| DIEHL AKO STIFTUNG & CO. KG Patent applications |
| Patent application number | Title | Published |
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| 20120113694 | STEP-DOWN CONVERTER AND INVERTER CIRCUIT - A step-down converter having an improved efficiency has a common input, to which a DC voltage source for applying an input voltage can be connected, and two or more outputs, at each of which a DC voltage can be provided whose value is less than or equal to that of the input voltage. Each of the plurality of outputs is connected to the common input via a positive lead branch and a negative lead branch. At least one inductor is connected in the positive lead and/or the negative lead of each output. At least one switching element is connected in the positive lead and/or the negative lead of each output, such that the outputs of the step-down converter can be operated both in parallel with one another and in series with one another. | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120112818 | OPERATOR CONTROL APPARATUS FOR AN ELECTRICAL HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE - An operator control apparatus for an electrical household appliance has an operator control panel on that side of the operator control apparatus that faces a user and defines an operator control area. A functional assembly is arranged on that face of the operator control panel that is averted from the user. The functional assembly has touch- and/or proximity-sensitive touch-operated switch. The at least one touch-operated switch of the functional assembly is positioned so as to correspond to operator control area of the operator control panel. A connecting apparatus is permanently connected to the operator control panel and releasably connected to the functional assembly, or in the alternative it is permanently connected to the functional assembly while it is releasably connected to the operator control panel. In this way, the functional assembly is releasably attached to the operator control panel but without play. | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120112550 | BOOST CONVERTER WITH MULTIPLE INPUTS AND INVERTER CIRCUIT - A boost converter with a multiple input and with improved efficiency has two or more inputs. A DC voltage source can be connected to each input. A common output carries a DC voltage whose value is greater than or equal to that of the input voltages. The common output is in each case connected to each of the plurality of inputs via a positive lead branch and a negative lead branch. At least one inductor is arranged in the positive lead branch and/or the negative lead branch from each input, and at least one rectification element is arranged in the positive lead branch and/or the negative lead branch from each input. Furthermore, the inputs can be connected in series by means of two or more switching elements via the inductors, wherein at least two of the inductors can in each case be connected in parallel. | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120106222 | METHOD OF OPERATING AN INVERTER BY TURNING OFF THE SWITCHING AROUND A ZERO TRANSITION OF THE ALTERNATING OUTPUT CURRENT - A method of operating an inverter for converting direct voltage into alternating voltage. The inverter has direct-voltage terminals and alternating-voltage terminals and a plurality of power switching elements that are clocked at high-frequency connected between the d.c. and a.c. terminals. The high-frequency clocking of the power switching elements of the inverter is switched off around a zero transition of the alternating current or the alternating voltage for a period which depends on the direct voltage present at the direct-voltage terminals of the inverter and/or the output power of the inverter. No current is generated during time intervals with a poor efficiency. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120019066 | ACTUATOR AND ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM COMPRISING SUCH ACTUATORS - An actuator for the power control of at least one connected load has a load detection device for detecting a magnitude of a load and/or a type of a load of the at least one as a measurement variable relating to the load of the at least one consumer. A communication interface receives at least one manipulated variable for the power control of the at least one consumer and transmits the measurement variable detected by the load detection device. Actuators of this type may be integrated into an energy management system, such as of a building automation system, for example. | 01-26-2012 |
