Smart Module System

Smart Module System Simplified Control Design

Reprinted by special permission from Appliance Magazine. Copyright Dana Chase Publications, February 1999

A new tool to design appliance controls has the potential to cut development time from months to weeks. APPLIANCE magazine got the first look at this new technology.

A new tool to design appliance controls has the potential to cut development time from months to weeks. APPLIANCE magazine got the first look at this new technology. A design and development tool which has the potential to change how appliance OEMs create new products and to decrease the time it takes to bring those products to market goes on view at the Domotechnica biennial trade fair Feb. 22-25 in the KölnMesse in Cologne, Germany.

This new software library of objects and a companion controller promise to: cut development time of controls down to weeks (or even days) eliminate the necessity to hold large inventories of controls for different models of an appliance permit the production of short-run "niche" products, and allow upgrading of existing appliances by simply re-programming the controller.

Appliance OEMs will get their first look this month at Siebe Appliance Controls’ ControlWorks™ software and SmartModule™ controller. Siebe invited selected appliance OEM engineers to view the product in its exhibit space in the KölnMesse. Siebe executives shared details about their new product with APPLIANCE magazine late last year.

ControlWorks is based on the idea that engineers should not have to start from scratch each time they design a new product. What Siebe Appliance Controls has done is develop a series of control algorithms which OEMs can start with, then modify as needed. These algorithms are saved in a library and can be used "as is" or customized by the user as necessary.

For example, a typical control for a gas oven includes this sequence of events: turn switch to "on" position, ignite the flame, bring oven cavity temperature to X°, then maintain that temperature until instructed otherwise.

For an automatic washing machine, the instructions might be: if washing cotton fabric, then raise wash water to N°, fill tub to level X, agitate for Y minutes, drain tub, spin for Z minutes, then shut off.

Siebe has written basic commands such as these, as well as more complicated commands, and saved these instructions as objects in a software library. When an appliance engineer goes to design a control, he or she can simply grab the necessary objects with a computer mouse and drag them into a software program. Siebe executive Tim Matt refers to this as a "Lego block" approach to building controls.

Origins in Foxboro
Siebe’s appliance control division adapted this approach from Foxboro, a sister division in Massachusetts which writes software to control complex processes such as at a chemical plant. Foxboro’s customers are huge petrochemical processors. Every sensor and valve in one of these plants (which can be spread across acres of land) can be controlled from one room. Mr. Matt, a corporate vice president in Siebe Appliance Control’s Richmond, VA, office came from the Foxboro division.

"We have operations in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Each developed controls for local markets. But there was little sharing of knowledge between the markets. To achieve our lean manufacturing goals, we have to share knowledge," Mr. Matt says.

Siebe developed the software for its internal use because it designs so many controls for so many appliance OEMs. Siebe engineers could not afford to start from scratch every time they sat down to design a control.

"With 10,000 engineers in Siebe, we have to re-use our knowledge components," Mr. Matt says.

Siebe drew on its talent in the U.S., Germany, France, and other locations. In all, 37 engineers throughout the Siebe Appliance Controls division worked on the project.

How Controls Are Currently Developed
When an appliance OEM decides to develop a new oven, for example, a designer sketches on paper how the control panel might appear (including the shapes and sizes of buttons and knobs), what components are needed, and the rough costs to manufacture this control. In this development phase, a designer revises the design several times before it is approved. This process might take from 1 to 6 months, says Bill Stafford, Siebe vice president of special projects.

In the design phase, designers develop a control module. Often this work is created from scratch. There could be some prototyping and end-user focus groups in this phase which can last from 6 to 12 months.

With an approved working drawing of the control, the project moves on to the testing phase, where the product undergoes UL and CSA tests. The test cycle lasts from 3 to 6 months.

With everything approved, the OEM can shift from the pre-production phase to the manufacturing cycle where appliances are produced in high volumes. This will be 3 to 4 months.

In total, the entire process—from concept to production—can take 14 to 24 months.

Lead Times in Weeks, Not Years
Siebe’s ControlWorks is a system of re-usable components that are pre-deployed, pre-tested, and pre-manufactured. Their use eliminates tedious redesigning and reworking of design. "Rework is long and arduous," says Mr. Matt.

For instance, focus group participants can voice their opinions about a proposed control panel display and a designer can quickly configure a new array for review.

The objects in the software library are common interfaces between electronic controls. The design process becomes "component-ized," like building with Lego blocks. Appliance engineers pick and choose the blocks they need to control an appliance without the tedium of writing the commands.

For example, the cooking library consists of many objects (or macro commands), each peculiar to a specific routine. The cooking library consists of a "ramp" object which instructs the oven to go from one temperature point to another point. A "hold" object instructs the oven to hold or maintain the temperature selected in the ramp object. The "off" object instructs the oven to shut off.

OEM designers will work with the objects and the default values created by Siebe. Or they can modify the data according to their own needs.

Siebe’s plan is to license the software to OEMs and provide training, support, and updates. Some appliance makers already have their own algorithms for tasks such as cooking or clothes washing. Those values can be imported into the object databases. ControlWorks gives designers a head start on the design process. As OEMs customize the objects in their libraries, that new information becomes proprietary to the OEM. In sum, the software allows OEMs to spend more time on market research and developing niche products and less time on designing.

The SmartModule
But the software is just one part of Siebe’s appliance intelligent automation program. In addition to the ControlWorks software is a hardware device called the SmartModule. This is an 8-bit processor with low RAM and flash memory. The Siebe tool set runs on a Windows 95 or NT platform.

The module is installed in an appliance then loaded with the data-embedded objects from ControlWorks. These instructions are downloaded to the module from a computer. At a later date, say when an OEM develops upgraded software, an appliance bearing a SmartModule can be reprogrammed to perform new tasks or routines.

Siebe expects that the SmartModule will enable OEMs to develop "niche" appliances for specialty markets, not only because the development time can be reduced but also because the OEM does not need to maintain a large inventory of unique control products. The module can be programmed late in the manufacturing process, avoiding the need to stock multiple components for each model an OEM builds.

Examples of niche products are microwave ovens with symbols and controls geared for the specific needs of children or the elderly, says Terri Johnson, Siebe vice president of global strategic planning and marketing.

In the new-home construction market, niche products might play out as follows: builders will offer home buyers the option of purchasing a high-end OEM brand, a moderately priced store brand, or a unique "builder brand." Each model would be different from the other.

Or, OEMs could decide to go to a "model year" production cycle and bring out new appliances at a faster rate.

End-user’s Point of View
Appliance consumers, not just OEMs, also stand to benefit from these developments. For example, a homeowner in Denver buys an oven that an OEM has calibrated for optimal operation at high altitudes. (Denver is known as the "Mile-High City.") When that homeowner moves to Miami, he or she reprograms the SmartModule with a new set of instructions instead of buying an entirely new oven that has been calibrated for sea level. The reprogramming can occur over telephone lines or the Internet.

Siebe sees a big potential for commercial appliances, Ms. Johnson says. Fast-food operators can monitor their equipment from remote sites for maintenance and hours of operation. On site, managers can automate the cooking process.

At Domotechnica, Siebe will be demonstrating version 1.0 for cooking and laundry appliances. The software will soon support a multitude of other residential and commercial applications. Version 2.0, expected to be released in the Autumn of 1999 will contain more sophisticated programming. Mr. Matt says he expects that some OEMs will incorporate this technology into their 1999 models.

This article was prepared by APPLIANCE magazine editors with assistance from Siebe Appliance Controls.