What is Water Use PlusBeta ?
This new feature allows you to see water consumption in a number of ways, giving you unparalleled insights into your water use, including:
- At-a-glance usage trends on a monthly view “heat map.” The darker the circle around the day, the more water was used.
- Breakdown of how much each fixture type (toilets, showers, irrigation, etc…) used in a day.
- A “water log” of all water activities that can be filtered by fixture, time of day, and amount of water used.
Is Phyn charging for this feature? No, Phyn is providing this information for our users at no additional cost.
Can I still see the water use charts that are currently in the app? Yes, the existing monthly, daily, hourly views of water use are still available in the app under the tab “Water Use”.
Why is this feature labeled “Beta”? During the Beta period for this feature, Phyn is improving it’s knowledge about fixtures in the home to more accurately predict and categorize them. Part of the AI improvement process will leverage user feedback as one of the ways it will become smarter. Initially, the system will be smarter in categorizing a some fixtures (e.g. showers, toilets and sinks) more than others. Over time, and as part of this Beta period, Phyn will continue to learn and improve it’s AI to becoming extremely accurate across all fixture categories. As part of this learning Beta period, Phyn uses feedback to enhance it’s knowledge base and label uncategorized fixtures in order to get smarter. At first, users may not see noticeable improvements in the system from their feedback as the system is building models and processing feedback. But, before you know it, Phyn will get smarter and accuracy will continually improve.
Why are washing machines and dishwashers more difficult for Phyn to detect than sinks, showers and toilets? The distinguishable water sensing features of washing machines and dishwashers vary widely by manufacturer, model and wash cycle. While Phyn is already aware of these nuances, due to the real world diversity of these machines in operation today, your specific model may not be accurately recognized on day 1. But, over a relatively short period of time, Phyn will learn as you run your washing machine and dishwasher more and picks up those nuances.
How can I improve the results of the water use categorization? In the “water log” section of the app, where you can see all of your usage listed out by time of day, you can correct the label assigned to a water activity. Labels that are corrected by you are denoted by an icon of a person. Labels that are system generated are denoted by the Phyn logo.
When will I start to see improvements in the water use categorization? At first, users may not see improvements to their categorization from their feedback. Initial improvements should be noticeable within a period of a few weeks. However, Phyn’s AI knowledge base will continue to expand and improve continually, forever. Phyn will never stop get smarter, applying the feedback that it receives from users, as well as pressure and flow-based models that the hardworking team at Phyn are continuing to push the boundaries to improve.
What is an uncategorized usage? Water activity that the system does not recognize is labeled “uncategorized”. This may be because the system was offline, or that the water use is still occurring. If the water is still running, when it stops Phyn will apply a label after a few minutes. Also, a leak that had generated an alert may be classified as "uncategorized".
Why is N/A showing for "events"? Phyn will show the total amount of water used in aggregate prior to the date that Water Use Plus was launched, however the app will not show the number of events or breakdown of usage for these days and months.