Inspired by the Italian gioia di vivere Martini wants to free it’s audiences from the stresses of time, enabling us to get the most out of every moment with friends. One barrier we recognized was the need to tear yourself away from that all-too-rare catch-up to spend hours queuing at the bar. However with Smart Cube this frustration becomes a thing of the past, as the innovation will do the ordering for you.

Smart Cubes use iBeacons for real time communication with a companion application to show bar tenders when drinks are empty, & where the customer is within bar area.

Hardware components include Apple iPads [Pro 12.9”, 128Gb, Gold, WIFI + 3G], Qualcomm Series 10 Gimbal iBeacons, customised clear Poly-resin shells, bespoke capacitive liquid sensor boards, & bespoke processor, LED & BTLE boards.

Software used includes Distriqt iBeacon ANE Package, for communication between application & cube iBeacon; Distriqt Low Power Bluetooth Package, for LED & system control of cube via application; & Adobe Animate CC / AIR, for building application & deploying on iPad Pro.

• Consumer orders drink at bar, gives their name.

• Bartender registers new drink by entering Cube ID (from individual cubes) & selects drink type. Add name optional.

• Bartender makes drink, adds ice & smart cube – serves.

• When drink is empty iBeacon sends notification to bar iPad, & cube LEDs pulse colours.

• Bartender sees notification on bar iPad. He registers new drink & waiter takes.

• Waiter uses proximity data & LED colour indicator to locate empty drink.

• Waiter offers new drink to consumer at their table, by name if given.

Trialed at the Monza Gran Prix in 2016 Smart Cubes proved hugely popular with consumers and attracted massive earned interest within the technology and industry press including Wired and BBC Online. Smart Cubes was featured in 45 pieces generating over 45.8 million opportunities to see worldwide. All content was favourable in tone, 40% strongly so and 100% of articles featured Martini and it’s new serve Martini & Tonic with impactful imagery.

However this was not just a one off stunt or simple crowd pleaser, but an innovation with the potential to transform the in bar drinking experience. Martini has now dedicated to develop the Smart Cube technology to enable you to check if your drink has been tampered with meaning consumers can be assured peace of mind when enjoying nights out with friends. Next steps will be to plan the roll out to a bar near you.