Cozify Pilot Kicks Off

It can be difficult to show others what you have been working on. Often, feelings of doubt can creep in. Are we really ready to Go Live? What will others think? Will we meet their expectations? What if the feedback is negative, or will they be happy with the result?

When Cozify began installing pilot systems, we struggled with these feelings. Especially, when the decision was made to charge users for the pilot version. The pressure was on to release a functional, total solution which consists of reliable and high quality equipment. If this wasn't enough, the entire system had to work on a variety of platforms from different smart phone manufacturers.

The pilot package included light bulbs, a motion sensor and a power socket. Customers were offered a selection from which they could select Philips Hue compatible basic bulbs, spotlights, as well as LED-string and indirect light (Bloom) for their pilot installation. Belkin's motion sensor and power socket were also available. The aforementioned products were chosen for the pilot thanks to their reputation for quality and reliability. In addition, they connect seamlessly to our home automation solution via open interfaces.

In order to help us understand how our product is deployed from a user perspective, we participated in the installation phase in the homes of pilot customers.

An important learning for us is that the installation and setup of the system is not yet as easy as we would like it to be. We noted that customers have a variety of different network configurations in their homes. It is important that our solution takes these into considerations. It is important that the installation and setup of Cozify home automation is simple and does not require any technical expertise.

As this was our first pilot version, some features were not available. Regardless of this, we received positive feedback. I’m proud to share a few:

"I wanted lights in the stairwell that switch on when someone is walking on the stairs. The lights worked to this end as expected. Our one-year-old son was excited about being able to change the colors of the lights."

"One room downstairs has been dedicated for leisure, for example to watch movies and spend time with family or friends without disturbing other family members. As the room does not have any large windows, it is nice to have the lights switch on when someone steps into the room, and switch off again with a delay when there is no one in the room. During the World Cup Football championship games we selected our favorite team's colors into the lights, helping to cheer them on."

"We installed the automatic power control to the fan in our living room. Now I can switch it on or off without needing to get up from the couch."

Despite the pressure during the launch of our pilot, some notable strengths emerged with the very first pilot release: the system is easy to use and it can be controlled using any of the three major smart phone platforms.

We very much appreciated first-hand experiences from our pilot customers. As with any pilot, a few issues emerged which required further investigation, for example:

“The lights turned on in the middle of the night. Perhaps out of their own free will or something?"

“The application doesn’t quite adhere to the phone manufacturers' recommendations. This is something you should look at and consider. By following manufacturer recommendations, you can guarantee that usability across different applications is consistent."

"The Hub needs to be restarted from time to time. Sometimes the software hangs and won't function properly until I restart the hub."

Taking these experiences, we are working on resolving the technical issues, as well as addressing ease of use concerns are at the top of our priority list. Quality and simplicity are key in everything we do.

It has been great to notice, that our home automation system is stable enough, even in this early pilot stage. We are pleased to learn that the solution is easy enough to use in different homes and across various environments. Stay tuned, as we will publish more details on our progress and our pilot program over the coming months.

Check back soon, as the next phase of the pilot will be kicked off later this year. If you would like to participate, please complete the pre-reservation form here. Next pilot group will be chosen among registered users.

Are we crazy enough to change the world?

We are implementing a new, revolutionary home automation service. Our product will wirelessly connect and control the technology and devices in your home.

To create it requires design, software, hardware, communication, customer support, and logistics.  This all inspires us but on the other hand, requires a tremendous amount of work. How is a new product or service born and how does it develop further? How do we build our product?

The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do. – Steve Jobs

Many practices and methodologies have been proposed especially for start-up companies: Agile methods, Lean Startup, etc. These trendy approaches have a couple of common factors that, together with our own experience, form the basis of our philosophy at Cozify

 Do, learn, and re-do

The worst pitfalls can be avoided through the application of professional skills and reliance on experience. Even so, mistakes happen and we should not be afraid of them. The most important part is to learn and do things better the next time. For example, the first printed 3D model of our hub’s plastic case couldn’t be considered as a sales version. But we improved the process and the next versions came out much better.

