More than 400 networked appliances for greater convenience and safety / Basis for intelligent energy management

Whether mobile controls via a smartphone, intelligent energy management or useful new additional services promising greater safety and convenience – no other domestic appliance manufacturer offers such a comprehensive range of mature smart house solutions as Miele. Now, to coincide with the IFA 2014 trade show, more than 400 Miele appliances are network-enabled – unique in this branch of industry. Here is an overview of the current smart home portfolio offering a whole range of applications under the Miele@home umbrella heading.

As early as 1998, Miele presented its first networked domestic appliances under the title InfoControl. Several years later, this was followed by the SuperVision application where the oven display served as 'monitoring centre' for connected appliances in kitchen and utility room. Integration into bus systems and convenient touch display interfaces have represented high-end solutions for upmarket homes since 2008. At around the same time, Miele introduced Con@ctivity, a system allowing automatic hob-to-hood communication. More recently, home owners can now even hook up their roof-top PV installations to Miele domestic appliances, guaranteeing intelligent energy management and permitting the use of variable electricity tariffs (SmartStart). And, as smartphones become increasingly ubiquitous, the age of mobile appliance control is set to dawn.

'It is only consistent that Miele now offers more network-enabled models and solutions than any other manufacturer and that we count among the founder members of the interdisciplinary Qivicon initiative launched by Deutsche Telekom', says Dr Eduard Sailer, Miele executive director responsible for technical affairs.

Miele@mobile App – accessible at all times

With this Miele app, due to celebrate its premiere at the IFA 2014 trade show, domestic appliances can be monitored and controlled from any place with access to a smartphone or tablet PC. There may be a need, for instance, to know how long the washing machine in the utility room still has to run, or a Miele appliance may need starting from on the way home, or programme settings possibly need changing. Messages are relayed to the user's mobile device if, say, a fault develops or the dishwasher's rinse aid needs replenishing. A more detailed description of the Miele@mobile app is provided by Press Release No. 100/2014. The necessary components for this application: Internet router, Miele-Gateway, Miele@home-enabled domestic appliances with a communication module. This app is due to be launched in early 2015.

Con@ctivity 2.0 – Hob-to-hood communication

Con@ctivity 2.0, developed by Miele, offers even greater convenience as a system which automatically adjusts extraction to what is actually going on down on the hob below. When the hob unit is switched on, the hob lighting is activated automatically. A few seconds later, the fan is powered up at precisely the correct setting to correlate with the number of rings active and their power settings. If settings are changed, the cooker hood adapts automatically.

Con@ctivity 2.0 offers several practical benefits: As the cooker hood needs no supervision, the cook's undivided attention can be devoted to the job in hand. The cooker hood's controls remain considerably cleaner as selecting power settings with greasy fingers is now a rare occurrence. And the user does not even have to remember to switch the cooker hood off after use as this, too, is automatic after a pre-set run-on time. Numerous cooker hoods and hob units in the Miele range are Con@ctivity-enabled. Cooker hoods are supplied ex works with a small RF transmitter which is simply inserted into the hob unit (Plug & Play). Hobs and hoods with Con@ctivity 2.0 are already available in several countries.

SuperVision – all appliances on your radar

The oven display serves as a central vantage point for all networked Miele appliances and uses the SuperVision application. SuperVision is particularly practical as it does not require a mobile device as information is presented centrally in the oven display in the kitchen. Furthermore, installation does not require the gateway as data exchange between appliances is direct via the communication modules.

InfoService – Remedies provided online

The remote diagnosis of error messages issued by domestic appliances is also possible using the InfoService application. To participate, customers must register their machines with Miele. If a fault develops on an appliance, information is automatically relayed to a Miele server. The customer then receives advice on how to deal with the fault either by e-mail or text message or, alternatively, is recommended to contact Service. If a service call is necessary, simply forward the information to the technician for an even more efficient and faster response. InfoService will start in 2015 and will initially only be available in Germany. Components necessary for this application: Internet router, Miele gateway, Miele@home-enabled domestic appliances including communication module.

SmartStart – ready for intelligent energy management systems

Miele domestic appliances and energy management components from SMA Solar Technology AG allow homes to increase their harvest of home-grown electricity whilst at the same time cutting electricity bills. SmartStart-enabled washing machines, dishwashers and tumble dryers set to work automatically as soon as a roof-top PV array produces sufficient electricity. Alongside PV panels and Miele@home technology, the required componentry includes a so-called Sunny Home Manager. This is a central control unit from the intelligent energy-management products from the SMA Smart Home series. A benefit of this system lies in the process security it affords as electricity consumption and the duration of the selected programme is taken into account by the AutoStart system just as much as the weather forecast and the personal preferences of the user who, say, would like the washing machine to have completed its job by 18.00 h.

