The invention relates to Mannich bases that can be produced from resorcinol, formaldehyde, and triethylenetetramine andor tetraethylenepentamine. In the automatic mode, a laundering operation is initiated upon receiving a single cycle input parameter from the user, preferably through a LCD touch screen display, while relying on additional operating cycle parameters established by factory preset settings or prior consumer established preferences. Separate pre-trigger and post-trigger parameters may be used for image decoding. The power of the reflected probe beam is measured by a photodetector.