The only thing that persists is change

So we don’t get too attached to the things we’ve made. Instead, our tools and practices have been selected to allow for change. For example, our hub that will sit in user’s home will be able to automatically download the latest features and bug fixes over the network, so that functioning can be improved as rapidly as possible.

Get your hands dirty

We don’t have managers. We are all experts in our own areas, and we do a lot together as well. The CEO works on the technical design, developers participate in discussions about the business model, and everyone takes part in analyzing marketing statistics. Close co-operation requires some effort to mesh different personalities and professional viewpoints. But at its best, successful work done in such a team provides well-balanced results and satisfaction for all participants.

Listen

We are not building this product for ourselves. We are building the best possible home automation service for our customers. So we need to know what they want. During the earliest planning days, we collected feedback by showing our user interface sketches to total strangers in downtown Helsinki. As might be expected, it took some effort to capture the interest of busy passers-by, but we eventually received valuable and encouraging comments and feedback.

More recently we have begun collecting feedback through our discussion forum.  This is a new channel to publish topics and information about home automation and our services. We invite you to contribute and make an impact. Share your thoughts, let us know how you’d like home automation to work. Pilot users will have their own section as well.

And of course, please don’t hesitate to contact us directly if you happen to be interested in commercial co-operation, working for us, or becoming a pilot customer.

-Kimmo-
Kimmo Ruotoistenmäki is the CEO and one the founders of Cozify Oy

Five Reasons to Consider Home Automation

Some have long been awaiting it with anticipation, while others are starting only now to become aware. Homes will be smarter in the future, that is for certain. Today, we’ve listed five great reasons to consider home automation.

1. Ease of life

Well-implemented home automation makes ordinary life easier and cozier. It “thinks” about your home so you don’t need to as much. Automation frees the hands and minds of your family. It connects, adjusts, switches on and off, alarms, reports, identifies, remembers and learns.

2. Remote use has many advantages

Remote use saves time and effort. Remote controlled electric locks can be used to open the door for your elementary schooler who forgot the keys at home. A surveillance camera can follow how pets are getting along during the workday. A loaded coffee maker can be switched on on your way home, and switched off if you forgot while leaving the house in the morning. Your smartphone, tablet, or laptop brings your home into reach wherever you are.

3. Smart devices increase home safety

The home is a precious place but nonetheless one wants to enjoy it and also be away without excessive worry.  Newly available intelligent fire, smoke, burglary, motion, and moisture sensors can follow your home continuously. Integrated services communicate the status of your home to all family members over smart phones and, in case of emergency, direct calls to emergency services.  And of course, there is the age-old preventative of simply having the sticker on your door indicating a security system has been installed.

4. Optimizing house climate control saves money

Combining intelligence with temperature, ventilation, and window treatment control saves money. For example, heating and air conditioning can be adjusted automatically based on the outdoor and indoor temperature, the number of people inside the house, and their location. Window blinds or shades can be opened or closed to let sun in or reflect it out depending on the situation.  The automated home uses less energy without fuss, and moreover it can collect energy usage data for making informed decisions on areas to upgrade and improve.

5. The smart home entertains and allows creativity

Multimedia entertainment, whether from your own collection or provided by internet services, is available all around the smart house. Adjustable lighting, and wireless speakers and video monitors bring perfect mood to different spaces and occasions.

Home automation even makes crazy things possible. How about turning the lights blue, red, or yellow when the home team scores in a hockey game? Or could a birthday boy’s room be turned into a pirate ship with booming cannons and fires flickering in the background? The only limit is your imagination. All family members can control the home and enjoy the results whether for purposes of mood, hilarity, or simply being different.

We are working with eagerness and dedication to realize all of the above reasons to add smart automation to every home. To follow us, subscribe to our newsletter here.

-Sanna Mari-
Sanna Mari Alppivuori from the Cozify-team focuses on marketing and customer relations

Why did we choose lighting?

