By Trevor Ballantyne
BU News Service
LG has announced a new Artificial Intelligence (AI) feature that will become standard in all of its products in 2018. Speaking at an early morning news conference at CES 2018 on Monday, LG President and Chief Technology Officer I.P. Park said the feature, called LG Thin Q, will connect a user’s network of home appliances and smart devices while allowing for everyday appliances to learn from their environment.
For instance, LG air conditioners, washers and dryers, refrigerators, and even automobile systems will recognize user tendencies and automatically react, Park said. “In the car, LG’s cabin monitor technology learns the driver’s facial expressions and gestures, it recognizes the moment you start getting drowsy and it alerts you.” LG’s line of robot vacuums will learn from its users and even recognize household pet behaviors in order to optimize its cleaning performance. Room temperatures and air filters will adjust when a user enters a room based on his or her preferences.
In addition to this self-learning capacity, LG products will also integrate with each other. LG’s smart refrigerator – which includes a 29-inch touchscreen monitor on its door – can send alerts to your vehicle to remind you to pick up milk or other essentials that might be running low. The refrigerator can also recommend and display recipes for users based on the ingredients it is storing.
This coordination is not limited to just LG products. LG Thin Q was built on an open source platform which allows other company’s products to coexist in an open smart device ecosystem. For example, when Google Assistant reminds you to hit the gym, your LG washer and dryer will automatically adjust its settings to handle your sweaty workout clothes. The appliances will also self-monitor for any maintenance issues and alert appropriate parties of needed repair.
The management of this network of AI enabled devices is done through a speech command device LG calls CLOI. Although it malfunctioned during the demo at CES, the device is designed to act as a central command center for a user’s network of home appliances. Users can adjust room temperatures, check the weather and activate appliances using CLOI. A similar voice command system has also been installed into LG’s line of televisions, allowing viewers to browse channels and TV listings or identify actors and actresses appearing on their screens. Users can even order a pizza or call up home videos and pictures stored in their personal libraries via voice commands to their LG televisions.
Speaking at the conclusion of the presentation, LG Vice President of Marketing David VanderWaal said, “2018 will be the tipping point for the smart home” and championed LG’s Thin Q technology as a component that can bring the concept together.
