14 DAY TRIAL // We’ve seen smart fridges before, but none of them has been able to actually keep an eye on what groceries you buy, watch you as you eat them and then create shopping lists to remind you what you need to buy to refill stocks.
This why Microsoft has teamed up with Liebherr to create a new smart fridge that uses machine learning technologies developed by the software giant in order to do that and even more.
Basically, the new generation of the so-called SmartDeviceBox can automatically learn to recognize new types of objects, so when you’re buying milk and ketchup, it’ll know that you bought milk and ketchup. And when you’re running out of milk, the fridge automatically puts milk on your next shopping list and even sends it to your Android, iOS, or Windows phone to remind you to make a stop at the supermarket.
Cameras placed inside with remote access
The device features cameras and sensors placed inside the fridge to create the inventory list and can recognize individual food items in the refrigerator, letting owners see what’s inside at any given moment from anywhere using just their smartphones, no matter the platform they are using, as the application supports all popular OSes.
“When a new image from inside a refrigerator is provided to the newly learned model, it can detect the presence of the objects it has seen before during training,” Microsoft explains.
While this is currently a prototype, Microsoft says that it’s working with its partners to bring fridges closer to production, adding that some other smart devices could be developed as well using the newly-developed system.
“The system is designed to have a long lifecycle: Modular units can be integrated and upgraded at any time in existing SmartDevice-ready appliances to create value and comfort for customers through new digital features and solutions,” the company concludes.