Reimagining how we water and take care of the plants we love.

Plant Care Made Easy.

PlantLink uses soil moisture sensors to send “water me today” alerts to the user when plants need water. Users can also pair their sensors with a smart watering valve for automatic watering. 

PlantLink is a connected, wireless soil monitoring system for use indoors and out by gardeners and landscapers. PlantLink was a 2013 top Kickstarter project, and later aquired by The Scotts Miracle Gro company in 2016.

THE CHALLENGE

PlantLink came to The Product Manufactory with a set of requirements that addressed the scalability issues of PlantLink V1. We utilized their current customer feedback and developed a specification that would get them ready for large scale manufacturing.

We needed to develop a design that was easy for a user to interact with, but still reliably measured and transmitted plant data to a smart hub 100 yards away. We relied heavily on our teams plastics and enclosure design as well as our trusted supply chain partner to who reliably sourced manufacturers and materials that would guarantee water tight enclosures.

Above: Concept generation and testing. Below: User research and identification.

A MOVING TARGET

As the PlantLink's success and development scope expanded, our team was able to research and develop working prototypes for an Internet connected solar-powered watering valve. Our understanding of the PlantLink user helped us propose and prototype a suite of products (a smart plant care system) that would live and work together.

The new valve prototype addressed for 3 key consumer demands: a reliable waterproof valve mechanism, unlimited battery life via solar panel, and of course maintaining a reliable connection to the PlantLink Cloud/internet.

The end result was a suite of products that created a smart plant care system. With any new product category, the ability to rapidly iterate and prototype was crucial during early development and helped our client quickly get to market and test their assumptions.

OUTCOME

Our client had a production ready Soil Moisture Sensor and Watering Valve that satisfied their consumer's plant care needs.

A partnership

We were PlantLink's partner, thinking on behalf of their user during prototyping, design, and development. Being a consumer Internet of Things product, the project was filled with new challenges and opportunities. In the end, the work represented a optimal utilization of our teams resources, partners, and expertise.  

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Industrial design

Prototyping

Testing

Mechanical design

Electrical engineering

Branding / UX

Product specification