When we were deciding which area to focus on for our initial home automation product, we had several options. Although home automation can get very technical, we wanted to be sure every family member would to be able to use the system with smiles on their faces.

Before starting technical implementation we wanted to choose a domain where the objects are clear and easy to work with. Some areas we considered were efficiency and energy savings (remote controlled power outlets, heating and air conditioning monitoring and adjustment), safety and security (motion sensors, surveillance cameras, and electronic locks), and atmosphere and mood (wireless multiroom speakers, interactive entertainment systems). However all these seemed either too simple or too complex for the first product implementation.

In the end, we decided on lighting:

• Lighting plays a central role in every home in all three of the above areas: mood, safety, and efficiency.
• There are a number of high-quality smart lighting devices on the market, for example Philips Hue smart bulbs, for our product to integrate with.
• The physical devices for automating home lighting are easy to set up.
• Smart lighting can be used in countless situations to simplify daily living.
• Lighting is a complex entity and provides an ample set of challenges to prove the value of a home automation system.

In the first version of Cozify’s product, we will be offering a service allowing lighting to be controlled by motion or scheduled by time and/or day of the week, to meet the needs of ordinary family life. In addition to practical functions, brightness and color adjustments allow an almost unlimited range of options for users to modify mood at home just the way they want and need.

Implementation of the first version is almost completed and our first pilot release will happen soon. During the pilot period, we will be receiving valuable feedback on how families use Cozify lighting in their homes. This input will be used to improve the product before expanded release later this year. To receive the latest Cozify updates on the pilot and other activities, please subscribe to our Newsletter.

-Tony-

Tony Risikko from the Cozify team focuses on business development

Cozify Home Automation and Connected Devices

The so-called “Internet of Things” is coming slowly but surely into every home. In the Internet of Things, participating devices form a network and communicate using protocols and technologies similar to those used by web browsers and web servers. The most commonly seen examples today are smart TVs, but other devices are already following.

At Cozify, our own vision is closely based on the ideology behind the Internet of Things: that devices communicate wirelessly without complex setup and are easily accessed while at home or away through mobile applications. Thus, easy setup and simple use are the foundations of Cozify home automation.

How does Cozify home automation work technically?

Our system utilizes wireless technologies, especially the WiFi network that most homes have today. To ensure as wide device compatibility as possible, we also support Bluetooth and Zigbee radio interfaces. A constant connection to internet is not required for home operation, but only to control the system remotely. In the case of a power outage, doors can still be locked and unlocked using key, and if the home WiFi network is not accessible, lights can always be switched on or off from the switch on the wall.

The Cozify hub is the heart of the system. The hub connects all devices together and provides the link to our cloud services. Both user requests and device status notifications go to the hub, and action commands are sent out based on the received information. Themes, predefined by the user, allow easy control of multiple devices and groups, but individual control is always possible as well.

A theme is a collection of settings the user would like to apply in certain circumstances and conditions. Themes are created and stored to the hub using the Cozify mobile application. For example, a Night theme could turn on dimmed lights, lock doors, verify that garage and warehouse doors are closed, and activate door and window sensors. Even a preferred bedroom temperature could be set as part of this theme: only the imagination is the limit.

To communicate with the hub, a device must be able to wirelessly send and receive notifications and actions. The number of such “smart” devices available is ever-increasing, and examples include:

• motion / presence sensors
• LED light bulbs
• remote controllable outlets
• surveillance cameras
• electronic door locks
• thermostats
• door and window sensors
• moisture sensors
• wireless multiroom speakers
• household appliances, like refrigerators, washing machines, etc…

As can be seen, home automation can potentially cover everything from lights and entertainment to core systems like furnaces, boilers, and air conditioners, allowing the home owner great freedom to monitor activity, adjust mood, and improve efficiency. The possibilities are endless.

Everyone is warmly welcome to discuss, challenge, and brainstorm about what the future could bring. Please, start by commenting below.

-Tony-
Tony Risikko from Cozify-team focuses on business development and partners