What are the related products & projects
1. Smart “flow” boiler
- Part of the internet of things, smartphone connected and able to be turned up/down from anywhere. This seems to be more related to a boiler for generating electricity than for keeping water hot, though.
- http://www.flowenergy.uk.com/meet-flow/the-first-smart-boiler
2. Tankless Water Heater
- Deals with the “never run out of hot water” aspect of the RFP but not much else. It does use a microcontroller to monitor flow and ensure you never run out of hot water, which could be extended to include more features.
- http://www.gotankless.com/
3. EVA smart shower head
- Comes with an app that tracks your water usage over time. It also has some other nice features for conserving water that we might want to consider. It would allow you to select water temperature from companion smartphone app.
- http://www.gizmag.com/eva-smart-shower-head/34834
4.HYDRAO
- A device you insert into your current shower that measures water usage. This device also emits different colours of light to determine what their water usage is (low,medium,high).
- http://www.hydrao.fr/en/
5.iShower
- iShower is a smart shower system that is used to store presets, control shower body jets, overhead shower, hand shower and foot showers. It dispenses shampoos and conditioners automatically when the user needs it. This system uses TCP/IP connectivity for communication over the LAN. iShower has an application which can be installed in iphone to control the functions of iShower control system. Feedback of water temperature at each outlet as well as the temperature within the shower can be obtained from the application. Users can heat up the shower area faster and setup their own user presets.
- http://www.bath-o-matic.com/html/EN/products/shower_control/shower_control.html
How can we set our product apart from what’s already out there?
According to my research, while smart showers with some interesting functionality exist, there is no complete shower solution that will allow the user to see, in real time, how much hot water remains in their tank. Since this is a need that is not being met by any product on the market, our product will be set apart from the existing options.
How can we execute and deliver on this product?
Most of the technology to do this already exists. Implementing the solution will be a matter of designing a “smart boiler” with water capacity sensors, hooking this up to a microcontroller that can gather the data, and enabling it to communicate with other smart devices using bluetooth, wireless or directly wired connectivity. The controller should connect to an interface within the shower itself, displaying the desired information and allowing the user some level of control over shower temperature, flow, and so forth. The main technical challenge involved in design will be creating an effective in-shower interface, given that current touch screen technology does not work well when wet.
Preliminary project roles & work assignments
Just Right Showers 
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