The method may comprise receiving sensor data from a detection sensor representative of a first time. The first time may be a time when no cleaning product is present within a (FOD) of a detection sensor. The FOD of the detection sensor may comprise one or more pre-determined locations in the interior of the appliance and each pre-determined location may be intended for the receipt of the cleaning produce used during the cleaning process. The method may further comprise generating an initial condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the first time. Additionally, the method may comprise receiving sensor data from the detection sensor representative of a second time, different than the first time, as well as generating a new condition based on the received detection sensor data representative of the second time. The method may then additionally include determining if cleaning product is present at the one or more pre-determined locations at the second time based on the comparison of the initial condition and the new condition. WO 2021/061641 PCT/0S2020/051995 [0009] The details of one or more examples are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS [0010] The following drawings are illustrative of particul