FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[001] Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a Modular design of a smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen Appliances. The present invention discloses a mechanism that enables a user himself to replace any component or module in the smart grinding appliance; a mechanism that can monitor the quality, status, working condition, processes etc., but not limited to these attributes done by the smart grinding appliance. The present invention also discloses a mechanism that can automatically place an order which is not limited to any component or module of the smart grinding appliance through online e-commerce websites, stores etc. but not limited to these. Particularly, the present invention relates to a system to identify malfunctioning in components of a kitchen appliance.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[002] The subject matter discussed in the background section should not be assumed to be prior art merely as a result of it being mention in the background section. Similarly, a problem mentioned in the background section or associated with the subject matter of the background section should not be assumed to have been previously recognized in the prior art. The subject matter in the background section merely represents different approaches, which in and of themselves may also correspond to implementations of the claimed technology.

[003] A Kitchen in a house has many appliances that are repeatedly used. During cooking there are many tedious processes and for the same many electrical or electronic operatable appliances like mixer-grinders, grinders etc. but not limited to these are used to help the user with complex processes or tasks like cutting, grinding, mixing, blending etc., but not limited to these. There are also other appliances like refrigerators that help the user in preserving cooked or un-cooked food. [004] In all cases, if any of the appliances mentioned above needs to be repaired, user is usually bound to take the appliance to a service center to know about the malfunction of the appliance. In some cases, a trained person from the service center has to be given access to the appliance to repair the problem in the appliance for which the user has to pay service cost, Conveyance 5 cost, allowance cost etc.

[005] A typical user only has a limited knowledge to what could be the malfunction in the appliance and typically there is no way for the user to continuously monitor the appliance and to know beforehand if any component in the appliance is at its end- life(or) close to wear-off that may 10 lead to replacement of the component. Also, for any case of repair the user has to manage for days without that appliance till it gets repaired. There may be cases where a particular component of the appliance may not be available at the service centre or may be hard to find which leads to extended down time of the appliance. 15

[006] Therefore, there is a system to identify malfunctioning in components of a kitchen appliance that may relieve the user from afore mentioned challenges or inconveniences.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

[007] An object of the present invention is to provide a system to identify malfunctioning in components of a kitchen appliance.

[008] Another object of the present invention is to provide a modular design of a smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance.

[009] Another object of the present invention is to provide a method that can enable a user to identify any problem or malfunction in the smart grinding appliance or any component or module of the smart grinding appliance by monitoring the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance.

[010] Yet another object of the invention is to provide a sensor module that can monitor each and every component or module of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance by monitoring the processes, quality/status of the processes, working condition etc., but not limited to these of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance or any component or module of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance.

[011] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a computer executable application which can be installed and used in any internet enabled device or smart device like smart phones, laptops, smart watches etc., but not limited to these that can help the user to monitor the processes, quality/status of the processes, working condition etc., but not limited to these of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance (or) any component or module of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance.

[012] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method that can enable a user to place an order of any component or module that may need to be replaced for reasons not limiting to providing lack of optimum output etc., of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance by an Al through any online e- commerce websites, stores etc. but not limited to these.

[013] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method to enable a user to easily eject and insert any component or module of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance that needs to be replaced. The user can press a button next to the component or module to eject it from its designated socket. After receiving the new component or module, the user can place and push to insert it into the designated socket in the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance. The smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance can use any other method not limiting to the method mentioned above to eject and insert any component or module of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[014] The present invention is described hereinafter by various embodiments. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiment set forth herein. Rather, the embodiment is provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. [015] According to an aspect of the present invention a system to identify malfunctioning in one or more components of a kitchen appliance is provided. The system comprises one or more sensors in communication with the one or more components of the kitchen appliance. The one or more sensors are configured to detect change of one or more parameters of each component of the one or more components. The system comprises a processing module in communication with the one or more sensors, is configured to compare the one or more parameters with predetermined parameters, determine a condition of the component based on the comparison of one or more parameters, wherein the condition is selected from a malfunctioning component or a functioning component. Further, the condition is determined as the malfunctioning if the one or more parameters falls outside a criteria of the predetermined parameters. Furthermore, the condition is determined as the functioning if the one or more parameters falls within the criteria of the predetermined parameters.

