Pictures of the Future    Spring 2007

Headline of first Content

Buyers of new household appliances expect their purchases to be effective, user-friendly and to have innovative features. Energy efficiency is also an increasingly important factor. In response to this demand, manufacturers are now offering a growing array of resource-saving products. Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH (BSH), for example, has developed a dishwasher fitted with the aquaSensor III, which regularly monitors water turbidity and adjusts the amount of water and the washing time accordingly. That gets dishes sparkling and saves water at the same time.

Many other appliances also have smart functions. A number of washing machines from Siemens feature load sensors that use two opposing magnets to weigh the laundry in the drum, and then recommend an appropriate amount of water and detergent. Back in 1970, a washing machine used 200 l of water—enough to fill a bathtub—for a single laundry load of 5 kg. Today that figure is just 43 l for 6 kg.

Now, major savings can be realized in the kitchen. Induction cooking surfaces heat up cookware without becoming hot themselves, which means they’re much quicker and more efficient than conventional ranges. They can heat 2 l of water from 15 to 90 °C in 4.7 minutes, compared to the 9.9 minutes taken by a glass-ceramic cooktop. And thanks in part to new insulation technology and more effective compressors, the power consumption of modern refrigerators has been cut by as much as 75 % since 1990.

Elevator Oven. Other innovations are designed with ergonomics in mind. The glass-ceramic floor of the wall-mounted liftMatic oven launched by Siemens in 2006, for example, serves as a combination oven door and a baking tray. It opens downward, giving users easy access to roasts or cakes from three sides. The liftMatic also efficiently exploits the fact that hot air rises, so the oven interior stays warm longer. Household chores are also becoming easier thanks to oven models that break down organic residues into water and carbon dioxide at temperatures of up to 500 deg;C. Inorganic residues are turned to ash that can simply be wiped away with a cloth. Kitchen surroundings are protected from high temperatures by means of multiple layers of glass, special insulation mats and a locking system.

Even though the number of senior citizens living in their own homes is expected to rise in the future, demographic development is not the only reason why household appliances are becoming more user-friendly. Klaus Wissmann and his team at the User Interface Design Center at Siemens Corporate Technology create easy-to-use products and test their ease of operation. "Younger people also appreciate things that make their lives easier," Wissmann reports. "A household appliance needs to be efficient and user-friendly for consumers of any age." Washing machines, to name one example, will in the future be able to read RFID labels on clothing to determine what kind of garments, and how many, are in the drum. A black sock in a load of white laundry will be recognized immediately, and the machine will alert the user. If all items are compatible, the machine automatically selects a suitable program and the right amounts of water and detergent.

Many home appliances already communicate with users, some via the Internet. With a cell phone, it’s now possible to find out if a range has been left on accidentally. And, thanks to serve@Home technology (siehe SmartHome in Pictures of the Future, Spring 2004), it can even be switched off remotely. The resource-conserving networking of home appliances will be standard in the future. With the help of an integrated household management system, a user will, for instance, be able to turn down the heating and switch off the lights and stove with a single command when leaving the house. The technology is likely to be used in very different ways from country to country, however. "In the U.S., systems like this will be marketed mainly with convenience in mind, whereas the focus in Germany is more likely to be on safety aspects," explains Wissmann.

Meanwhile, a new refrigerator from Siemens offers performance that benefits all users. It stores perishable food items at temperatures near zero degrees Celsius, so food items such as fish, meat and dairy products stay fresh for up to three times longer. Siemens’ vitaFresh technology delays chemical decomposition processes and more effectively preserves nutrients and aromas. And for temperature-sensitive foods like fruits and vegetables, the fridge has compartments that are kept at higher temperatures and a higher humidity level. In a few years, it could also be possible to keep food in a special protective interior atmosphere—which will preserve food vitamin content while requiring fewer shopping trips.

In the past, the kitchen mainly served a practical purpose. Today it is increasingly seen as a place of social interaction. But when friends and families meet to cook, eat and spend time together in the kitchen, they don’t want the dishwasher droning for hours like an old fashioned air conditioner. In response to the importance of low noise levels, developers have come up with dishwashers with quiet-closing doors that run at a volume of only 42 decibels—hardly above a whisper. And if the household appliances of tomorrow are so efficient, energy-saving and user-friendly, then why not make them fun to operate, too? A visionary idea—a refrigerator equipped with an LCD monitor and loudspeakers for watching movies and listening to music in the kitchen—is already reality.
                                                                                                             DagmarBraun