Designing Home UI/UX as an Integral Part of the Residence
In high-end residences, every element, from architecture and interior design to lighting, furniture, and materials, is meticulously planned to fit the overall concept of the living space. However, the interfaces for home automation often default to standard designs provided by the system. AURAS believes that the UI/UX of a home should be considered a design element, optimized for each individual residence, just like its architecture and interior.
This philosophy guides the design of how residential states are displayed, how residents understand them, and how they interact with the system. Based on this, three UI/UX approaches have been developed.
01 CLEAR — QUIET LUXURY
“CLEAR” is an AURAS-developed UI/UX that prioritizes clarity and understated sophistication. It is designed to allow residents to grasp the main status of the home’s lighting, motorized shades, air conditioning, floor heating, and audio-visual systems at a glance, without the interface itself dominating the architectural or interior design.
For example, with motorized shades, the system visually represents the current position on the screen, moving beyond simple OPEN/CLOSE commands or numerical displays.
02 PROVEN — CRESTRON HOME®
“PROVEN” is an approach that emphasizes clarity, reliability, and a well-established operational framework. AURAS positions Crestron Home®, a platform widely adopted in residential automation globally, as a proven choice. The company believes it is crucial to offer the option of a mature platform based on the specific conditions of a residence and the residents’ preferences, not limiting choices to AURAS’s proprietary UI/UX alone.
03 NEXT — RESPONSIVE LIVING
“NEXT” is an AURAS-developed approach that anticipates the future of residential UI/UX. Instead of merely changing button colors or numerical values, this interface dynamically alters the screen’s overall light, shadow, information density, motion, and spatial representation in response to the home’s status. The goal is for residents to intuitively understand the current living environment simply by looking at the screen when the home’s state changes, for example, to “HOME,” “NIGHT,” “SLEEP,” or “AWAY.” These visual expressions are designed not as mere effects but as integral feedback for natural comprehension of the home’s status.
Customizable UI and Multi-Language Support
The “CLEAR,” “PROVEN,” and “NEXT” approaches are not just variations in color or design themes; they represent distinct philosophies regarding information presentation, operational hierarchy, displayed information volume, motion, and feedback expression. Furthermore, the display content and operation methods are adjusted for each residence, taking into account the floor plan, equipment configuration, architectural and interior concepts, and resident usage patterns. AURAS’s fundamental principle is to adapt the interface to the residence and its occupants, rather than forcing the residence to conform to a pre-existing app.
AURAS Residential supports three languages: Japanese, English, and Simplified Chinese. This multi-language capability is designed to maintain consistent layout, operability, and design quality even when the language is switched, catering to international owners, multinational families, and foreign guests.
The UI is also optimized for both iPads, commonly used within the home, and iPhones, which are carried daily. This involves reconfiguring how information is presented for each device, rather than simply scaling down the screen.
Continuous UI/UX Evolution
While residences are used for long periods, audio-visual equipment, digital services, home facilities, and residents’ lifestyles continuously evolve. AURAS does not consider the UI delivered at the completion of a residence to be its final form. The screen configuration, operation methods, and the UI/UX itself will be continuously updated to accommodate the addition of new equipment and services, changes in family structure or lifestyle, and actual usage patterns. AURAS views the absorption of differences between building lifespan and digital technology update speeds through software updates as a crucial role of residential home automation.
Integration with Leading Home Equipment
AURAS Residential is not merely a conceptual undertaking. Development and verification are being conducted with the premise of integration with actual residential equipment, utilizing Crestron as the core of home automation, alongside Lutron HomeWorks for lighting and motorized shades, as well as air conditioning, floor heating, televisions, and audio-visual systems. A significant development theme is not only sending control commands but also reflecting feedback obtained from the equipment, such as lighting levels, shade positions, temperatures, and operating statuses, into the UI to ensure consistency between the actual home status and the on-screen display.
AURAS will continue to implement and verify these advancements at the AURAS Experience Centre and in actual residential projects, continuously updating the UI/UX.
Home Automation as Part of Architectural and Interior Brands
AURAS considers home automation not just as equipment specifications but as an integral part of the daily residential experience for occupants. By combining UI/UX tailored to architectural and interior concepts, unique functional configurations for each property, multi-language support, and device-specific optimization, AURAS aims to enhance the overall value of the residence. In collaborations with architects, house builders, developers, and interior designers, AURAS actively proposes solutions that encompass not only equipment planning but also the UI/UX that residents ultimately interact with.
About AURAS Corporation
AURAS Corporation is a system integrator specializing in the design, construction, and programming of residential home automation. The company integrates home automation systems, including Crestron and Lutron HomeWorks, with lighting control, motorized shades, air conditioning, and audio-visual systems. AURAS designs systems tailored to the architecture, interior, and lifestyle of each high-end residence. The objective is not merely to introduce equipment but to design the entire residence as a unified experience, bridging architecture, interior design, and technology.
Related Link
- AURAS Corporation Official Website: https://auras-inc.co.jp/
