Hearth
Project overview
One person sets up the smart home and everyone else is locked out. Your mom wants to turn off a light but needs a full account to do it. You open the app and it's all your dad's routines. Nobody can see who controls what. Every major platform requires a full account to join. None of them offer per-device permissions. Only the admin can see the permission settings. I designed Hearth to let you invite household members with a link instead of registration, give everyone their own profile with personal routines, and make permissions visible so people know what they can and can't control.
Inviting Is Not Registering
Every smart home platform requires a full account to join a household. Google wants a Google account, Apple wants an Apple ID. But being invited into a home that already exists is not the same as signing up for a new service. I designed a link-based invite. The new member taps, picks an avatar, types a name, and they're in. Under thirty seconds, no email, no password. The insight is about matching friction to action. Joining your family's home should feel like walking through the door, not filling out a form.
Three Roles, Not Two Permission Levels
Existing platforms have admin and everyone else. That's not how households work. I designed three roles. Admin, Member, and Kid. Each one isn't just a permission level. It's a different experience of the same home. Admin gets full control. Member gets their own routines, preferences, and device shortcuts. Kid gets scheduled access with parental visibility. The "Preview as Kid" feature came from testing. Parents wanted to see exactly what their child would experience before locking in the settings.
Showing Permissions Instead of Hiding Them
The same household model works on both mobile and TV. Profile picker on TV uses big avatars and works with a remote. Each profile loads a personal dashboard. If someone without access tries to use a restricted device, they see a message telling them who to ask, not a generic error. Designing cross-platform meant deciding what belongs where. I put setup and management on mobile. Quick switching and daily use on TV. The identity model is the same. The interaction patterns adapt to how each device is actually used in a home.
Same Model, Different Interactions: Phone vs TV
The same household model works on both mobile and TV. Profile picker on TV uses big avatars and works with a remote. Each profile loads a personal dashboard. If someone without access tries to use a restricted device, they see a message telling them who to ask, not a generic error. Designing cross-platform meant deciding what belongs where. I put setup and management on mobile. Quick switching and daily use on TV. The identity model is the same. The interaction patterns adapt to how each device is actually used in a home.