US 11,866,869 B1
Systems and methods using image recognition processes and determined device orientation for laundry load size determinations
Je Kwon Yoon, Seongnam (KR); Hyeonsoo Moon, Seoul (KR); Myunggeon Chung, Seoul (KR); Suzy Kwak, Seoul (KR); and Khalid Jamal Mashal, Louisville, KY (US)
Assigned to Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc., Wilmington, DE (US)
Filed by Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc., Wilmington, DE (US)
Filed on Sep. 12, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/942,426.
Int. Cl. D06F 34/18 (2020.01); D06F 34/28 (2020.01); D06F 34/20 (2020.01); D06F 34/05 (2020.01); D06F 103/04 (2020.01)
CPC D06F 34/18 (2020.02) [D06F 34/05 (2020.02); D06F 34/20 (2020.02); D06F 34/28 (2020.02); D06F 2103/04 (2020.02)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of operating a washing machine appliance, the washing machine appliance comprising a cabinet, a wash tub, and a wash basket, the wash tub being mounted within the cabinet, and the wash basket being rotatably mounted within the wash tub and defining a wash chamber configured for receiving a load of clothes, the method comprising:
obtaining one or more images of an external basket spaced apart from the washing machine appliance from a camera assembly;
analyzing an obtained image of the one or more images using an image recognition process to estimate a fill level of a load of clothes within the external basket;
matching the estimated fill level to an estimated load size; and
directing a wash cycle within the washing machine appliance based on the estimated load size.