Quotables
"That’s an amazing invention, but who would ever want to use one of them?"
President Rutherford B. Hayes ; Said in 1876, after Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated the telephone to him at the White House
PatentStorm News
Make the Most of Our Site
See this month's Top Inventors and Most Cited Patents.
Stay on top of the latest innovations by subscribing to an RSS feed.
Registered users: Manage your profile.
| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8180467 | Household appliance with user selected default settings A household appliance functions according to multiple operating cycles, wherein each operating cycle comprises at least one step characterized by a parameter having a factory-set default value. A user can access a controller of the household appliance through a user... | 05/15/2012 |
| 8176798 | Method and apparatus for determining laundry load A method and apparatus for operating a laundry treating appliance that has a rotating treating chamber, which is rotatable about a rotation axis by a motor operably coupled to the rotating treating chamber, with the operation of the motor being controlled by an unde... | 05/15/2012 |
| 8166590 | Method and apparatus for determining laundry load size A method and apparatus according to one embodiment for operating a laundry treating appliance includes determining a parameter representative of a rotational speed of laundry in a drum and determining a laundry load size based on the parameter. ... | 05/01/2012 |
| 8156660 | Apparatus and method for drying clothes A method and apparatus for drying clothes by adjusting the heat input into a drying chamber of a clothes dryer based on the airflow rate through the drying chamber. ... | 04/17/2012 |
| 8141269 | Expandable/collapsible enclosure for a clothes refresher An expandable and collapsible enclosure is provided for a garment refreshing appliance. The appliance has at least either a top or a bottom rigid housing structure. The enclosure comprises a wall structure extending substantially an entire height of the enclosure. T... | 03/27/2012 |
| 8136046 | Information display system for an appliance incorporating electronic interface screen A display system for an appliance incorporates an electronic interface screen, such as an LCD touch screen, through which a wide range of information concerning operational, diagnostic and other data concerning the appliance can be displayed. The screen is divided i... | 03/13/2012 |
| 8056172 | Appliance panel with increased natural frequency A side panel for a fabric care appliance is described. The side panel includes an embossed pattern for increasing a first natural frequency (or first harmonic) of the side panel. Preferably, the first natural frequency is substantially higher than any ordinary opera... | 11/15/2011 |
| 8052805 | Method for automatically flushing a bulk dispensing system in a cleaning appliance A method for flushing at least a portion of a bulk dispensing system in a household cleaning appliance. ... | 11/08/2011 |
| 8047024 | Control and wash cycle for activation and deactivation of chemistry in the wash bath of an automatic washer A control for an automatic washer to operate the washer through a wash cycle determined based upon various soils and stains in the substrate load to be washed with a wash liquor in a wash zone of the washer. The control has a plurality of stain/soil type entrées, w... | 11/01/2011 |
| 8042211 | Method of detecting an off-balance condition of a clothes load in a washing machine An off-balance detection method comprises a plurality of off-balance detection schemes that utilize wash basket speed to detect an off-balance load condition at speed ranges that span the entire spin cycle and include speeds corresponding to natural frequencies of a... | 10/25/2011 |
| 8037565 | Method for detecting abnormality in a fabric treatment appliance having a steam generator A method of controlling the operation of a steam generator in a fabric treatment appliance may include controlling the operation of the steam generator in response to a rate of temperature change of the steam generator and/or controlling the operation of the steam g... | 10/18/2011 |
| 8033038 | Ironing station An ironing station having an ironing board stowably mounted in the cabinet for movement between a stowed position and a use position, with a docking station provided on the top wall of the cabinet and having an electrical outlet. An elevation mechanism may be provid... | 10/11/2011 |
| 8033037 | Ironing station An ironing station has a cabinet defining an interior space, an accessible storage area defined within the interior space of the cabinet, an ironing board stowably mounted in the cabinet for movement between a stowed position and a use position. The ironing board ca... | 10/11/2011 |
| 8015726 | Automatic clothes dryer An automatic clothes dryer comprises a cabinet defining an interior space in which is rotatably mounted a drum that defines a drying chamber, a heater assembly having a heating element for heating air, and a motor for rotating the drum. A blower is mounted within th... | 09/13/2011 |
| 7966684 | Methods and apparatus to accelerate the drying of aqueous working fluids A method and apparatus for drying a fabric load which has been wetted with a working fluid including the steps of flowing drying gas through a container holding the fabric load, sensing the non-aqueous working fluid concentration and the aqueous working fluid concen... | 06/28/2011 |
| 7966683 | Method for operating a steam generator in a fabric treatment appliance A method of controlling the operation of a steam generator in a fabric treatment appliance may include setting an operational temperature for the steam generator based on calcification of the steam generator. A change in the calcification of the steam generator may ... | 06/28/2011 |
| 7958585 | Method and apparatus for monitoring load size and load imbalance in a washing machine A method of determining static and dynamic imbalance conditions in a horizontal axis washing machine utilizes a number of dynamic algorithms to automatically determine the total load size, the magnitude of any static load imbalance, and the magnitude of any dynamic ... | 06/14/2011 |
| 7954914 | Retractable hanging element A household consumer product comprises a cabinet having a peripheral wall that partially defines an interior space for the cabinet and includes an opening that provides access to the interior space. A hanging element having a proximal end is mounted to the cabinet f... | 06/07/2011 |
| 7950255 | Tangling detection for an automatic washer A method and apparatus for determining the degree of tangling of fabric items during a wash process based on at least one of the motor speed or motor current. ... | 05/31/2011 |
| 7950088 | Method of indicating operational information for a dispensing system having both single use and bulk dispensing A user interface of a cleaning appliance and the method of operation for a cleaning appliance having a single dose treating chemistry dispenser and a bulk dispensing system. ... | 05/31/2011 |