| 20120011661 | LAUNDRY TREATMENT APPLIANCE - A laundry treatment appliance has a laundry treatment apparatus with a rotatably mounted laundry drum held in a housing such that it can move. The laundry treatment apparatus has an electric motor for driving the laundry drum, a control system for actuating the electric motor, a vibration sensor for detecting a vibratory movement of the laundry treatment apparatus, and a vibration-damping apparatus for damping a vibratory movement. The vibration-damping apparatus has at least one controllable vibration damper which can be actuated in dependence on the vibratory movement of the laundry treatment apparatus for changing the vibration-damping properties of the vibration damper. The control system, in the event of a malfunction in a power supply system, actuates the electric motor such that the electric motor generates electrical energy from a rotary movement of the laundry drum and makes it available to the control system. | 01-19-2012 |
| 20120008347 | METHOD FOR OPERATING A DC/DC CONVERTER CIRCUIT CONFIGURATION AND DC/DC CONVERTER CIRCUIT CONFIGURATION - A DC/DC converter circuit configuration contains a rectifier configuration, an inductance and at least one circuit breaker for switching the inductance on its input side. When controlling the circuit configuration, an off time of the circuit breaker is variably changed on the basis of the output power of the circuit configuration and the circuit breaker is respectively switched on in the region of a minimum of a voltage curve across the circuit breaker in order to minimize the switching losses and achieve a high level of efficiency. | 01-12-2012 |
| 20110309816 | AC VOLTAGE CONTROLLER - An AC voltage controller has two transistors which can be positioned between two AC voltage terminals in series with a load. The two transistors are connected in series in such a way that their respective source terminals are connected to one another. The AC voltage controller also contains a signal generator for generating a switching signal for actuating the two transistors, a buffer which is connected downstream of the signal generator and which is set by the signal generator in order to actuate the two transistors. An actuation circuit or driver circuit is connected downstream of the buffer, for the purpose of actuating the two transistors in accordance with the set state of the buffer. A current-limiting circuit is provided for limiting or switching off the current through the two transistors in the case of an excessively large current through the load. | 12-22-2011 |
| 20110309714 | ACTUATING DEVICE, IN PARTICULAR FOR A HEATING ELEMENT VALVE - An actuating device for a heating element valve has a drive motor with a motor shaft, an actuator, and a rotation-linear conversion drive. The conversion drive is coupled on the drive side to the motor shaft and on the output side to the actuator and converts a rotational movement of the motor shaft into a linear movement of the actuator. The rotation-linear conversion drive further has a cam disc on the output side which is provided on its outer circumferential periphery with a plurality of step segments each having a substantially constant distance from the axis of the cam disc. The step segments are connected via connecting segments with a variable axle spacing. | 12-22-2011 |
| 20110248722 | Diagnostic Circuit and Method of Testing a Circuit - A diagnostic circuit is configured for connecting to a unit under test that has a load and a sinusoidal source. The diagnostic circuit includes a voltage sensing device that has an input for sensing a signal, a first terminal for connecting to the load, a second terminal for connecting to the sinusoidal source, and a relay connected between the first and second terminals for connecting the sinusoidal source to the load. Clamping diodes are provide for clamping a sinusoidal signal and include a first clamping diode connected between a D/C voltage source and the input and a second clamping diode connected between ground and the input. A resistor is connected between the D/C voltage source and the first terminal. The diagnostic circuit verifies the operational functionality of the load, related wiring and connections. | 10-13-2011 |
| 20110234018 | CONTROL CIRCUIT FOR AN ELECTRONIC HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE - A control circuit for an electronic household appliance has a control device for controlling the operation of a unit of the appliance. The control device is connected to a supply system via a supply line. A switching device for optionally connecting or disconnecting the control device to or from the supply system is arranged in the supply line. To reduce the energy consumption in stand-by mode of the electronic household appliance, the switching device has a switching contact, arranged in the supply line, with a bistable switching characteristic. A mechanical actuator switches the switching contact into the switching state connecting the control device to the supply system. The actuator is coupled to an operating element that can be operated by a user. An electrical tripping device switches the switching contact into the switching state disconnecting the control device from the supply system. The tripping device is activated by an off signal received from the control device. