US 12,252,831 B2
Washing machine appliance and methods for varying dispensing based on water hardness
Austin Horn, Independence, KY (US); Noushin Mir, Louisville, KY (US); Hyeonsoo Moon, Seoul (KR); Wonmyung Seo, Gyeonggi-do (KR); Khalid Jamal Mashal, Louisville, KY (US); and Je Kwon Yoon, Seongnam (KR)
Assigned to Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc., Wilmington, DE (US)
Filed by Haier US Appliance Solutions, Inc., Wilmington, DE (US)
Filed on Aug. 5, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/881,705.
Prior Publication US 2024/0044065 A1, Feb. 8, 2024
Int. Cl. D06F 33/37 (2020.01); D06F 34/22 (2020.01); D06F 39/02 (2006.01); D06F 103/20 (2020.01); D06F 103/60 (2020.01); D06F 105/42 (2020.01)
CPC D06F 33/37 (2020.02) [D06F 34/22 (2020.02); D06F 39/02 (2013.01); D06F 2103/20 (2020.02); D06F 2103/60 (2020.02); D06F 2105/42 (2020.02)] 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A washing machine appliance, comprising:
a wash tub positioned within a cabinet;
a wash basket rotatably mounted within the wash tub and defining a wash chamber configured for receiving a load of clothes;
a dispensing assembly configured to selectively dispense a flow of wash fluid through a discharge nozzle into the wash tub;
a water hardness sensor mounted in fluid communication with the wash tub;
a camera assembly spaced apart from the wash tub; and
a controller communicatively coupled to the water hardness sensor and the camera assembly, the controller being configured to direct a washing operation, the washing operation comprising
identifying, based on visual data captured by the camera assembly, a wash additive provided to the washing machine appliance,
determining, based on data measured by the water hardness sensor, a water hardness level of water provided to the washing machine appliance,
determining a cycle additive volume based on a default volume associated with the identified wash additive and modifying the default volume based on the determined water hardness level, and
dispensing the determined cycle additive volume within the wash tub.