Home Appliances

CAT-2 Apartment Station by WOLF

Product: Apartment Station CAT-2
Company: WOLF
Domain: Home Appliances
Platform: STM32H7
GUI developed by: TARA Systems

Imagine a world without heating or hot water – a frightening thought, isn’t it? Luckily, WOLF’s apartment station ensures efficient decentralized heat distribution and hygienic hot water supply. This device allows residents of multi-party apartment buildings to determine independently when and how much to heat. As a result, it enables users to maintain control over their energy consumption and contributes to reduced energy costs.

For this project, having the capability for reusability across diverse device classes, scalability of the required hardware, and a trustworthy software partner was of very high importance for us. Fortunately, we not only obtained all these essential elements but also much more through the Embedded Wizard and the collaboration with the GUI Services team.

The Challenge: A Sophisticated HMI

WOLF is one of the leading system providers for heating and ventilation systems based in Mainburg, Bavaria. With nine subsidiaries and 60 sales partners in over 50 countries, the company has a global presence. For the new CAT-2, WOLF sought to elevate their product with a touchscreen and a flexible HMI suitable for cross-product use. Though WOLF already had extensive GUI expertise, the complexity of this project and the time it would consume prompted them to partner with TARA Systems’ GUI Services team for this project, a decision that marked the beginning of our shared journey.

WOLF faced constraints due to a reduced memory and the necessity to build the GUI on price-sensitive hardware, posing unique challenges that demanded a strategic approach. The GUI Services team seamlessly realized WOLF’s vision, adapting to the product’s requirements and providing the HMI’s technical concept development as well as its realization for the innovative heating solution.

The Result: A Blazing Success

This project was rooted in our positive and collaborative partnership that thrived on constructive criticism, a strong work ethic and a shared innovative spirit. Additionally, since both of our offices are located in Bavaria, the geographical proximity facilitated efficient communication and a common understanding throughout the project. Our collaboration resulted in a high-end floor station equipped with a modern and user-friendly HMI, adaptable for use across diverse device classes. Furthermore, the GUI within the HMI can be configured through JSON, and it can therefore be dynamically adapted to the requirements of the respective device without having to change the software.