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110188277 | CIRCUIT CONFIGURATION WITH A STEP-UP CONVERTER, AND INVERTER CIRCUIT HAVING SUCH A CIRCUIT CONFIGURATION - An inverter circuit contains a first and second DC sources for providing a DC voltage, a common step-up converter for boosting the DC voltage, an intermediate circuit capacitor connected between the outputs of the common step-up converter, and an inverter for converting the DC voltage provided by the capacitor into an AC voltage. The common step-up converter contains a series circuit having a first inductance and a first rectifier element and is connected between an output of the first DC source and one side of the intermediate circuit capacitor as well as a series circuit which includes a second inductance and a second rectifier element and is connected between an output of the second DC source and another side of the intermediate circuit capacitor. The common step-up converter further contains a common switching element which is connected between the first and second DC sources. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110188276 | CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENT HAVING A BOOST CONVERTER, AND INVERTER CIRCUIT HAVING SUCH A CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENT - An inverter circuit contains a first and second DC sources for providing a DC voltage, a common boost converter for boosting the DC voltage, an intermediate circuit capacitor connected between the outputs of the common boost converter, and an inverter for converting the DC voltage provided by the capacitor into an AC voltage. The common boost converter contains a series circuit having a first inductance and a first rectifier element and is connected between an output of the first DC source and one side of the intermediate circuit capacitor as well as a series circuit which includes a second inductance and a second rectifier element and is connected between an output of the second DC source and another side of the intermediate circuit capacitor. The common boost converter further contains a common switching element formed by at least two circuit-breakers which are connected between the first and second DC sources. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110187204 | INDUCTIVE TOUCH KEY SWITCH SYSTEM, ASSEMBLY AND CIRCUIT - An inductive touch key switch assembly and circuit are provided. The circuit optimizes signal strength and noise immunity by reducing the number of long paths through the circuit board and localizes the driver circuit to each key switch assembly sensor coil. The key switch assembly optimizes placement of the target to enable the user interfaces on domestic appliances and products having present values of front panel thickness. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110121650 | CIRCUIT CONFIGURATION AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING A VOLTAGE SUPPLY FOR A DRIVER CIRCUIT - A circuit configuration for providing a voltage supply for a driver circuit driven by a controller, contains a controller for driving a driver circuit, and an intermediate circuit for providing a DC voltage. The intermediate circuit is connectable to a voltage source. A first voltage regulating circuit is provided for generating an auxiliary voltage from the DC voltage. A second voltage regulating circuit is provided for generating a first supply voltage for the controller from the auxiliary voltage. A third voltage regulating circuit is provided for generating a second supply voltage for the driver circuit from the auxiliary voltage. In this case, the third voltage regulating circuit generates the second supply voltage in a manner dependent on a control signal from the controller. | 05-26-2011 |
| 20110094870 | OPERATOR CONTROL APPARATUS OF AN ELECTRONIC DOMESTIC APPLIANCE AND METHOD OF PRODUCING THE OPERATOR CONTROL APPARATUS - An operator control apparatus of an electronic domestic appliance contains an operator control panel on that side of the operator control apparatus which faces a user, at least one electrically conductive sensor element on that side of the operator control panel which is averted from the user, and a printed circuit board with at least one electrically conductive contact area which is arranged on that side of the printed circuit board which faces the operator control panel so as to be associated with the at least one sensor element. In this case, the at least one sensor element and the at least one contact area of the printed circuit board are connected to one another by an adhesive which is electrically conductive at least in the connection direction. | 04-28-2011 |
| 20110088415 | ADAPTIVE DEFROST CONTROLLER FOR A REFRIGERATION DEVICE - A system and method for controlling automatic defrost of a refrigerator device are provided. The system adaptively moves the defrost cycle to low usage times based on an evaluation of compressor usage in a daily cycle. | 04-21-2011 |
