IFA:

All the home appliances at a glance: new from Miele – “InfoControl Plus”

If a number of home appliances are in use at the same time it is not easy to keep track of all of them. That is where Miele’s new iPhone application “InfoControl Plus” is invaluable, enabling one to easily keep an eye on all of them. Using WLan the user is provided with a display throughout the house, showing the status of the appliances, i.e. the selected programme or type of operation, and the remaining running time. Another new feature is that the appliances can now be controlled from different locations. In addition to simplifying the operation of all the appliances improved safety is another advantage. Consequently all messages and fault indications from the connected appliances can be shown. Older people or those with physical limitations can benefit from the clear, pocket-sized display, avoiding the need for them to find their way to the basement or the kitchen.
Exhibitor: Miele Hall 2.1 Stand 101
Tel.: +49 (0) 524-89-1952 (Reinhild Portmann)

gizmag:

Miele has also released appliances with intelligent electric controls, which not only display error messages but can contact the owner via the Internet to report problems. The consumer receives an email from the central server, provided they have already registered on Miele’s website to activate the program. This allows for safety away from home, since if an appliance temperature is rising, a prompt notification will be delivered. An email can also remind you to clean the fluff filter in the tumble dryer, or of other possible faults. If servicing is required, the error message information can be sent to the service technician before arriving. This way, they can know ahead of time which problem has occurred and which spare parts are likely to be needed.

In addition to appliances that save energy costs and email you if the fridge door has been left open, an iPhone application called InfoControl Plus allows full control of all Miele appliances at a single glance. Consumers are now able to check up on the status of appliances throughout the home or even remotely control them. The application allows you to switch machines on or off anywhere around the home, but it will not allow you to switch on an oven or steam cooker, or turn off a refrigerator. In addition to the obvious safety advantages, convenience is also an added bonus. The program can also send you messages such as when the roast needs basting, or if the dryer is ready to be unloaded. You can also see the added attraction of being able to monitor appliances in homes of the elderly.

I’d love to know how much authorisation has been applied to these controls – because disregarding the press release if an oven can be switched off it certainly can somehow be switched-on if enough hackery is brought to bear; perhaps some sort of REST API or a private SNMP MIB (ha!) which can be poked.

I’m astonished that a German company is coming out with this, given the potential nightmare of centralised data protection requirements that are suggested by the press release; the Germans take data protection extremely seriously, and I wonder if Miele (eg) will need separate per-jurisdictional e-mail servers for the USA and Europe? I wish them luck because in some ways it’s a really cool idea, and not one that deserves squashing by DP regulation – the overall solution to which is to put the device owner in control – but I’m not sure that they’ve done that.

In addition: the hacking options will be endless, and there will doubtless be competitions to “root” your washing machine, zero-day your dishwasher, install Linux on your dryer – if it’s not Linux already – and since another source suggests that this gadgeteering will extend to Miele coffee machines, we could finally complete networked coffee’s evolution away from the original Trojan Room Coffee Machine.

Oh – and “movie threats?” Everything from vibration-induced audio monitoring (“If we run the piezo beeper backwards, it’s a microphone”) through terrorists using clockwork devices on their oven’s controls to provide an audit trail and thus an alibi.

And readers: remember that you read it here first. Bruce will probably pick this up in a few days, weeks, months… 🙂