IP Library Granted Patent US 11,769,390
Granted Patent B2
US 11,769,390 · App. 17/342,020 · Granted Sep 26, 2023

Furniture cleaning management system

Inventor: Matthew James Lilley (Walker, MI)
Assignee: MillerKnoll, Inc.
G08B21/182A61L2/10A61L2/24G01J1/429G01P13/00G06V40/20G08B21/22A61L2202/11A61L2202/14A61L2202/17
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,769,390
App. No.
17/342,020
Granted
Sep 26, 2023
Kind
B2
Abstract

A furniture cleaning management system (FCMS) for a furniture affordance includes an indicator for indicating a state of the furniture affordance, a sensor option generating a signal indicating that the furniture affordance has been cleaned, and a processor receiving the trigger signal from the sensor option and causing the indicator to indicate that the furniture affordance is a cleaned state. The state of the furniture affordance indicated by the indicator may be selected from the cleaned state and a needs cleaning state. The processor may cause the indicator to indicate that the furniture affordance is in the needs cleaning state according to a schedule of furniture affordance occupancy, a schedule of furniture affordance cleaning, or as a consequence of sensing a user occupancy state at the furniture affordance.

Claims (40)

1. A furniture cleaning management system (FCMS) for a furniture affordance, the FCMS comprising:

an indicator for indicating a cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

a sensor option generating a trigger signal in response to sensing conditions that indicate a change in the cleaning status of the furniture affordance; and

a processor receiving the trigger signal from the sensor option and causing the indicator to indicate the current cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

wherein the sensor option includes a user occupancy sensor and generates the trigger signal in response to sensing a change in user occupying status for the furniture affordance.

2. The FCMS of claim 1 , wherein the furniture affordance includes a workstation.

3. The FCMS of claim 1 , wherein the indicator includes a clean indication for a clean status of the furniture affordance and a needs cleaning indication for a needs cleaning status of the furniture affordance.

4. The FCMS of claim 1 , wherein the sensor option includes an occupancy schedule for the furniture affordance and generates the trigger signal in response to the occupancy schedule indicating a change in occupancy of the furniture affordance.

5. A furniture cleaning management system (FCMS) for a furniture affordance, the FCMS comprising:

an indicator for indicating a cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

a sensor option generating a trigger signal in response to sensing conditions that indicate a change in the cleaning status of the furniture affordance; and

a processor receiving the trigger signal from the sensor option and causing the indicator to indicate the current cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

wherein the sensor option includes an accelerometer generating the trigger signal in response to detecting a movement pattern of a portion of the furniture affordance associated with cleaning the portion of the furniture affordance.

6. The FCMS of claim 1 , wherein the sensor option includes a UVC sensor generating the trigger signal in response to detecting exposure of a portion of the furniture affordance to a UV dose sufficient to inactivate a desired pathogen.

7. The FCMS of claim 1 , A furniture cleaning management system (FCMS) for a furniture affordance, the FCMS comprising:

an indicator for indicating a cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

a sensor option generating a trigger signal in response to sensing conditions that indicate a change in the cleaning status of the furniture affordance; and

a processor receiving the trigger signal from the sensor option and causing the indicator to indicate the current cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

wherein the sensor option includes means for sensing cleaning products and generates the trigger signal in response to detecting cleaning products proximate a surface of the furniture affordance.

8. The FCMS of claim 1 , wherein the sensor option includes means for manually generating the trigger signal.

9. The FCMS of claim 1 , wherein the sensor option includes means for optically sensing a cleaning status of the furniture affordance and generating the trigger signal in response to optically sensing a change in cleaning status.

10. The FCMS of claim 1 , wherein the indicator includes an audible, visual, or tactile module generating an audible, visual, or tactile alert to indicate that the furniture affordance is in a cleaned state.

11. The FCMS of claim 1 , further comprising a communication circuit communicating between at least two of the indicator, sensor option, and processor; and a database for the cleaning status of the furniture affordance.

12. A method for operating a furniture cleaning management system (FCMS) for a furniture affordance, the method comprising the steps of implementing via a processor:

monitoring a sensor option to sense a cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

generating a trigger signal in response to sensing, with the sensor, a change in cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

generating a timestamp record in response to sensing the change in cleaning status; and

causing an indicator to indicate the cleaning status of the furniture affordance in response to generating the trigger signal;

wherein monitoring a sensor option includes monitoring an occupancy sensor to detect a change in occupancy for the furniture affordance and generating a trigger signal is performed in response to detecting a change in user occupying status for the furniture affordance.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein causing an indicator to indicate the cleaning status includes causing the indicator to indicate a clean status or a needs cleaning status.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein monitoring a sensor option includes monitoring an occupancy schedule for the furniture affordance and generating a trigger signal is performed in response to the occupancy schedule indicating a change in occupancy of the furniture affordance.

15. A method for operating a furniture cleaning management system (FCMS) for a furniture affordance, the method comprising the steps of implementing via a processor:

monitoring a sensor option to sense a cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

generating a trigger signal in response to sensing, with the sensor, a change in cleaning status of the furniture affordance;

generating a timestamp record in response to sensing the change in cleaning status; and

causing an indicator to indicate the cleaning status of the furniture affordance in response to generating the trigger signal;

wherein monitoring a sensor option includes monitoring an accelerometer for movement of a portion of the furniture affordance consistent with cleaning and generating a trigger signal is performed in response to detecting movement consistent with cleaning.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein monitoring a sensor option includes monitoring a sensor that is capable of detecting a predetermined intensity of UV light and generating a trigger signal is performed in response to detecting exposure of a portion of the furniture affordance to a UV dose sufficient to inactivate a desired pathogen.

17. The method of claim 12 , wherein generating a trigger signal is performed by manual entry of the trigger signal.

18. The method of claim 12 , wherein monitoring a sensor option includes monitoring an optical sensor and generating a trigger signal is performed in response to optically sensing a change in cleaning status.

Assignments (4)
ASSIGNMENT OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENT COLLATERAL Recorded Aug 8, 2025
From: GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA
To: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 072342/0529 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded May 30, 2025
From: MILLERKNOLL, INC.
To: GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 071473/0729 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Aug 14, 2023
From: HERMAN MILLER, INC.
To: MILLERKNOLL, INC.
Reel/Frame 064577/0964 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 8, 2021
From: LILLEY, MATTHEW JAMES
To: HERMAN MILLER, INC.
Reel/Frame 056471/0115 →