| 20110037495 | METHOD FOR FAULT DETECTION IN CONTROLLING A ROTARY FIELD MOTOR - The invention specifies a method for fault identification when driving a polyphase motor by means of a frequency converter, wherein, in a rest state, the frequency converter controls the phase voltages of the polyphase motor and the phase currents of the polyphase motor are measured. In this case, provision is made for, then in the rest state, the phase currents or current variables derived therefrom to be adjusted by closed-loop control to a predetermined setpoint current variable, for the frequency converter to be controlled so as to output an interference voltage variable for the phase voltages, for the response of the adjustment by closed-loop control to the interference voltage variable to be observed, and for a conclusion to be drawn regarding a fault of the frequency converter and/or the phases of the polyphase motor from the response of the closed-loop control. The cited method allows for largely loss-free detection of faults in the drive system of a polyphase motor. In the event of field-oriented closed-loop control, no additional complexity is required in the measuring device. | 02-17-2011 |
| 20100283500 | METHOD OF ERROR DETECTION WHEN CONTROLLING A ROTATING FIELD MOTOR - A method is specified for fault identification when operating a rotating-field motor by means of a pulse-controlled inverter, wherein electromagnetic state variables of the rotating-field motor are determined by means of a mathematical model in space-vector form, and wherein the pulse-controlled inverter is operated electronically using space-vector variables. In this case, the invention provides that, during the operation of the rotating-field motor, the space vector of an uncontrolled state variable of the rotating-field motor is formed, in that the space vector that is formed is analyzed for a spectral component at twice the frequency of the rotating field, and in that, if the spectral component at twice the frequency is present, a partial turns short is deduced in the stator windings. | 11-11-2010 |
| 20100277218 | Solar Module and Method of Controlling Operation of a Solar Module - A solar module includes a solar generator for converting incident radiation into electrical power and a solar inverter for feeding the power generated by the solar generator into a power supply system or a load. A variable bias load is connected in parallel with the solar generator and a control device, which drives the variable bias load, detects a presently available power of the solar generator as well as a present no-load loss of the solar inverter, compares the detected power of the solar generator and the detected no-load loss of the solar inverter and enables the power of the solar generator to be fed into the power supply system or the load by the solar inverter only when the detected power of the solar generator exceeds the detected no-load loss of the solar inverter. A method of controlling operation of a solar module is also provided. | 11-04-2010 |
| 20100149000 | OPERATOR CONTROL APPARATUS HAVING AT LEAST ONE PRESSURE-OPERATED SWITCH - An operator control apparatus has at least one pushbutton switch, and can be used, for example, in an operator control panel for an electronic domestic appliance. The operator control apparatus further has a support element, a pressure-sensitive transmission element with at least one sensor area which corresponds to the at least one pushbutton switch and is connected to the support element by a first adhesive layer, and a covering layer which faces the user side. The covering layer is connected to the transmission element by a second adhesive layer, with the second adhesive layer being soft and having an adhesive layer region in the region of the at least one sensor area of the transmission element. The adhesive layer region is smaller than the sensor area and is at least partially separated from the rest of the second adhesive layer by at least one cutout. | 06-17-2010 |
| 20100127577 | POWER FEED APPARATUS AND OPERATING METHOD - A solar module has a solar generator for generating electrical power, and an inverter for feeding the electrical power produced by the solar generator into a power supply system or to one or more loads. An input load is connected in parallel with the solar generator. A control apparatus controls the operation of the inverter such that it measures a difference voltage between the loaded and the unloaded solar generator, weights this difference voltage with a factor, and operates the inverter only when the weighted difference voltage corresponds at most to a threshold voltage. | 05-27-2010 |
| 20100117583 | METHOD FOR OPERATING AN ELECTRIC MOTOR AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING THE METHOD - A method for operating an electric motor with at least two motor terminals that are driven by a control device contains the steps of short-circuiting of at least two of the motor terminals of the electric motor by the control device; measurement of the motor phase currents at the short-circuited motor terminals; and identification of a standstill of the electric motor if a magnitude and/or a frequency of the motor phase currents measured lies below a predefined limit value. In the case of such a reliable identification of the standstill of the electric motor, an enable signal can then advantageously be generated in order, by way of example, to enable access to an apparatus driven by the electric motor. | 05-13-2010 |
