I interpreted that as meaning “[aim to] empty it completely once you start” but maybe I misunderstood.
Oh. Right, well that has a simpler answer - because automation should conform to us not the other way around. If I make an automation that works perfectly but I have to say “oh but you need to stop doing this thing you’ve always been doing and do it this way instead” then that automation is probably useless.
In this case doubly so. Usually I at least adjust my habits to an automation and the problem is everyone else. But if I can’t make breakfast and (in particular) coffee without emptying the dishwasher first then there is a 100% chance I’m going to open the dishwasher, take out exactly what I need for breakfast and close it back up. Absolutely no way am I emptying the dishwasher before getting coffee lol.
But if that works for others then great! It certainly makes things easier.
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Sounds like the easiest solution is to just stop drinking coffee 
But yeah, I don’t disagree. I just think in this case the technology (see my half joking smart plate comment above) isn’t reasonably available yet that would make an automation like this work regardless of inconsistent human behavior.
Looking forward to hearing reports on whatever the op implements.
Here we have two automated task like this. We get a message, when the laundry is done and when the dishwasher is done.
The well/not taking out the finished goods out of the machines is still done the good old way. We look inside and when it is there, remove it.
There are as of today only two possibilities:
- get it fully automatic - hire a maid.
- do it your self.
As we can’t afford the first, we still trust on our eyes and hands. They are pretty reliable 
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My wife’s aren’t anymore…
Oh…
Condolences 
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I was just thinking about this… Not sure if this would work, I might test it out once I get my new plugs and contact sensors in–
Thoughts: use the meter, after a spike of high to low (will have to test wattage threshold) set status to clean.
Now for the annoying, but possibly effective part: Trigger an open/ close switch, if the dishwasher is open for x time (x being the amount of time it takes to unload the dishes), trigger a voice assistant in the room to ask if the dish washer is empty–> Reply Yes, reset the routine with the status to dirty. Answer No or no answer, ask again when the contact sensor is re-opened.
Aha, this thread has come back!
In my ideal kitchen all dish storage is a dish drawer. You just turn the most recently used one on when it is full. Every other dish drawer is clean, and doesn’t need emptying, because it is storage too.
Too complicated.
I just use contact sensor, smart plug, fingerbot and some dropdown helper for dishwasher statuses.
Create automation’s for it and that is it. You can play start/finish announcement on alexa, send telegram message or whatever.
I have set up a clean/dirty automation with my Miele dishwasher using an ESP32-E (via ESPHome) connected to a set of four 50kg load sensors (one under each dishwasher leg) and an LED light strip around the edge of the dishwasher for displaying the clean/dirty status.
My dishwasher is already able to connect directly to HA so it has sensors exposed for dishwasher power on/off and wash cycle start/finish that I’m using in the automation.
When the dishwasher is powered on, before a wash program is chosen and started, the LED strip does a cascasing rainbow effect (helped increase the Wife Acceptance Factor of the automation).
Once the wash program cycle starts, I’ve set a blue light to scan back and forth on the LED strip until the wash program finishes. It’s a very quiet dishwasher, and some of my teenaged sons are not observant enough to notice the BRIGHT GREEN power light on the dishwasher when it is running. The blue light running around the perimeter distracts them enough to pull their attention from their phones and realise the dishwasher is running so they no longer open the door mid-cycle.
When the wash cycle finishes, I set the whole LED strip to pulse in green to let the family know that they can take stuff out of the dishwasher and safely eat off it. Plus, whenever the family member whose job it is to unload the dishwasher walks into the kitchen, he gets a reminder to do his job. That isn’t really enough of a reminder, though, so the automation also sends a message to his phone. And one message isn’t enough either, so if the dishwasher still hasn’t been unloaded after 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, 18 or 24 hours, a custom message with escalating “intensity” in proportion to the lateness of the unloading gets sent to his phone (he’s not seen the 18 or 24 hour messages yet 
).
When the dishwasher is fully unloaded, the load sensors report that its weight has decreased to 120kg. I seriously doubt the dishwasher is that heavy but I don’t care about the accuracy (the 4 load sensors and HX711 amp only cost me $15 in total), all that matters is that it consistently gives the same weight when it’s unloaded. The weight does bounce around a little bit while its being unloaded so I’ve set my automation so that when the weight drops below 125kg for more than 10 seconds, it switches the LED strip to a “twinkling” red. This is a subtle signal to my family to “stop leaving your dirty dishes on the kitchen bench and load them directly into the dishwasher!”
So far, it’s been working well. Finally, no more arguments with the family about the dishwasher not being unloaded or about dirty dishes being left on the bench. Currently the only complaint I’ve had is that Home Assistant is pretty passive aggressive with its messages. 
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