Dornbracht presents Connected Kitchen

Iserlohn / Milan, April 2018

Dornbracht will be presenting the new Connected Kitchen concept at this year’s FTK – Technology For the Kitchen at the Salone del Mobile. The digital product solution creates a profusion of individual added values for the modern kitchen. Everyday activities such as filling pots or gently washing fresh food can be digitally controlled – including using intelligent voice control. Dornbracht’s Connected Kitchen enhances an already extensive portfolio of fittings, kitchen sinks, finishes and functions and makes the company an even more proficient partner for the holistic design of the water point in the kitchen.

Connected Kitchen represents the further development of eUnit Kitchen, the electronic product solution launched in 2013. The innovative concept has three digital control variants to use for easy, intuitive and exact water dispensing, flow volume control and temperature regulation. Firstly: digital Smart Tools, secondly: a foot sensor, and thirdly: the option to extend control by voice control.

The key innovation is the voice control function, made possible by Dornbracht’s work in conjunction with the digitalSTROM Smart Home platform. Like all Dornbracht’s digital products, Connected Kitchen has an open IP interface. Once linked to digitalSTROM, voice assistants such as Google Home or Amazon Alexa can be used immediately. Personal settings can also be individually programmed in conjunction with Dornbracht’s Smart Water app.

The functions of Connected Kitchen are based on the zoning principle that has proved its worth in professional kitchens: “Preparing”, “Cleaning” and “Cooking”. The different control variants of Connected Kitchen can be used in all three zones and provide perfect support to the various processes found there.

If desired, Connected Kitchen can also be enhanced by a camera and a ‘device bot’ from digitalSTROM. At FTK – Technology For the Kitchen, Dornbracht will demonstrate this in the “Preparing” zone. The bot gathers information about user preferences and gives this “knowledge” to the fitting. The fitting learns to detect whether someone wants to wash their hands, fill a glass, or wash an apple – and adjusts the volume and temperature of the water accordingly. The intelligent kitchen puts the focus on people and their individual needs, while the technology fades discreetly into the background.

“It is not the technology as such that is key for us – it is what the technology makes possible”, says Managing Director Matthias Dornbracht, who is responsible for systems and technology within the company. “With Connected Kitchen, many activities in the kitchen are not only easier and more convenient, they are safer too. This opens the kitchen up to brand new added values and possibilities. As an industry pioneer and instigator, we are working continuously to drive this development forward – by setting a high standard for our own products, which are never designed to be purely functional.”

Overview of the three control variants

Voice control
“Prepare kitchen” – a simple voice command like this is enough to turn on the light above the worktop. Then use the “Wash salad” voice command to fill the kitchen sink with water. Connected Kitchen automatically selects the ideal volume and temperature of water for gently washing salad or vegetables.

Foot sensor
If you are kneading dough or carving meat, you do not have a free, clean hand to operate the kitchen fitting. In situations like this, Connected Kitchen can easily be controlled with your foot. Activate the foot sensor to dispense exactly the right amount of water to wash your hands, or wash the dishes, for example – at the perfect temperature, of course.

Smart Tools
Three litres of hot water for the pasta pot, 200 millilitres of lukewarm water for the yeast dough, or a bowl of cold water for rapidly cooling vegetables after blanching – sometimes you need a quite specific volume of water at a quite specific temperature. Connected Kitchen makes measuring jugs and thermometers redundant in the kitchen. Because with integrated digital Smart Tools, you can adjust the volume and temperature of the water exactly as you wish.

Holistic water point design from a single source
Connected Kitchen is part of Dornbracht’s extensive kitchen portfolio that includes not only fittings and kitchen sinks in a variety of designs and finishes, but also practical additional functions and accessories.

At FTK – Technology For the Kitchen, Dornbracht will be showcasing the Connected Kitchen concept in combination with the Elio series of fittings and a new generation of hand-made glazed steel kitchen sinks. Glazed steel is not only exceptionally robust and easy to clean, it also has outstanding hygienic properties that means it is perfect for kitchen use.

The new kitchen sinks are available now in three colours, black, white and sand (each in matt or gloss), and in 40 cm, 45 cm, 50 cm and 55 cm widths. They can be stylishly combined with every type of worktop, thus enhancing the range of individual design options in the kitchen. The elegance of the design is highlighted by clean lines, precise workmanship and details such as the matching colour of the drain cover.

Additional information about the kitchen portfolio can be found at dornbracht.com/kitchen