| 20100078304 | Operator Control Panel for a Domestic Appliance - An operator control panel for a domestic appliance includes a panel body having an operator control face facing a user and a rear face facing away from the operator control face. A sensor element of an electrically conductive material forms a capacitive sensor area together with the panel body. A conversion electronics system converts capacitance values generated in the sensor area into digital signals. The conversion electronics system is electrically conductively connected to the sensor element and is disposed on the rear face of the panel body. The sensor element and the conversion electronics system are firmly connected to the panel body and are two components which are mechanically decoupled from a control electronics system of the domestic appliance. | 04-01-2010 |
| 20100054732 | Method and System for Monitoring and Servicing Devices Based on One-Wire Infrared Communication - A digital signal is sent by a one-wire digital input/output unit of a one-wire IR communication system at the side of the dedicated device to an IR transmitting element, a working range is established in which the IR signal is sent, which is received at the side of the target device by an IR receiving element of the one-wire IR communication system of the target device, and the IR signal is sent by the one-wire digital input/out of the IR system across the main communication trunk to the modules of the target device. The system has a one-wire infrared communication system installed in a dedicated device and a target device, containing a one-wire digital input/output of the system, connected to a separator/amplifier unit with RxD and TxD lines, while the one-wire input/output of the system at the side with the dedicated device is connected to units of the testing system of the device and at the side with the target device the one-wire digital input/output of the system is connected directly by the main communication trunk to the modules of the target device. | 03-04-2010 |
| 20100025572 | Touch Sensitive Momentary Contact Switch - A touch-sensitive momentary-contact switch has an optical sensor, particularly an infrared sensor, and an evaluation circuit. The evaluation circuit is able to identify a malfunction in the optical sensor, so that the momentary-contact switch can be switched off, for example, for safety reasons. Therefore, it is possible to identify a malfunction in the optical sensor. | 02-04-2010 |
| 20100013355 | "PUSH BUTTON SWITCH" - A push button switch including a piezoelectric element ( | 01-21-2010 |
| 20090284206 | MOTOR CONTROLLER FOR CONTROLLING AN ELECTRIC MOTOR - A motor controller for controlling at least one electric motor has an operating signal generator for generating an operating control signal for the at least one electric motor and also a sound signal generator for generating a sound control signal. A mixer superimposes the sound control signal on the operating control signal in order to obtain a control signal for the at least one electric motor. It is then possible to dispense with loudspeakers and the like in the appliance which contains an electric motor with such a motor controller in order to output, for example, signal tones which indicate an operating state of the appliance to the user. | 11-19-2009 |
| 20090219034 | Diagnostic Circuit and Method of Testing a Circuit - A diagnostic circuit is configured for connecting to a unit under test that has a load and a sinusoidal source. The diagnostic circuit includes a voltage sensing device that has an input for sensing a signal, a first terminal for connecting to the load, a second terminal for connecting to the sinusoidal source, and a relay connected between the first and second terminals for connecting the sinusoidal source to the load. Clamping diodes are provide for clamping a sinusoidal signal and include a first clamping diode connected between a D/C voltage source and the input and a second clamping diode connected between ground and the input. A resistor is connected between the D/C voltage source and the first terminal. The diagnostic circuit verifies the operational functionality of the load, related wiring and connections. | 09-03-2009 |
| 20090184674 | Drive Apparatus for a Washing Machine - A drive apparatus for a washing machine includes an electric motor, a drive shaft connected to the electric motor for rotary drive purposes and electronics for controlling operation of the electric motor. In order to achieve a compact construction, the electric motor and the electronics are integrated in a common unit. In order to increase operational reliability of the drive apparatus together with a simple construction, the common unit has a wall which is thermally coupled both to the electric motor and to the electronics and serves to dissipate heat. The electronics have a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the wall. Both the temperature of the electric motor and the temperature of the electronics can be monitored with this one temperature sensor. | 07-23-2009 |
