Apparatus and method for determining a load amount in a laundry treating appliance during loading and providing indications regarding same

Abstract

An apparatus and method for operating a laundry treating appliance includes determining an amount of laundry load during loading of the laundry treating appliance and provides indications to a user regarding the monitored amount.

1 . A method of operating a laundry treating appliance having a treating chamber for receiving laundry for treatment according to at least one cycle of operation, a controller for implementing the cycle of operation, and a user interface coupled to the controller, the method comprising:
 monitoring the amount of laundry placed in the treating chamber during loading;   comparing the monitored amount to a predetermined amount threshold;   determining at least one selectable cycle of operation when the monitored amount satisfies the predetermined amount threshold; and   indicating the at least one selectable cycle of operation on the user interface of the laundry treating appliance.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the monitoring the amount comprises repeatedly sensing the amount of the laundry during loading. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2  wherein repeatedly sensing the amount comprises sensing a change in the amount of laundry in the treating chamber during loading. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2  wherein repeatedly sensing the amount comprises the controller receiving output from a sensor, where the output is indicative of the amount of the laundry. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the predetermined amount threshold is a predetermined amount range and the predetermined amount threshold is satisfied when the monitored amount falls within the predetermined amount range. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising compensating the monitored amount for any unlevelness in at least one of the treating chamber and the treating appliance. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , further comprising sensing any unlevelness of at least one of the treating chamber and the laundry treating appliance and using the sensed unlevelness to compensate for the monitored amount. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising determining at least one of a selectable cycle option and a selectable cycle modifier when the monitored amount satisfies the predetermined amount threshold and indicating the at least one of the selectable cycle option and selectable cycle modifier on the user interface of the laundry treating appliance. 
     
     
         9 . A method of operating a laundry treating appliance having a treating chamber for receiving laundry for treatment according to at least one cycle of operation, a controller for implementing the cycle of operation, and a user interface coupled to the controller, the method comprising:
 determining a selected cycle of operation;   setting a predetermined amount threshold for the selected cycle of operation;   monitoring the amount of laundry placed in the treating chamber during loading;   comparing the monitored amount to the predetermined amount threshold;   determining a filled condition of the laundry treating appliance when the monitored amount satisfies the predetermined amount threshold; and   indicating the satisfying of the predetermined amount threshold on the user interface of the laundry treating appliance.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the predetermined amount threshold comprises a predetermined amount range that is based on the determined cycle of operation and the predetermined amount threshold is satisfied when the monitored amount falls within the predetermined amount range. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10  wherein the indicating the satisfying of the predetermined amount threshold on the user interface comprises visually indicating when the amount is in the predetermined amount range. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  wherein visually indicating when the amount is in the predetermined amount range comprises illuminating a range indicator having a range greater than the predetermined amount range and having at least one unique indication when the amount is within the predetermined amount range. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12  wherein the unique indications comprise at least one of a different color, a color in combination with a sound, a graphic, an animation, text, and sequentially displaying text. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 9  wherein determining the selected cycle of operation includes determining at least one of a selected cycle option and a selected cycle modifier and setting the predetermined amount threshold includes setting a predetermined amount threshold for the selected cycle of operation and the at least one of the selected cycle option and selected cycle modifier. 
     
     
         15 . A laundry treating appliance for treating laundry according to a cycle of operation, comprising:
 a housing defining an interior;   a treating chamber located within the interior and receiving laundry for treatment;   an amount sensor repeatedly outputting a signal indicative of the amount of the laundry loaded in the treating chamber;   a controller having a memory in which is stored a set of executable instructions comprising at least one user-selectable cycle of operation; and   a user interface operably coupled to the controller and providing an input and output function for the controller;   wherein the controller repeatedly receives the output from the amount sensor and compares it with an amount threshold stored in the memory to determine when the amount of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber satisfies the amount threshold and correspondingly activates an output on the user interface.   
     
     
         16 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 15 , further comprising a level sensor outputting a signal indicative of a levelness of at least one of the laundry treating appliance and the treating chamber and wherein the controller receives the output from the level sensor and adjusts the output from the amount sensor according to the output from the level sensor. 
     
     
         17 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 16  wherein the amount sensor is a weight sensor. 
     
     
         18 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 17 , further comprising at least one pair of feet extending from the housing and supporting the housing on a floor and wherein the weight sensor is operably coupled to at least one of the at least one pair of feet to sense the weight borne by the one of the at least one pair of feet, which correlates to the weight of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber such that the weight sensor may indicate the weight of the laundry loaded in the treating chamber. 
     
     
         19 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 18  wherein the weight sensor comprises multiple weight sensors and each of the multiple weight sensors is operably coupled to a separate one of the at least one pair of feet. 
     
     
         20 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 17 , further comprising a suspension system and wherein the treating chamber may be mounted within the housing by the suspension system and the weight sensor is operably coupled to a portion of the suspension system to sense the weight borne by the suspension system, which correlates to the weight of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber such that the weight sensor may indicate the weight of the laundry loaded in the treating chamber. 
     
     
         21 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 15  wherein the output on the user interface comprises a laundry fill indicator to indicate at least one of a filled condition and an overfilled condition of the treating chamber. 
     
     
         22 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 21  wherein the laundry fill indicator comprises a weight indicator to indicate a weight of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber. 
     
     
         23 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 21  where the laundry fill indicator comprises a range indicator that includes a range greater than the filled condition. 
     
     
         24 . The laundry treating appliance of  claim 21  wherein the laundry fill indicator visually indicates at least one of a filled condition and an overfilled condition of the treating chamber and comprises one of a light emitting diode, multiple light emitting diodes, and a liquid crystal display.