Systems and methods for using artificial intelligence for improved rinse cycles in a washing machine appliance

Abstract

A washing machine appliance includes a wash basket that is rotatably mounted within a wash tub and that defines a wash chamber for receiving a load of clothes. A dispensing assembly selectively dispenses wash fluid through a discharge nozzle into the wash tub and a camera assembly is used to monitor the load of clothes and diagnose the presence of excessive bubbles after a wash cycle. Specifically, a controller of the washing machine appliance uses the camera assembly to obtain one or more images of the load of clothes after the drain phase of the wash cycle and analyzes the one or more images using a machine learning image recognition process to determine a bubble level within the wash tub. If the bubble level is greater than a predetermined bubble threshold, corrective action is taken to reduce the bubbles and detergent concentration.

1 . A washing machine appliance, comprising:
 a wash tub positioned within a cabinet;   a wash basket rotatably mounted within the wash tub and defining a wash chamber configured for receiving a load of clothes;   a dispensing assembly configured to selectively dispense wash fluid through a discharge nozzle into the wash tub;   a drain pump assembly fluidly coupled to the wash tub for selectively draining the wash fluid from the wash tub;   a camera assembly mounted within the cabinet in view of the wash basket; and   a controller operably coupled to the dispensing assembly, the drain pump assembly, and the camera assembly, the controller being configured to:
 operate the drain pump assembly to drain the wash fluid from the wash tub after a wash cycle; 
 obtain one or more images of the wash chamber using the camera assembly after operating the drain pump assembly to drain the wash fluid; 
 analyze the one or more images using a machine learning image recognition process to determine a bubble level within the wash tub; 
 determine that the bubble level is greater than a predetermined bubble threshold; and 
 implement a responsive action in response to determining that the bubble level is greater than the predetermined bubble threshold. 
   
     
     
         2 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the machine learning image recognition process comprises at least one of a convolution neural network (“CNN”), a region-based convolution neural network (“R-CNN”), a deep belief network (“DBN”), or a deep neural network (“DNN”) image recognition process. 
     
     
         3 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 performing a plurality of rinse cycles, wherein each of the plurality of rinse cycles comprises adding a flow of water into the wash tub and at least one of agitating the load of clothes by rotating the wash basket, spinning the wash basket, or draining the wash tub.   
     
     
         4 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 adjusting a water temperature of a flow of water dispensed during a rinse cycle.   
     
     
         5 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 adjusting a volume of water dispensed during a rinse cycle.   
     
     
         6 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 implementing a time delay after draining the wash fluid and before performing a rinse cycle.   
     
     
         7 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 6 , wherein the time delay is between 1 minute and 30 minutes. 
     
     
         8 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 simultaneously operating the dispensing assembly to provide a flow of water into the wash tub, agitate the load of clothes by rotating the wash basket, and draining the wash tub using the drain pump assembly.   
     
     
         9 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 providing a user notification that the bubble level is greater than the predetermined bubble threshold.   
     
     
         10 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 9 , further comprising:
 a user interface panel, wherein the user notification is provided through the user interface panel.   
     
     
         11 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 9 , wherein the controller is in operative communication with a remote device through an external network, and wherein the user notification is provided through the remote device. 
     
     
         12 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 determine that the bubble level is less than the predetermined bubble threshold; and   perform a rinse cycle.   
     
     
         13 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 obtain one or more additional images after implementing the responsive action;   analyze the one or more additional images using the machine learning image recognition process to determine a bubble level within the wash tub;   determine that the bubble level is greater than the predetermined bubble threshold; and   implement another responsive action in response to determining that the bubble level is greater than the predetermined bubble threshold.   
     
     
         14 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the camera assembly has a field of view oriented toward a bottom of the wash basket where the load of clothes collects. 
     
     
         15 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the camera assembly includes a light source for illuminating the wash chamber while obtaining the one or more images. 
     
     
         16 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the washing machine appliance is a horizontal axis washing machine appliance. 
     
     
         17 . A method of operating a washing machine appliance, the washing machine appliance comprising a wash basket rotatably mounted within a wash tub and defining a wash chamber configured for receiving a load of clothes, a dispensing assembly configured to selectively dispense wash fluid through a discharge nozzle into the wash tub, a drain pump assembly fluidly coupled to the wash tub for selectively draining the wash fluid from the wash tub, and a camera assembly mounted within in view of the wash basket, the method comprising:
 operating the drain pump assembly to drain the wash fluid from the wash tub after a wash cycle;   obtaining one or more images of the wash chamber using the camera assembly after operating the drain pump assembly to drain the wash fluid;   analyzing the one or more images using a machine learning image recognition process to determine a bubble level within the wash tub;   determining that the bubble level is greater than a predetermined bubble threshold; and   implementing a responsive action in response to determining that the bubble level is greater than the predetermined bubble threshold.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 simultaneously operating the dispensing assembly to provide a flow of water into the wash tub, agitate the load of clothes by rotating the wash basket, and draining the wash tub using the drain pump assembly.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein implementing the responsive action comprises:
 providing a user notification that the bubble level is greater than the predetermined bubble threshold.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 17 , further comprising:
 determining that the bubble level is less than the predetermined bubble threshold; and   performing a rinse cycle.