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The Digital Barista

Industry:

Food Service

Year:

2022 - ...

Brief
Facts
Project Stages
Result

Brief

Initial Situation:

Especially in institutions that serve individuals with physical or cognitive impairments, easy access to everyday items is crucial. The goal was therefore to develop a smart, local voice control system that flexibly responds to various voice commands and seamlessly integrates with existing WMF machines.

Objective:

We sought a technical solution that:

  • operates locally (offline),
  • understands different sentence structures,
  • and can be integrated into all professional WMF machines via an interface.

Facts

>500

Recipes

6

Months of Development

90%

Customer Satisfaction (CSAT)

260ms

Response Latency

4.8%

Word Error Rate (WER)

Project Stages

Strategy Development/Analysis

First, the technical infrastructure was analyzed—from the machine interface to the necessary configuration schemes. Based on these findings, a suitable voice model was defined and a training method was established. At the same time, appropriate hardware was evaluated to ensure fast and reliable performance.

Prototyping

A first prototype was built using the WMF1500S+. An Intel Core i5-1340P was used, allowing all voice processing to be performed locally. The focus here was on training the model and implementing an intelligent microphone filter that reliably filters out ambient noise.

Implementation

For productive use, a specially developed housing was installed, blending inconspicuously into the existing design. A central log system continuously collects usage data, enabling ongoing optimization based on real-world experience.

Industrialization

Thanks to insights from the “Digital Welcome Desk” project, the next steps are already in planning: the voice control system will soon not only understand commands, but also engage in real dialog—including personalized coffee requests like “Please make a mild Latte Macchiato with extra milk foam.” The corresponding voice model is already in the testing phase.

Result

This project clearly demonstrates how technological innovation can help remove barriers. The developed voice control system operates reliably, quickly, and entirely offline—a true benefit for use in hospitals, nursing homes, or assisted living facilities. Integration with existing WMF devices runs smoothly; the system recognizes various speech patterns, ensuring high user-friendliness. This robust foundation of hardware, software, and usability not only supports current use but also paves the way for future enhancements—such as dialog-based orders.

We look forward to your inquiry.

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