Nor is regulating the water temperature of shower, bath and basin fittings with spot-on precision a major challenge any more. But in contrast to the kitchen, which has been benefiting from this growth market for a long time now, the bathroom is still at the beginning of its smart evolution. The conditions are in place, and the first applications and products – from shower toilets all the way to smart bathroom mirrors – are already on the market. It’s not so much a vision of the distant future as the agenda for the years ahead: the bathroom is going smart. Here are eight important facts and practical tips about the ISH’s key 2021 trend for bathroom planners and architects:

1. The target group isn’t limited to early adopters and nerds any more

The Smart Bathroom is a topic that bathroom planners or architects can actively introduce into any planning process. The relevance of smart technology extends to all target groups and project sizes, from single-family homes all the way to apartment buildings. What are users’ daily bathroom routines like, and where can smart technology provide support in day-to-day life? Which safety systems and network standards should be factored in (as a precaution)? Use-related aspects like hygiene, lighting, personalisation, universal design and health should be on the checklist too. It’s not about “special extras” for technology nerds any more, it’s about the standard features of today and tomorrow. In the next few years, consumers will become increasingly open-minded towards the concept of smart living.

2. The bathroom is going smart behind the wall too

In future, the increasing technification and synthesis of bathroom products on both sides of the wall will mean that regular maintenance processes can be conducted digitally and remotely – a case of technology helping to optimise processes and save time. The installation of smart analysis systems behind the wall – for indicating unforeseeable pipe leaks or breaks, for instance – is just one of the safety-relevant benefits of the Smart Bathroom.

3. Smart Bathroom: an experience for all the senses

Thanks to smart technology, the bathroom can be programmed to appeal to all the senses. An innovative lighting control system, a video wall in the shower area, a shower experience like a monsoon or a light summer rain, the sounds of nature and tempting fragrances: smart technology can create an even more intense experience in the bathroom – a video wall can conjure up a holiday feeling in a matter of seconds.

4. Smart products in the bathroom are a hygiene booster

Touchless functions raise the hygiene standard in the bathroom: toilet lids that open automatically when the user approaches or contactless taps and flush plates are already established features. And there are many products – particularly shower toilets, but also lighting systems for mirrors – that can be controlled via an app on the smartphone. It’s interesting that hygiene benefits often come with ecological advantages too; a sensor-controlled fitting, for instance, saves warm water by immediately switching itself off when no longer needed. The trend: touchless technologies are increasingly being used in private bathrooms too.

5. Personalisation: perfecting the daily routine

A Smart Bathroom provides support for users’ daily routines. In certain areas, that’s already possible today: individually adjustable programs optimise the morning shower routine for the entire family; the temperature, spray mode, duration and intensity can be set for each person and accessed at the push of a button. And as soon as the shower program starts, the window automatically switches to “milky” so that the neighbours can’t see in. We can expect more applications for personalised added value in the next few years. Thanks to smart technology, the bathroom is becoming a perfectly fitting “glove” for each and every user.

6. Lighting: celebrating the changing times of day

Smart LED lighting systems make the bathroom brighter, more atmospheric and more convenient: mostly found over the mirror cabinet, they allow users to set individual lighting programs that use circadian lighting scenarios to imitate the different colours of natural light over the course of the day. As well as meeting functional requirements, lighting is therefore increasingly enhancing the quality of the time spent in the bathroom with emotional lighting scenarios as well. In addition, there are light sources with motion sensors for all sorts of different uses – even including a night light for nocturnal trips to the toilet. Lighting is bringing colour into the bathroom too: LEDs signal functions like touchless flushing or the orientation light on the shower toilet. And while laying electric cables in the bathroom used to be taboo, forward-looking planners need to factor the power supply into their concept even if a shower toilet won’t be purchased until a (much) later date.

7. Universal design: prolonging independence

Smart technology in the bathroom is a key factor in ensuring its users remain independent for as long as possible. Although that primarily applies to older people, barrier-free usage is important for other target groups too, from young children all the way to people with physical limitations. The longer the bathroom can be used on a daily basis without assistance, the longer independent living is possible. Smart technology helps to simplify functions; even today, voice control systems like Alexa can be used to control individual bathroom products such as illuminated mirror cabinets. But assistance systems like fall detectors and alarms for summoning help are a meaningful addition to the bathroom as well.

8. Health tracking: making life easier for the chronically ill

The first practicable solutions for analysing urine were presented at the ISH 2019 (Duravit). And scientists are starting to think about an online connection to the family doctor. The toilet is emerging as a key product for many of the smart applications we may see in the future. Researchers have already indicated that the presence of the Covid-19 pathogen in wastewater treatment plants could permit conclusions about the spread of the virus. China is demanding anal swab tests from anybody entering the country. The sophisticated technological features that are already the norm for shower toilets could serve as the starting point for a new generation of toilets with health-related functions.

For the ISH digital 2021, we have visualised the Green Bathroom, the Living Bathroom and the Smart Bathroom in a special installation. For a 360-degree tour of the exhibition, click here.

On our YouTube channal you can find the Pop up my Bathroom video of the Smart Bathroom.