| 7950086 | Adaptive water level adjustment for an automatic washer An apparatus and method for determining the degree of engagement between a clothes mover and fabric items during a wash process, and a method for setting the liquid level in the automatic washer based on the degree of engagement between a clothes mover and the fabri... | 05/31/2011 |
| 7941885 | Steam washing machine operation method having dry spin pre-wash A method for operating a horizontal axis washing machine having a tub with a drum rotatably mounted in the tub and configured to hold a fabric load comprises introducing liquid into the drum to wet the fabric load and spinning the drum to distribute the fabric load ... | 05/17/2011 |
| 7934281 | Stain removal process control method using BPM motor feedback Methods for laundering a textile wash load in a washing apparatus comprising the steps of pre-treating a textile wash load using methods that include a detection step selected from an airlock detection step, a water log detection step and combinations thereof. ... | 05/03/2011 |
| 7930787 | Method for determining load size and/or setting water level in a washing machine In a washing machine comprising a tub, an agitator, and a pressure sensor, a size of a fabric load may be determined and/or an operational water level may be set based on an amount of water supplied to reach a first level in the tub and on variation in an output fro... | 04/26/2011 |
| 7921578 | Nebulizer system for a fabric treatment appliance A nebulizer assembly for use in a fabrics revitalizing system having a fabric treatment chamber comprises a fluid reservoir configured to contain a fluid; an air flow channel in fluid communication with the fluid reservoir; a mist generator configured to generate a ... | 04/12/2011 |
| 7918109 | Fabric Treatment appliance with steam generator having a variable thermal output A steam generator having a steam generation tube defining a chamber for receiving water and converting the water to steam, and a heating element wrapped around the tube and having a first portion emitting a greater thermal output than a second portion. ... | 04/05/2011 |
| 7913419 | Non-tumble clothes dryer A non-tumble dryer comprises a cabinet and a drawer configured to support an article to be dried and slidably mounted to the cabinet. An air supply system provides air to a drying chamber formed at least partially by one of the cabinet and the drawer for drying the ... | 03/29/2011 |
| 7913418 | Automatic clothes dryer An automatic clothes dryer comprises a cabinet defining an interior space in which is rotatably mounted a drum that defines a drying chamber, a heater assembly having a heating element for heating air, and a motor for rotating the drum. A blower is mounted within th... | 03/29/2011 |
| 7913339 | Water supply control for a steam generator of a fabric treatment appliance using a temperature sensor A fabric treatment appliance comprises a steam generator having a chamber configured to hold water; a supply conduit configured to transport water to the steam generator chamber; a temperature sensor configured to sense a temperature representative of the steam gene... | 03/29/2011 |
| 7909197 | High volume docking seal for bulk liquid dispensing cartridge A seal member for a dispensing cartridge includes a flat circular seal disk, a frustoconical wall extending outwardly away from the seal disk, and a ring at an open end of the frustoconical wall. The seal member is assembled with a cap having an end wall and a cylin... | 03/22/2011 |
| 7905119 | Fabric treatment appliance with steam generator having a variable thermal output A steam generator according to one embodiment of the invention includes a steam generation chamber for converting the water to steam, and a heating element thermally coupled with the steam generation chamber and having a first portion below an operational water leve... | 03/15/2011 |
| 7904985 | Wash cycles using oxidizing agents and sensors A substrate treating appliance utilizing a plurality of different chemistries for different cycles or different wash loads with a plurality of receptacles for receiving a plurality of cartridges containing the different chemistries. Each receptacle has one half of a... | 03/15/2011 |
| 7904981 | Water supply control for a steam generator of a fabric treatment appliance A fabric treatment appliance comprises at least one of a tub and drum defining a fabric treatment chamber, a steam generator having a steam generation chamber and configured to supply steam to the fabric treatment chamber, and a conduit fluidly coupling a water supp... | 03/15/2011 |
| 7900486 | Agent dispenser An agent dispenser for a fabric treatment appliance includes a housing having a manifold and an agent compartment. The manifold may be configured to receive water and supply the water to the agent compartment through an outlet port. The agent compartment may be conf... | 03/08/2011 |
| 7886392 | Method of sanitizing a fabric load with steam in a fabric treatment appliance A fabric treatment appliance, such as a washing machine, comprises at least one of a tub and drum configured to hold a fabric load. A method of operating the fabric treatment appliance comprises heating the fabric load and, after heating the fabric load, sanitizing ... | 02/15/2011 |
| 7874187 | Laundry appliance A laundry machine configured to supply a first amount of water to the wash tub wherein a wash plate can be oscillated such that clothes items directly above and in contact with the impeller are frictionally dragged in a oscillatory manner with the wash chamber while... | 01/25/2011 |
| 7870799 | Method and apparatus for testing the air flow in a clothes dryer A method and apparatus for testing the air flow in a clothes dryer by determining a pressure characteristic of the air within the drying chamber when the dryer is turned on and comparing the determined pressure characteristic to a predetermined reference value to as... | 01/18/2011 |
| 7866191 | Clothes washer with clothing trap An automatic clothes washer having a clothes trap for reducing the likelihood that an article of clothing can escape from a wash basket during the spinning of the basket. ... | 01/11/2011 |
| 7861343 | Method for operating a steam generator in a fabric treatment appliance A method of controlling the operation of a steam generator in a fabric treatment appliance by changing a flow rate of water supplied to the steam generator to determine a change in calcification of the steam generator. ... | 01/04/2011 |
| 7851429 | Recapture of ions applied in a wash process A wash cycle is provided for a clothes washer, the clothes washer having a wash zone for receiving a substrate load to be cleaned. The wash cycle includes a step of providing a wash liquor for applying to the substrate load. Another step is loading the wash zone wit... | 12/14/2010 |