| 20090152451 | TOUCH-SENSITIVE MOMENTARY-CONTACT SWITCH AND OPERATING DEVICE HAVING AT LEAST ONE TOUCH-SENSITIVE MOMENTARY-CONTACT SWITCH - A touch-sensitive momentary-contact switch includes an infrared-radiation-emitting transmitter, an infrared-radiation-receiving receiver and at least one visible-light-emitting signal element. The transmitter, receiver and signal element radiate into a single light-guiding element. Due to optical beam guidance, a separation of a transmission channel and a reception channel in the light-guiding element is effected in such a way that at a top-side area of the light-guiding element remote from the transmitter and the receiver, a superimposition of a region that can be irradiated by the transmitter and a region that can be detected by the receiver is produced only on a small portion of the area. An operating device for a domestic appliance including at least one touch-sensitive momentary-contact switch, is also provided. | 06-18-2009 |
| 20090128375 | Control Apparatus Having at Least One Pushbutton Switch and Domestic Appliance Having a Control Apparatus - A control apparatus having at least one pushbutton switch can be used, for example, in a control panel of an electronic domestic appliance. The control apparatus includes a mount element, a piezo-film having at least one sensor field corresponding to the at least one pushbutton switch, a first adhesive layer connecting the piezo-film to the mount element, a cover layer facing a user side, a second adhesive layer connecting the cover layer to the piezo-film, and at least one attachment element for attachment of the control apparatus to the control panel. An electronic domestic appliance having a control apparatus is also provided. | 05-21-2009 |
| 20090115425 | Drive System and Method for Final Testing of an Electronic Domestic Appliance and Electronic Domestic Appliance Having the Drive System - A drive system is provided for an electronic domestic appliance, for example a washing machine, a dryer or a dishwasher, having an electric motor and a motor controller for controlling operation of the electric motor. The motor controller is provided with a testing device which contains at least one apparatus for measuring motor currents of the electric motor, an apparatus for applying voltages to motor terminals of the electric motor, and an interface to an evaluation apparatus. The drive system can be tested without problems and at minimal cost during final testing of the domestic appliance if the drive system is fully integrated in the domestic appliance. A method for final testing of an electronic domestic appliance having a drive system and an electronic domestic appliance having the drive system, are also provided. | 05-07-2009 |
| 20090107829 | CAPACITIVE TOUCH SWITCH - A capacitive touch switch for an operator control panel of an electrical domestic appliance includes a panel, a sensor area disposed in the panel, a printed circuit board disposed at a distance behind the panel, and a capacitive sensor element which is disposed between the panel and the printed circuit board, is in electrically conductive contact with the printed circuit board and is associated with the sensor area in the panel at a distance from the sensor area. The sensor area is formed by a plate of metal material, and a non-conductive insulating body is disposed between the plate and the capacitive sensor element. | 04-30-2009 |
| 20090103339 | Method for Operating an Inverter - A method for operating an inverter for converting direct voltage into alternating voltage, having two direct-voltage terminals and two alternating-voltage terminals, between which a plurality of power switching elements clocked at high-frequency are connected. The high-frequency clocking of the power switching elements of the inverter is switched off around a zero transition of the alternating voltage for a period which depends on the direct voltage present at the direct-voltage terminals of the inverter and/or the output power of the inverter, so that no current is generated in time intervals with a poor efficiency at the alternating-voltage terminals of the inverter. | 04-23-2009 |
| 20090062962 | Control Device for an Electronic Domestic Appliance - A control device for an electronic domestic appliance has a control panel of an electrically conducting material and an electronic control system with a mains-connected circuit and a circuit that is galvanically separated from the mains. To protect the electronic control system from electrostatic discharges the control panel is grounded by way of an electrical connection between the control panel and the circuit that is galvanically separated from the mains and also an electrical connection between the galvanically separated circuit and the mains-connected circuit. The latter electrical connection between the galvanically separated circuit and the mains-connected circuit has at least one protection impedance. | 03-05-2009 |
