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Hacking Washing Machines [video]
21–30 of 54 posts
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#22When I read 'Hacking washing machines' the first thing that came to mind was how to open that damn thing once the program had finished.
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#23When I read 'Hacking washing machines' the first thing that came to mind was how to open that damn thing once the program had finished.
Most washing machines use a wax motor to lock the door, it heats up wax to cause it to expand when it melts, which drives a pin. They're fairly failsafe as if you kill power, they will open no matter what.
Latching relays/(technically solenoid) could be driven on/off fast, the downside is in a power cut or an emergency, the relay wouldn't release unless specifically driven so.
So the third option is a momentary solenoid, which would need to be powered the whole time the door is shut, and they require a surprisingly significant amount of power. Typically 10-20w. Negligible when it compares to the KW+ heating elements, but they do add up for the energy ratings..
Fwiw, I currently have a haier, which does have one of the second options, and opens immediately after a wash and it's amazing. Can't go back.
But, wax motors continue to be used because they're just the right tool for the job.
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
No you see you just need to buy specially marked boxes of Cap'n Crunch that have a plastic whistle in them that plays the tones for you.
I wonder how many HN readers still get that reference (and 2600, etc.)
We make use of a service already existing without paying for what could be dirt-cheap if it wasn't run by profiteering gluttons...
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I'm assuming it's to prevent moisture from corroding a port of some kind. The primary value discussed in the talk was electrical isolation since there's mains voltage in the appliance and the potential for shorts or inadequate isolation would require some kind of isolation, so a path that optically isolates the communication makes quite a bit of sense. I'm also curious if other devices have gone this route.
LG appliances at least used to use acoustic signaling for diagnostics: hold a phone up and the washer makes some modem-esque (I think it’s 4-tone / 4-FSK) noises and the app or technician can diagnose issues. It was originally engineered to even work over voice codecs, so a customer without a smartphone could relay the diagnostic session to a technician.
The absolutely "leetest" thing I have ever seen was a device where the firmware update was to be done by:
1. Hold a button while booting (pretty normal)
2. This reconfigures the circuit path of one of the LEDs so it is reverse-biased to VCC via its resistor and switches one of the microcontroller GPIOs to ADC input
3. You go to a website that plays a strobe pattern (encoding the firmware)
4. You hold that website in front of the LED till other LEDs blink, signifying a successful update
They could have done this using a photodiode, but no, they had to abuse an LED. Not many people are aware that LEDs can in a certain configuration be used to measure light.
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#26When I read 'Hacking washing machines' the first thing that came to mind was how to open that damn thing once the program had finished.
> how to open that damn thing
"I'm sorry Dave but I'm afraid I can't do that"
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#27We already know that hackers from NSA / FSB / PLA are working day and night on nation-state level attacks. They divert toilet tissue deliveries and hack traffic signals to raise my blood pressure to a tipping point where, presumably, I am supposed to demand local regime change?
Now I have to worry about passing drones using blinkenlights to Stuxnet my wool wash and shrink my merino socks? Brilliant. Bloody brilliant.
It’s like the most banal version of Battlestar Galactica ever but instead of an alien intelligence leveraging computer integration to attack mankind from within, it’s a guy in a t-shirt in a sweaty bunker filling my dishwasher to the brim with cold water then laughing at me via my Ring camera as he watches me flood my kitchen.
[Very cool talk, thanks for sharing :) ]
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#28I'm "fearful" of a future where every random appliance needs to be connected to the internet in order to function at all. I hope some legislation gets passed (in the EU in my case) that forces manufacturers to ensure the machine works offline and connecting it is purely an opt-in feature.
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#29I'm "fearful" of a future where every random appliance needs to be connected to the internet in order to function at all. I hope some legislation gets passed (in the EU in my case) that forces manufacturers to ensure the machine works offline and connecting it is purely an opt-in feature.
This might also need some kind of certification. Some sort of independent industry-financed lab atmosphere. I think UL (Underwriters Laboratories) worked that way.
Re: Hacking Washing Machines [video]
#30[flagged]