bloomie emerged from a simple observation: most people struggle to understand their plants' needs. After witnessing countless plant deaths and frustrated urban gardeners, the team recognized a critical gap in plant care technology. bloomie is a smart plant pot that translates plants' environmental conditions into human-readable communication, bridging the understanding between plant owners and their green companions.
How Does It Work?
Using embedded sensors, bloomie continuously monitors critical environmental data including soil moisture, light levels, and ambient temperature. The device connects to a cloud network, sending real-time smartphone notifications that explain the plant's current state. An adaptive lighting system visually represents the plant's condition, transforming silent botanical signals into clear, actionable insights. Primarily designed for urban plant enthusiasts, tech-savvy millennials, and individuals who want a more intuitive approach to plant care. bloomie targets those who love the idea of having indoor plants but struggle with maintaining them.
Key Learnings
Through developing bloomie, the team discovered technology's potential to create more empathetic, responsive relationships with the natural world. They learned that effective communication transcends traditional human-plant interactions, offering a new paradigm of care and understanding. The team also learnt about rapid prototyping, effectively incorporating Arduino with networking and communication APIs, soldering and programming stepper motors and fabricating a prototype in a span of a week.