| 20090038921 | Rotary Selector - A rotary selector forms a control element for inputting a setting value to an electronic control system, in particular for a control device of an electronic domestic appliance, such as a washing machine, a dishwasher, or the like. The rotary selector has a rotatably mounted control portion and an adapter non-rotatably connected to the control portion. The adapter has a latching section with side faces arranged uniformly about its periphery. Coaxially with the latching section of the adapter is a stationary spring element formed with elastic legs arranged uniformly about a periphery of the latching section and which extend tangentially relative to the side faces of the latching section. The number of the side faces of the latching section is an integral multiple of the number of the elastic legs of the spring element. | 02-12-2009 |
| 20090027356 | Capacitive Touch Switch - A capacitive touch switch has a touch panel with a top side and an underside. A circuit board is arranged at a spacing under the underside of the touch panel. A capacitive sensor element which is arranged at the underside of the touch panel and which is in electrically conductive contact with the circuit board is disposed or formed on a circuit carrier that is flexible and three-dimensionally deformable for adaptation to the freely shaped underside of the touch panel. | 01-29-2009 |
| 20080256985 | Control Apparatus and Control Method for an Electrical Domestic Applicance - A control apparatus for an electrical domestic appliance with a component that presents a danger to the user and a protection component for protecting the user against a danger presented by the dangerous component, has a control device monitoring the operating states of the dangerous component and the protection component and also to activate and/or deactivate the protection component. A protection device prevents a deactivation of the protection component by the control device outside a deactivation operating range of the dangerous component, in which range deactivation of the protection component is permissible. The control apparatus also has a protection-device monitoring device that initiates a deactivation of the protection component within a simulation operating range of the dangerous component within which the operating state of the dangerous component does not present a danger to the user and which range is outside the deactivation operating range. The control device also identifies a malfunction of the protection device if the protection component is actually deactivated when deactivation of the protection component is initiated by the protection-device monitoring device. | 10-23-2008 |
| 20080210851 | Optical Sensor - An optical sensor for a touch-sensitive push button of a control mechanism for an electronic household appliance has a transmitter, which emits electromagnetic radiation, and a receiver, which receives reflected electromagnetic radiation. A cover is at least partly transparent to the electromagnetic radiation and the transmitter and the receiver are arranged behind the cover. A radiation guide mechanism, for example a diaphragm frame, is provided between the transmitter and the receiver, on the one hand, and the cover, on the other hand, for guiding the radiation emitted from the transmitter towards the cover and to guide the reflected radiation penetrating the cover to the receiver. The diaphragm frame broadens the emission characteristic of the transmitter outward from the cover and/or the reception characteristic of the receiver inward into the cover. Additionally or alternatively, the emission characteristic outward from the cover is inclined in the direction of the reception characteristic of the receiver into the cover and/or the reception characteristic of the receiver into the cover is inclined in the direction of the emission characteristic of the transmitter out from the cover. This moves the range of intersection between emission and reception characteristic closer to the cover, so that the signal-to-noise ratio of the optical sensor is reduced. | 09-04-2008 |
| 20080202170 | Appliance with a Controllable Protection Device - An appliance with a hazardous device contains a first controller controlled by a first control element which, in turn, is controlled by a second controller by use of a first switching element. An electrically controllable protection device is provided and is controlled by a second control element, it is possible to deactivate the protection device. A storage capacitor is provided between the first and the second control element and supplies the second control element with energy for a control pulse and is charged by the first control element when the first controller is switched off and is discharged by the first switching element when the first controller is switched on. This circuit generates a safe control circuit. In the event of a possible hazardous state, either the first controller is no longer supplied with energy or the protection device cannot be deactivated, and so danger to a user is precluded. | 08-28-2008 |