[016] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the processing module is configured to generate an order for a new component based on the component being malfunctioning.

[017] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the one or more parameters are selected from a group comprising temperature, heat, humidity, vibration, pressure, number of hours the component is running, current, and voltage.

[018] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the one or more sensors selected from a group comprising a proximity sensor, a voltage sensor, a current sensor, a proximity sensor, a gyro sensor, a vibration sensor, a pressure sensor, a heat sensor, a temperature sensor, and a timer.

[019] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the processing module is configured to determine the condition using Artificial Intelligence or Machine learning.

[020] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the system comprises a communication module, in communication with the processing module, configured to send an alert to a user device held by a user about malfunctioning of the components, generation of the order and cost of the component. [021] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the cost of the component is determined based on the cost of the component on the e-commerce website, and stores.

[022] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the system comprises one or more switches to eject the malfunctioning components for replacement.

[023] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the processing module is configured to queue the order if the malfunctioning component is out of warranty.

[024] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the components including motors, blade, microcontroller, PCBs, electrical connections, condensers, nuts and bolts, sealing rubber, sockets, gears, container, and connectors.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[025] So that the manner in which the above recited features of the present invention can be understood in detail, a more particular to the description of the invention, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments.

[026] These and other features, benefits and advantages of the present invention will become apparent by reference to the following text figure, with like reference numbers referring to like structures across the views, wherein:

[027] Fig. 1 illustrates an environment diagram of a system to identify malfunctioning in components of a kitchen appliance, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

[028] Fig. 2a and fig. 2b illustrate information flow diagram, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [029] While the present invention is described herein by way of example using embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is not limited to the embodiments of drawing or drawings described and are not intended to represent the scale of the various components. Further, some components that may form a part of the invention may not be illustrated in certain figures, for ease of illustration, and such omissions do not limit the embodiments outlined in any way. It should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

[030] As used throughout this description, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense, (i.e., meaning must). Further, the words "a" or "an" mean "at least one” and the word “plurality” means “one or more” unless otherwise mentioned. Furthermore, the terminology and phraseology used herein is solely used for descriptive purposes and should not be construed as limiting in scope. Language such as "including," "comprising," "having," "containing," or "involving," and variations thereof, is intended to be broad and encompass the subject matter listed thereafter, equivalents, and additional subject matter not recited, and is not intended to exclude other additives, components, integers or steps.

[031] Likewise, the term "comprising" is considered synonymous with the terms "including" or "containing" for applicable legal purposes. Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles and the like is included in the specification solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It is not suggested or represented that any or all of these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention.

[032] The present invention is described hereinafter by various embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein reference numerals used in the accompanying drawing correspond to the like elements throughout the description. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiment set forth herein. Rather, the embodiment is provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In the following detailed description, numeric values and ranges are provided for various aspects of the implementations described. These values and ranges are to be treated as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims. In addition, a number of materials are identified as suitable for various facets of the implementations. These materials are to be treated as exemplary and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

[033] Figure 1 illustrates an environment diagram of a system (100) to identify malfunctioning in components of a kitchen appliance (150), in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The system (100) comprises one or more sensors (104) in communication with the one or more components of the kitchen appliance (150), a processing module (102), a communication module (1026) and a user device (106) held by a user.

[034] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the components of the kitchen appliance (150) may include, but not limited to, motors, blade, microcontroller, PCBs, electrical connections, condensers, nuts and bolts, sealing rubber, sockets, gears, container, connectors. The one or more components may have markings.

[035] Further, the one or more sensors (104) may be, but not limited to, a proximity sensor (104), a voltage sensor (104), a current sensor (104), a proximity sensor (104), a gyro sensor (104), a vibration sensor (104), a heat sensor (104), a temperature sensor (104), and a timer, a pressure sensor (104), laser sensor (104), acoustic sensor (104), magnetic sensor (104), hall sensor (104), infrared sensor (104) etc. The one or more sensors (104) may read the markings on the components to detect a change of one or more parameters.

