Development of low-emission home appliances and systems for verification

The project is co-financed by the EU (NextGeneration EU) 

Project Duration: January 2023 – December 2025

Total budget: 2.479.668,68 EUR

EU funding: 999.902,45 EUR

In the context of a PD project, we are collaborating with Gorenje and Arctur to develop a low-emission washing machine and a low-emission refrigerator, along with the appropriate infrastructure and systems for verifying household appliances with low levels of emitted noise. The newly developed low-emission washing machine includes key functionalities that reduce water, energy, and detergent consumption while also producing low noise emissions. 

The low-emission refrigerator will be presented in two versions - as a refrigerator of the highest energy class A and as a refrigerator with an extremely low level of emitted sound power (32 dB), which places it at the top of the market offer. Within the project, we will develop a system for measuring and calculating sound power in various operating cycles of the machine, intended for measuring machines with low noise levels. 

With the help of purpose-built software, it will be possible to determine the connection between operating conditions such as rotations, temperature, vibration level, and resulting emitted sound power using appropriate sensors in the multitude of captured data. Additionally, the software development will enable simultaneous evaluation of psychoacoustic parameters that serve as mathematical evaluation of the subjective user perception of the characteristics of the emitted noise during operation. New infrastructure and systems for verifying household appliances will be adapted to a purpose-built soundproof chamber with a low background noise level. By combining these elements, comprehensive characterization will be possible with the simultaneous acquisition of analog measuring quantities with a dedicated, high-dynamic measuring system. 

As part of the project, Arctur will improve the methodology and introduce new approaches for greater optimization, simulations, and digital twins in the development of low-emission refrigerators.