Crestron Core 3 UI Takes Pain Out of Programming

Crestron is now shipping its new Core 3 UI platform for select touchscreens. The graphical interface lets dealers drag-and-drop prewritten “SmartObjects” onto their interface designs, and resize them simply (and perfectly) thanks to “SmartScaling” vector-based graphics.

Here’s how Crestron describes it:

SmartScaling technology takes the pain out of resizing multi-layered objects, such as virtual keypads. Rather than multiple objects (buttons, text, borders, etc.), each requiring resizing or other graphical editing, Core 3 UI treats a complex object as a single item. Resizing a keypad, for example, is as simple as clicking on the object and dragging a handle to the desired size. Every element in the keypad is scaled perfectly, even text, providing users with a consistent look and feel. The end result is a single project can be deployed across multiple touch screens of varying sizes without any additional effort, reducing programming time by days.

And when you drag a SmartObject onto the canvas, you get some preconfigured programming along with a pretty picture so it’s easy to add lights, thermostats, keypads, music servers and other devices to a room or scene.

Crestron says the platform will cut “days of programming time to hours or even minutes.”

Core 3 UI is designed to take advantage of multitouch, gesture-driven interfaces. The application makes it simple to configure a scenario like this, according to the Crestron press release: “Customers can easily select their favorite movie in any room of the house by simply dragging and dropping the Blu-ray Disc player icon into the preferred room on the touch screen.”

The complete press release is reproduced below.

PRESS RELEASE
Crestron Core 3 UI raises the bar for fast, easy design of dynamic touch screen interfaces
Ability to merge objects and apps, integrate gestures-driven navigation, and easily scale designs to fit multiple touch screens dramatically reduces programming time while increasing “wow” factor.

Rockleigh, NJ, January 19, 2012 – Crestron announced that its new Core 3 UI platform, the next generation of graphical user interface design, is now available on select Crestron touch screen models. Core 3 UI gives Crestron programmers the ability to design dynamic touch screen interfaces to control theaters, lighting, thermostats, multi-room audio, digital music, video content, security cameras and other connected devices in almost half the time.

The unique Core 3 UI platform supports multiple Adobe Flash objects, HTML5, digital HD video, H.264 streaming video and Web browsing all at the same time. State-of-the-art technology such as SmartObjects and SmartScaling make it easy for programmers to deliver extremely dynamic, graphically rich and intuitive user experiences.

“Our industry has never seen anything like Core 3 UI,” said Sean Goldstein, Crestron VP of Marketing. “Custom installers and programmers can now leverage the latest graphic technologies and video formats to create ultra-cool GUIs for their clients, and reduce programming time by up to 30%.”

With Core 3 UI, customers can easily select their favorite movie in any room of the house by simply dragging and dropping the Blu-ray Disc player icon into the preferred room on the touch screen. Programmers can even personalize the display by utilizing a wide selection of pre-installed Core 3 UI objects - from animated gauges and liquid sliders, to a gesture based canvas, the options are virtually endless. Core 3 UI's SmartObjects technology enables programmers to instantly add controls, user presets, and metadata interfaces for everything from simple keypads to complex media devices and environmental systems. Adding complex pre-configured objects such

as ADMS, iPod, SiriusXM, or Pandora® interfaces to a project is as simple as adding a button using the drag-and-drop operation, cutting days of programming time to hours or even minutes.

Core 3 UI's SmartScaling technology takes the pain out of resizing multi-layered objects, such as virtual keypads. Rather than multiple objects (buttons, text, borders, etc.), each requiring resizing or other graphical editing, Core 3 UI treats a complex object as a single item. Resizing a keypad, for example, is as simple as clicking on the object and dragging a handle to the desired size. Every element in the keypad is scaled perfectly, even text, providing users with a consistent look and feel. The end result is a single project can be deployed across multiple touch screens of varying sizes without any additional effort, reducing programming time by days.

“The popularity of the Apple iPhone and iPad, has raised consumer expectations when it comes to the user experience,” said Fred Bargetzi, Crestron VP of Technology. “Core 3 UI gives Crestron dealers and programmers the tools to meet or exceed those expectations while dramatically reducing programming time and costs.”

To see Core 3 UI technology in action, watch the Core 3 UI video. Learn more about creating astonishing touch screen interfaces with Core 3 UI.