Many people's homes are getting smarter and smarter. Voice assistants such as Amazon's Alexa or the Google Assistant also help in the kitchen.
Voice assistants such as Amazon's Alexa, Apple's Siri, the Google Assistant, Microsoft's Cortana or Samsung's Bixby are becoming increasingly popular – according to recent studies, almost one in three uses them regularly. The areas of application are wide-ranging: whether in the car, in the bedroom or in the garden – users can use spoken commands to access the latest news, play audio books, check appointments and do many other things.
The wizards often have similar functions to offer. The entry barriers are low: speakers with the appropriate support are sometimes available for less than 60 euros. The corresponding smartphone apps from the major manufacturers are free. Here is a possible scenario using Amazon's Alexa as an example, which shows how voice assistants can also help in the kitchen.
What is being cooked?
A voice assistant can be useful even before cooking. What should be on the table at dinner with the family? Thanks to numerous skills, users can find countless recipes. How about a homemade pizza?
If you have decided on a recipe, but not all of the ingredients in-house, individual items or all ingredients for a dish can be placed on a shopping list by voice command – for example before work. After work, the assistant also provides information on the current traffic situation on the way to the supermarket and later home. Commuters can find out, for example, when they will arrive home with tomatoes, mushrooms and salami in their luggage.
That’s where the cooking starts. The appropriate background music is selected by voice command and off you go. Contactless interaction with a voice assistant can be very useful at the stove, as you always have your hands full while cooking. Sticky fingers from the dough? No problem. The voice assistant guides users step by step through the recipe. Devices with a screen are particularly suitable here, as they can, for example, play and pause instruction videos on demand. Such hardware is not only available from Amazon, but also from Google and Lenovo, for example.
Off in the oven – and enjoy your meal!
If there are additional smart home devices in a household, the ideal work light can also be set by command, for example. Smart thermostats also ensure that the kitchen never gets too warm in spite of all the work and heating up kitchen appliances such as the stove.
Once the dough is rolled out and covered, the pizza goes into the oven. The assistant uses a timer to inform you when the meal is ready. So you can set the table or do other things without having to worry about having to serve a charred pizza.
With another command, the right background music for the upcoming meal can be found and the light can be dimmed a little. If there are several supported loudspeakers in a household, for example in the partner's study or in the children's room, all family members can be called to dinner without having to yell through the house. Meal time routines, for example, can also be created on request.
Also helpful after eating
Would you like a coffee or espresso after dinner? Smart coffee machines can be controlled on demand and prepare the desired hot drink directly without the user having to get up. After all, nutrition-conscious people can find out roughly how many calories they have consumed using voice commands.
But who is actually doing the dishes? Families can use Alexa Blueprints, among other things, to create a task plan and check who's turn according to the "housework plan". Finally, it's off to the couch, where the next episode of the family's current favorite series can also be started by voice command.