Portable electrical appliance with diagnostic system
원문보기
IPC분류정보
국가/구분
United States(US) Patent
등록
국제특허분류(IPC7판)
F24F-006/00
A45D-020/00
출원번호
UP-0524685
(2006-09-21)
등록번호
US-7532810
(2009-07-01)
발명자
/ 주소
Jayaram, Jaideep
Powers, Paul
Sherwood, Robert
Natividad, Carlos Alberto
출원인 / 주소
Sunbeam Products, Inc.
대리인 / 주소
Hoffmann & Baron, LLP
인용정보
피인용 횟수 :
3인용 특허 :
3
초록▼
A portable heater incorporates a housing, heating element, outlet for heat generated by the heating element, and diagnostic testing capabilities that test for defective or abnormal conditions of various safety features and report their status. The features include an object sensing or cover detect f
A portable heater incorporates a housing, heating element, outlet for heat generated by the heating element, and diagnostic testing capabilities that test for defective or abnormal conditions of various safety features and report their status. The features include an object sensing or cover detect function, which operates to disconnect the heater from the primary power source in the event an object is detected that may obstruct the heater outlet, a tilt sensor, which detects whether the heater has been tilted, a fuse, and a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) breaker. The diagnostic testing function preferably receives power directly from the primary source of power to enable the status of the tests to be displayed whenever the heater is plugged in. Light emitting diodes preferably provide backlighting to icons representing the various features to indicate their status to the user.
대표청구항▼
What is claimed is: 1. A portable electric appliance comprising: at least one electrically operable element associated with a safety feature of the portable electric appliance, the safety feature preventing operation of the portable electric appliance based on at least one of an orientation of the
What is claimed is: 1. A portable electric appliance comprising: at least one electrically operable element associated with a safety feature of the portable electric appliance, the safety feature preventing operation of the portable electric appliance based on at least one of an orientation of the portable electric appliance or an object covering at least a portion of an output of the portable electric appliance; and a diagnostic testing circuit adapted to determine operability of the at least one electrically operable element, the diagnostic testing circuit being adapted to indicate whether the at least one electrically operable element is or is not operable and to prevent an operation of the portable electric appliance when the at least one electrically operable element is not operable independent of whether the portable electric appliance is capable of operating properly. 2. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 1, wherein the at least one electrically operable element comprises at least one of a tilt switch, a breaker, a fuse, and an object sensing circuit. 3. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 1, wherein the portable electrical appliance comprises at least one of a heater, a humidifier, a dehumidifier, and a fan. 4. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 1, wherein the diagnostic testing circuit determines operability of the at least one electrically operable element by detecting at least one of a voltage, signal, and ground associated with the at least one electrically operable element. 5. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 1, wherein the diagnostic testing circuit indicates operability of the at least one electrically operable element at least one of visually and audibly. 6. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 1, wherein the diagnostic testing circuit is electrically coupled to a power source such that operability of the at least one electrically operable element can be determined in response to the portable electric appliance being at least one of connected to power, and turned on. 7. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 1, wherein the diagnostic testing circuit determines operability of the at least one electrically operable element at least one of in response to user activation, periodically, in response to the portable electric appliance being connected to power, and in response to the portable electric appliance being turned on. 8. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 1, wherein the diagnostic testing circuit comprises at least one of a microcontroller, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and microprocessor. 9. The portable electric appliance defined by claim 2, wherein the object sensing circuit comprises: a transmitter adapted to transmit a beam of radiation; and a receiver responsive to the beam of radiation, the receiver being positioned to receive the beam of radiation, the portable electric appliance being de-energized in response to the beam of radiation being at least one of blocked and interrupted. 10. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance comprising: providing at least one electrically operable element associated with a safety feature of the portable electric appliance, the safety feature preventing operation of the portable electric appliance based on at least one of an orientation of the portable electric appliance or an object covering at least a portion of an output of the portable electric appliance; testing a voltage associated with the at least one electrically operable element to determine operability of the at least one electrically operable element; and indicating whether the at least one electrically operable element is or is not operable; and preventing an operation of the portable electric appliance when the at least one electrically operable element is not operable independent of whether the portable electric appliance is capable of operating properly. 11. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance defined by claim 10, wherein providing at least one electrically operable element comprises providing at least one of a tilt switch, a breaker, a fuse, and an object sensing circuit. 12. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance defined by claim 10, wherein the portable electrical appliance comprises at least one of a heater, a humidifier, a dehumidifier, and a fan. 13. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance defined by claim 10, further comprising indicating operability of the at least one electrically operable element at least one of visually and audibly. 14. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance defined by claim 10, further comprising coupling the diagnostic testing circuit electrically to a power source such that operability of the at least one electrically operable element can be determined in response to the portable electric appliance being at least one of connected to power and turned on. 15. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance defined by claim 10, wherein the diagnostic testing circuit determines operability of the at least one electrically operable element at least one of in response to user activation, periodically, in response to the portable electric appliance being connected to power, and in response to the portable electric appliance being turned on. 16. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance defined by claim 10, wherein the diagnostic testing circuit comprises at least one of a microcontroller, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and microprocessor. 17. A method of diagnosing a failure in a portable electric appliance defined by claim 11, further comprising: transmitting a beam of radiation; receiving the beam of radiation; and de-energizing the portable electric appliance in response to the beam of radiation being at least one of blocked and interrupted. 18. A portable electric appliance comprising: at least one electrically operable element comprising at least one of a tilt switch, a breaker, a fuse, and an object sensing circuit, the object sensing circuit comprising a transmitter being mounted on an external surface of a housing of the portable electric appliance and being adapted to transmit a beam of radiation and a receiver responsive to the beam of radiation, the receiver being opposingly positioned to the transmitter to receive the beam of radiation, the portable electric appliance being configured to be de-energized in response to an object independent of the portable electric appliance at least one of blocking and interrupting the beam of radiation; and a diagnostic testing circuit adapted to determine operability of the at least one electrically operable element, the diagnostic testing circuit being adapted to indicate whether the at least one electrically operable element is or is not operable independent of whether the portable electric appliance is capable of operating properly. 19. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrically operable element comprises an object sensing circuit having a transmitter disposed on a housing of the portable electric appliance on a first side of an output of the portable electric appliance and a receiver disposed on the housing on a second side of the output so that the transmitter and the receiver are opposing positioned, the transmitter being configured to transmit a beam of radiation through free space and the receiver being configured to receive the beam of radiation directly from the transmitter, the portable electric appliance being de-energized in response to the beam of radiation being at least one of blocked and interrupted. 20. The system of claim 19, wherein the beam of radiation transmitted by the transmitter includes an encoded signal that is decoded at the receiver, operability of the object sensing circuit being determine based on whether a valid encoded signal is received at the receiver.
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