[036] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the processing module (102) is envisaged to include computing capabilities such as a memory unit (1022) configured to store machine readable instructions. The machine-readable instructions may be loaded into the memory unit (1022) from a non-transitory machine- readable medium, such as, but not limited to, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs and Flash Drives. Alternately, the machine-readable instructions may be loaded in a form of a computer software program into the memory unit (1022). The memory unit (1022) in that manner may be selected from a group comprising EPROM, EEPROM and Flash memory. Then, the processing module (102) includes a processor (1024) operably connected with the memory unit (1022). In various embodiments, the processor (1024) may be a microprocessor selected from one of, but not limited to an ARM based or Intel based processor or in the form of field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a general-purpose processor and an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

[037] Further, the processing module (102) further comprises a communication module (1026) configured for enabling connection of the processor (1024), the one or more sensors (104), and the user device (106) (106). The connection may be wired or wireless. In that sense, the communication module (1026) may include Power over Ethernet Switch, USB ports etc. These may allow transferring of data to and from the processing module (102), the one or more sensors (104), and the user device (106) via Ethernet cable, USB cable etc.

[038] Additionally, or alternately, the communication module (1026) may be an Internet of Things (IOT) module, Wi-Fi module, Bluetooth module, RF module etc. adapted to enable a wireless communication between the processing module (102), the one or more sensors (104), and the user device (106) via a wireless communication network (110). The wireless communication network (1 10) may be, but not limited to, Bluetooth network, RF network, NFC, WIFI network, Local Area Network (LAN) or a Wide Area Network (WAN). The wireless communication network (110) may be implemented using a number of protocols, such as but not limited to, TCP/IP, 3GPP, 3GPP2, LTE, IEEE 802.x, etc. In one embodiment, the all the components of the system (100) are connected with each other via the communication network (110).

[039] Additionally, the user device (106) is connected with the processing module (102) via a wired or wireless connection. Herein, the user device (106) may be selected from computing devices such as desktop PC, laptop, PDA or hand-held computing device such as smartphones and tablets. It has already been mentioned, the user device (106) are associated with the users. In another embodiment, instead of a processing module (102) and the user device (106) being a stand-alone device, the user device (106) may house the processing module (102) along with their functionalities. The user device (106) already includes microprocessor (1024) for processing and communication capabilities via wired or wireless connections.

[040] Further, the system (100) may comprise comprising one or more switches. The one or more switches may be, but not limited to, an electrical switch, a motorised switch or a mechanical switch. The one or more switch may work on snap fit and release mechanism. The one or more switches may be installed with the components of the kitchen appliance (150). The one or more switch may be pressed to eject the corresponding component from its position in the kitchen appliance (150). The components may be placed in designated sockets which are releasably attached with a designated switch of the one or more switches. The components may be released form the sockets on actuating the designated switch.

[041] The system (100) may also include a user interface. The user interface module may include a display envisaged to show the data received from the one or more sensors (104), the user device (106), the communication module (1026) and the processing module (102). The display may be, but not limited to Light-emitting diode display (LED), electroluminescent display (ELD), liquid crystal display (LCD), Organic light-emitting diode (OLED) & AMOLED display. Furthermore, the user interface may include accessories like keyboard, mouse etc. envisaged to provide input capability to enable a user to enter a command or a recipe. In another embodiment, the user interface may be a touch input-based display that integrates the input-output functionalities.

[042] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the system (100) may also include a data repository (106). The data repository (106) may be a local storage (such as SSD, eMMC, Flash, SD card, etc.) or a cloud-based storage. In any manner, the data repository (106) is envisaged to be capable of providing the data to the processing module (102), when the data is queried appropriately using applicable security and other data transfer protocols. The data repository (106) may store predetermined parameters, data received from the one or more sensors (104), the communication module (1026), and the processing module (102); and past performances of the system (100). In one embodiment of the present invention, the processing module (102) may include Al and deep learning-based trained models using the above data, so as to monitor components of the kitchen appliance (150).

[043] Furthermore, in an embodiment the system (100) may further comprise a power module to power all elements of the system (100) such as, but not limited to the one or more sensors (104), the components, the communication module (1026), and the processing module (102). The power module may be an AC or DC power module, a non-rechargeable battery or a rechargeable battery. In one embodiment, the power module is a self-sustainable battery that makes the system (100) a self-powered device.

[044] In yet another embodiment, the system (100) could be implemented as a distributed system (100) where the user device (106) and the processing module (102) may be at disposed at a different locations from each other and/or the processing module (102) could be implemented in a server side computing device or cloud computing environment. It will be appreciated by a skilled addressee that there are multiple arrangement in which the present invention can be implemented, without departing from the scope of the present invention. The processing module (102) is also envisaged to implement Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and deep learning for data collation and processing.