In conjunction with load-dependent tariffs provided by energy companies, these appliances with SmartStart technology automatically use the cheapest available tariff. When connected to a PV installation, automatic programme launch operates according to the self-same principle, simply replacing the SmartGrid with a home's roof-top power plant. Components required for this application: Internet router, PV installation incl. Sunny Home Manager, Miele gateway, SmartStart-enabled Miele appliances with a communication module.

Qivicon – Remote control of domestic appliances and much more

Controlling and querying the status of Miele domestic appliances 'on the fly' or from within the home is possible with the new Miele domestic appliance app which will be available from September 2014 from the Qivicon Smart Home platform. The central control hub covering all appliances and domestic installations is the Qivicon Home Base. This uses a variety of apps to offer intelligent energy management as well as offering solutions to enhance safety and convenience at home. Qivicon is an alliance of leading industrial companies in Germany under the auspices of Deutsche Telekom which aims to promote SmartHome applications. Miele is a founding member of Qivicon. The Qivicon Smart Home platform is compatible with a wide range of products and apps from numerous brands and is modular and scalable. Miele Press Release No. 101/2014 describes the Miele appliance app on Qivicon in further detail. Components necessary for this application: Internet router, Qivicon Home Base, Miele@home-enabled appliances with a communication module

The intelligent bus – field-tested and adaptable networking technology

In new homes and major refurbishment projects, many home owners are nowadays opting for bus systems to make their buildings safer and more convenient and to exploit potential energy savings. Miele and Busch-Jaeger, a leading company in the field of electrical installation technology, illustrate just 

how much convenience networking on the basis of a KNX bus system can offer. KNX is now established worldwide as the standard for bus systems. The benefits of this technology which is used to transmit data by wire accrue from the fact that KNX systems are tried-and-tested, customisable and scalable.

Within the bus system, the Busch ComfortPanel® assumes the function of a command centre: All applications are presented on a large touch screen and are intuitive to use. The kitchen is incorporated into this scenario and Busch-Jaeger has even created a separate user interface for domestic appliances. This gives users a good overview of all machines connected to the system: How long does the dishwasher still have to run? When does the roast in the oven need basting? Is the laundry finished yet? And, naturally, it is easy to check whether all appliances have been switched off before leaving the house.

Comparable user interfaces can be configured on the Busch ComfortPanel® to control heating systems, blinds, lighting, ventilation and security technology. Communication and entertainment count among the other qualities of the Busch ComfortPanel®: Whether calling up the latest weather report or stocks and shares on the Internet, receiving e-mails, playing your favourite music using the integrated MP3 player or listening to favourite webcasts using the integrated or external loudspeakers or even watching video clips – the Busch ComfortPanel® is the answer. Add to this fascinating functions for greater energy transparency and efficiency. And, to top it all, the Busch ComfortTouch app from Busch-Jaeger nicely ports these functions to smartphones and tablets, transforming mobile devices into convenient remote controls.

Miele domestic appliances can also be integrated into KNX-based bus systems from other manufacturers. In this case, though, a user interface will need to be programmed.

Components necessary for this application: Internet router, Busch-Jaeger bus system, Miele gateway, Miele@home-enabled domestic appliances with a communication module.

Wide range of networked appliances / Older appliances often retrofittable

Numerous built-in Generation 6000 appliances, selected washing machines and tumble dryers from the W1 and T1 series as well as many refrigeration products, cooker hoods and hob units are already network-enabled. Owners of current-series (network-enabled) machines can retrofit the necessary communication components. This also applies to a series of models from the previous series which feature the new communication modules and which can, for example, be linked up to Qivicon.

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Company profile: Miele is the world's leading manufacturer of premium domestic appliances including cooking, baking and steam-cooking appliances, refrigeration products, coffee makers, dishwashers and laundry and floor care products. This line-up is augmented by dishwashers, washer-extractors and tumble dryers for commercial use as well as washer-disinfectors and sterilisers for use in medical and laboratory applications (Miele Professional). The Miele company, founded in 1899, has 8 production plants in Germany as well as one plant each in Austria, the Czech Republic, China and Romania. 2013/14 turnover amounted to approx. EUR 3.22 bn with sales outside Germany accounting for around 70%. Miele is represented with its own sales subsidiaries and via importers in almost 100 countries. The Miele company, now in the fourth generation of family ownership, employs a workforce of around 17,660, 10,411 thereof in Germany. The company headquarters are located in Gütersloh/Westphalia, Germany.