Project Overview

Seeley International is the first Australian manufacturer to introduce a touch screen MagIQ Touch Controller for evaporative cooling products, and like Seeley International’s other industry-leading products, it has been developed and is being manufactured right here in Australia.

The MagIQtouch Controller is unique in the sense that it meets the needs of various users – service agents, installers and end consumers. The controller facilitates the evaporative cooler installation process, displays information for each of the fault codes as a troubleshooting guide, and facilitates the end consumer’s experience with the product, for example, by offering energy saving modes.

Organisation

Seeley International Pty Ltd

Team

The design team of six Seeley International engineers – (four electronics engineers, one technician and one industrial engineer - project leader) worked in collaboration with an external software developer and an external GUI expert design consultancy to implement the project.

Project Brief

The MagIQtouch Controller features a ‘smart’ touch screen, similar in size to an iPhone. The practice of reaching out and touching icons on a screen comes intuitively even to those without computer skills. The self-explanatory symbols lead to an easy-to-understand menu.
Touch screen technology has allowed us to present the customer with a much cleaner and more intuitive interface. Features and modes are displayed and accessed in a much more transparent way.

Project Innovation/Need

The MagIQtouch Controller is the first ‘smart’ touch screen controller for evaporative cooling products in Australia. It has been designed and is currently being manufactured right here in Australia. This is due to a company policy of vertical integration and strong support of local production.
The controller’s technology is based on the same simplistic functions of other touch screens consumers are familiar with. It has intuitive user navigation, making the operating process simple. The controller facilitates the evaporative cooler installation process, displays information for each of the fault codes as a troubleshooting guide for service agents, and facilitates the end consumer’s experience with the product, by offering energy saving modes such as the built-in customisable 7 day, 4 time period program mode.

The controller offers great opportunities for future developments. By introducing a single communication protocol, all Seeley International products will be controlled through the MagIQtouch Controller .

Design Challenge

The MagIQtouch Controller is the controller for evaporative cooling that sets a new industry standard.

This is largely achieved by breaking away from the norm and presenting the controller modes in different perspective to what was conventional for other controllers. The controller offers a simple solution to various groups of users (service agents and installers versus end users), who’s technical knowledge and needs vary. After numerous consultations and conducted tests the MagIQtouch Controller ’s modes are easy to navigate, but offer extensive technical information when needed – i.e. the troubleshooting guide.

There were a number of challenges that the engineering team has successfully overcome from the product development perspective. These included various hardware and software technical challenges, i.e. the development of the intuitive, easy to use and understand, attractive to the customers interface.

As a vertically integrated manufacturing company, focused on keeping the production of its products in Australia, Seeley International designed and constructed an electronics assembly clean room specifically for the purpose of assembling the MagIQtouch Controller .

Sustainability

The MagIQtouch Controller offers extensive functions that ensure effective energy savings.
The controller features a built-in customisable 7 day, 4 time period program mode. It is suitable for end users who’d want to “set and forget”. Program Mode divides each day into four time periods. The end user decides when each of these periods begins and what system mode will be operating. The Program Mode function is flexible to suit any lifestyle. The rooms are air conditioned at the comfort level only the set occupancy times reducing unnecessary use of energy.
The controller also features an energy-saving night quiet mode - when turned on, the mode automatically reduces fan speed during the night for even greater economy and whisper quietness.