[045] The invention works in following manner:

[046] Figure 2a and figure 2b illustrate information flow diagram, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in figure 2a, the one or more sensors (104) in communication with the one or more components of the kitchen appliance (150), are configured to detect change of one or more parameters of each component of the one or more components. The one or more parameters may be selected from a group comprising temperature, heat, humidity, vibration, pressure, number of hours the component is running, current, and voltage.

[047] For example, the one or more sensors (104) such as the temperature sensor (104) or the heat sensor (104) and the vibration sensor (104) may detect a change in temperature, amount of vibration in the motor of the kitchen appliance (150), further, the one or more sensor (104) such as the current sensor (104) or voltage sensor (104) may detect irregularity in voltage or current in the kitchen appliance (150). Furthermore, the one or more sensors (104) such as timer may detect a delay in process such as grinding, grilling, cooking, etc. of the kitchen appliance (150). Further, the one or more sensor (104) such as the humidity sensor (104) may detect humidity in the electrical connection. In addition, the one or more sensors (104) such as pressure sensor (104) may detect irregular rise or fall in pressure inside the container of kitchen appliance (150).

[048] Further, the processing module (102) in communication with the one or more sensors (104), is configured to compare the one or more parameters with predetermined parameters. The predetermined parameters such as, but not limited to, a range of temperature in the motor, vibration in the motor, voltage or current in the kitchen appliance (150), general time taken in process such as grinding, grilling, cooking, etc. of the kitchen appliance (150), humidity in the electrical connection, pressure inside the container of kitchen appliance (150) etc. the predetermined parameters may provide a tolerable amount of parameters in the kitchen appliance (150). The processing module (102) may compare the one or more parameters received from the one or more sensors (104).

[049] Further, the processing module (102) is configured to determine a condition of the component based on the comparison of one or more parameters. The processing module (102) may be configured to determine the condition using Artificial Intelligence or Machine learning. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the condition is selected from a malfunctioning component or a functioning component. The condition is determined as the malfunctioning if the one or more parameters falls outside a criteria of the predetermined parameters.

[050] For example, the one or more sensors (104) such as the temperature sensor (104) or the heat sensor (104) and the vibration sensor (104) may detect a change in temperature, amount of vibration which is beyond tolerable temperature or vibration, in the component such as motor of the kitchen appliance (150), the processing module (102) may determine the condition of the motor as the malfunctioning component. Further, the one or more sensor (104) such as the current sensor (104) or voltage sensor (104) may detect irregularity in voltage or current which is beyond tolerable range of the predetermined parameters in the kitchen appliance (150), the processing module (102) may determine the condition of the component as the malfunctioning component. Further, the processing module (102) is configured to stop the kitchen appliance (150) in case of detection of the malfunctioning component.

[051] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the communication module (1026), in communication with the processing module (102), is configured to send an alert to the user device (106) held by the user about malfunctioning of the components. The one or more switches may be configured to eject the malfunctioning components for replacement. For example, the malfunctioning component is the motor, any switch of the one or more switch may be pressed to release the motor from its position in the kitchen appliance (150) for replacement. For example, the user can themselves eject the component from a designated socket by just clicking a button next to them.

[052] Further, in an alternative or additional embodiment, as shown in figure 2b, the processing module (102) is further configured to generate an order for a new component based on the component being malfunctioning. Further, the communication module (1026) is configured to send the alert to the user device (106) held by the user about the generation of the order and cost of the malfunctioning component. The order may be sent to a store or an e commerce website. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the cost of the component is determined based on the cost of the component on the e-commerce website, and stores. Further, the processing module (102) is configured to queue the order if the malfunctioning component is out of warranty.

[053] For example, if and when any component that needs replacement is under warranty, the component or module is automatically queued for order through the computer executable application and the user is notified. Once the user provides a confirmation to proceed with the order, the order is placed and the user is notified regarding the placed order. If the particular component is not under warranty, the component or module is queued for order and the price of the component is shown in the user device (106) for the user to pay to proceed with the order. Once the user completes the payment, the order of the component or module is placed through any e- commerce websites, stores etc., and the user is notified of the placed order. After receiving the new component or module, the user can insert the new component or module by placing and pushing it into its designated socket.

