Machine appliance and a method for preventing an oversuds condition

Abstract

A method for preventing an oversuds condition in a washing machine appliance includes a tub and a basket rotatably mounted within the tub. The basket defines a chamber for receipt of articles for washing. The method includes obtaining, via a controller, one or more detergent parameters from one or more previous wash cycles of the washing machine appliance. Further, the method includes analyzing, via the controller, the one or more detergent parameters to predict an amount of suds that will be generated in a future wash cycle of the washing machine appliance. Moreover, the method includes automatically adjusting, via the controller, at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds to prevent the amount of suds from exceeding a suds threshold.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for preventing an oversuds condition in a washing machine appliance, the washing machine appliance having a tub and a basket rotatably mounted within the tub, the basket defining a chamber for receipt of articles for washing, the method comprising:
 obtaining, via a controller, one or more detergent parameters from one or more previous wash cycles of the washing machine appliance;   analyzing, via the controller, the one or more detergent parameters to predict an amount of suds that will be generated in a future wash cycle of the washing machine appliance; and   automatically adjusting, via the controller, at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds to prevent the amount of suds from exceeding a suds threshold.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more detergent parameters comprises at least one of an amount of detergent, a type of detergent, suds generation, a number of oversuds events, or a fluid temperature for the one or more previous wash cycles. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising determining the suds generation from the one or more previous wash cycles using an existing algorithm of the washing machine appliance. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising determining the fluid temperature using at least one thermistor. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising analyzing the one or more detergent parameters to predict the amount of suds that will be generated in the future wash cycle of the washing machine appliance using at least one of an algorithm, one or more look-up tables, or a machine learning process. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one operating parameter comprises at least one of an amount of detergent, a target temperature, or a target water level. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein automatically adjusting the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds further comprises:
 automatically adjusting the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds and an amount of detergent selected for the future wash cycle.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein automatically adjusting the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds further comprises:
 determining, via the controller, the amount of suds that will be generated in the future wash cycle of the washing machine appliance based on the suds generation, the fluid temperature, and the amount of detergent selected for the future wash cycle.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein automatically adjusting the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds further comprises:
 correlating the one or more detergent parameters from one or more previous wash cycles with an adjustment factor for the amount of detergent for the future wash cycle; and   applying the adjustment factor to the amount of detergent for the future wash cycle.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein applying the adjustment factor to the amount of detergent for the future wash cycle further comprises:
 sending, via the controller, a signal to a smart detergent dispenser of the washing machine appliance to increase, decrease, or maintain the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the adjustment factor.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising limiting the adjustment factor using upper and lower limits. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising continuously tuning the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the one or more detergent parameters from a plurality of previous wash cycles. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the washing machine appliance is a vertical axis washing machine appliance. 
     
     
         14 . A washing machine appliance, comprising:
 a tub;   a basket rotatably mounted within the tub, the basket defining a chamber for receipt of articles for washing;   a valve;   a spout configured for directing fluid from the valve into the tub;   a dispenser configured for dispensing detergent into the tub;   a motor in mechanical communication with the basket, the motor configured for selectively rotating the basket within the tub; and   a controller configured for controlling the washing machine appliance, the controller configured to perform a plurality of operations, the plurality of operations comprising:
 obtaining one or more detergent parameters from one or more previous wash cycles of the washing machine appliance; 
 analyzing the one or more detergent parameters to predict an amount of suds that will be generated in a future wash cycle of the washing machine appliance; and 
 automatically adjusting at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds to prevent the amount of suds from exceeding a suds threshold. 
   
     
     
         15 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 14 , wherein the one or more detergent parameters comprises at least one of an amount of detergent, a type of detergent, suds generation, a number of oversuds events, or a fluid temperature for the one or more previous wash cycles, wherein the at least one operating parameter comprises at least one of an amount of detergent, a target temperature, or a target water level. 
     
     
         16 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 15 , further comprising determining the suds generation from the one or more previous wash cycles using an existing algorithm of the washing machine appliance. 
     
     
         17 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 15 , further comprising at least one thermistor for determining the fluid temperature. 
     
     
         18 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 14 , wherein analyzing the one or more detergent parameters to predict the amount of suds that will be generated in the future wash cycle of the washing machine appliance further comprises:
 analyzing the one or more detergent parameters to predict the amount of suds that will be generated in the future wash cycle of the washing machine appliance using at least one of an algorithm, one or more look-up tables, or a machine learning process.   
     
     
         19 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 15 , wherein automatically adjusting the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds further comprises:
 automatically adjusting the amount of detergent for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds and an amount of detergent selected for the future wash cycle.   
     
     
         20 . The washing machine appliance of  claim 15 , wherein automatically adjusting the at least one operating parameter for the future wash cycle based on the predicted amount of suds further comprises:
 correlating the one or more detergent parameters with an adjustment factor for the amount of detergent for the future wash cycle;   applying the adjustment factor to the amount of detergent for the future wash cycle; and   sending a signal to the dispenser to increase, decrease, or maintain the amount of detergent for the future wash cycle based on the adjustment factor.