[054] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the condition is determined as the functioning component by the processing module (102) if the one or more parameters falls within the criteria of the predetermined parameters. For example, the one or more sensors (104) such as timer may detect a delay in process such as grinding, grilling, cooking, etc. of the kitchen appliance (150) which is in tolerable range of the predetermined parameters, the processing module (102) may determine the condition as the functioning component. Further, the one or more sensor (104) such as the humidity sensor (104) may detect humidity in the electrical connection which is in tolerable range of the predetermined parameters, the processing module (102) may determine the condition as the functioning component. In addition, the one or more sensors (104) such as pressure sensor (104) may detect irregular rise or fall in pressure inside the container of kitchen appliance (150) which is in tolerable range of the predetermined pressure irregularity, the processing module (102) may determine the condition as the functioning component. The processing module (102) may further be configured to determine a condition of the component as near replacement when the component is near its end life. The condition may be determined by comparing the one or more parameters with the predefined parameters and where the one or more parameter is near the tolerable criteria of the predetermined parameters, the condition may be determined as the near replacement condition.

[055] The present invention offers a number of advantages. Firstly, it provides a cost- effective and technologically advanced solution to the problems of the prior art, the solution provided herein is easy to understand and implement. Then, the present invention provides a modular design of a smart grinding appliance or any loT enabled kitchen appliance (150) that can be used in food preparation, processing and preserving any ingredient or food item etc., but not limited to these. Further, the present invention provides a method for monitoring the processes, quality/status of processes, working condition etc. but not limited to these of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance (150) and all the components or modules of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance (150). Further, the present invention provides a method to analyse the service time of any component or module by using Artificial intelligence or Machine learning algorithm etc., but not limited to these.

[056] Further, the present invention provides a computer executable application to continuously monitor the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance (150). Additionally, the present invention provides a method to enable the user to order any component or module that is at its end-life or close to wear-off that may need replacement. Also, the present invention provides a method to enable the user to easily eject and insert any component or module of the smart grinding appliance or loT enabled kitchen appliance (150). It will be appreciated by a skilled addressee that the present invention may also be used in applications other than Kitchen appliances to monitor them; monitor and check the condition of any component or module of the appliance or the entire appliance and automatically place an order of any component or module that needs replacement and then eject the malfunctioned component or module and insert the new component or module, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[057] In general, the word “module,” or “unit” as used herein, refers to logic embodied in hardware or firmware, or to a collection of software instructions, written in a programming language, such as, for example, Java, C, or assembly. One or more software instructions in the modules may be embedded in firmware, such as an EPROM. It will be appreciated that modules may comprised connected logic units, such as gates and flip-flops, and may comprise programmable units, such as programmable gate arrays or processors. The modules described herein may be implemented as either software and/or hardware modules and may be stored in any type of computer-readable medium or other computer storage device.

[058] Further, while one or more operations have been described as being performed by or otherwise related to certain modules, devices or entities, the operations may be performed by or otherwise related to any module, device or entity. As such, any function or operation that has been described as being performed by a module could alternatively be performed by a different server, by the cloud computing platform, or a combination thereof. It should be understood that the techniques of the present disclosure might be implemented using a variety of technologies. For example, the methods described herein may be implemented by a series of computer executable instructions residing on a suitable computer readable medium. Suitable computer readable media may include volatile (e.g., RAM) and/or non-volatile (e.g., ROM, disk) memory, carrier waves and transmission media. Exemplary carrier waves may take the form of electrical, electromagnetic or optical signals conveying digital data steams along a local network or a publicly accessible network such as the Internet.

[059] It should also be understood that, unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the following discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as "controlling" or "obtaining" or "computing" or "storing" or "receiving" or "determining" or the like, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computing device, that processes and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.

[060] Various modifications to these embodiments are apparent to those skilled in the art from the description and the accompanying drawings. The principles associated with the various embodiments described herein may be applied to other embodiments. Therefore, the description is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown along with the accompanying drawings but is to be providing broadest scope of consistent with the principles and the novel and inventive features disclosed or suggested herein. Accordingly, the invention is anticipated to hold on to all other such alternatives, modifications, and variations that fall within the scope of the present invention and the appended claims.