Accelerating embedded UX development: Crank Software unveils rapid design iteration technology

Storyboard 7.0 empowers embedded GUI teams to bring sophisticated, power-efficient applications faster to market

OTTAWA, March 2, 2021 — Crank Software, a leading global provider of GUI development tools for the embedded systems market, continues to innovate with the launch of Storyboard 7.0, a development platform built to deliver smartphone-like user experiences (UX) on low-power, tightly-resourced hardware. With increasing consumer expectations and the number of IoT-connected devices projected to increase to 43 billion worldwide by 2023, Storyboard’s new Rapid Design Import and Iteration Technology meets the needs of device manufacturers looking for innovative ways to deliver rich, engaging experiences on high-performance and power-efficient platforms.

The importance of design resiliency and agile change practices has never been more important. According to Forrester, “Design can help companies understand their ecosystem today, grasp its complexity, make sense of it, and experiment with potential futures in a controlled way — helping them to be more resilient. In that sense, design is a powerful tool for change — as the one and only constant is change.”

“Storyboard 7.0 brings the embedded systems industry closer to delivering the rich, sophisticated GUIs that consumers crave, driven by growth in the wearables and personal devices segments that demand high performance on low-power devices,” said Thomas Fletcher, VP of Research & Development of Crank Software. “By closely aligning embedded developers with the iterative change processes of designers — using popular tools like Sketch and Photoshop — manufacturers don’t have to sacrifice UX quality or performance for development time.”

Through Storyboard’s Rapid Design Import and Iteration Technology, the traditional process of adapting GUI applications to design changes is transformed into agile UX development, where developers can re-import Sketch and Photoshop design files without affecting the backend code.

“In our modern IoT-driven world, consumers want access to new types of connectivity, longer battery life, and data-driven features that all come together at the user interface,” said Eduardo Montanez, Marketing Manager of Wearables & Personal Devices at NXP^® Semiconductors, a member of the Crank partner network. “Combining Storyboard’s rapid design iteration technology with platforms, like NXP’s crossover processors, that support low power consumption and performance efficiency is essential in meeting the growing and demanding needs of today’s marketplace.”

With only a few mouse clicks, developers can use Storyboard to visualize changed assets and rapidly assess, accept, or reject elements in a timesaving manner. This accelerated workflow allows teams to refine their products at any stage in their development cycle, from wearables and smart home appliances to medical devices.

 

About Crank Software:

Crank Software is a global innovator in embedded GUI solutions that accelerate the design and development of modern UX for tomorrow's IoT devices. Through the Storyboard framework, Crank drives innovation and faster time to market for brands wanting to deliver sophisticated customer experiences and unmatched performance.

With decades of domain expertise, brands such as Coca-Cola, John Deere, and Vorwerk rely on Crank to bridge the gap between UX vision and customer expectations.

Crank Software is a gold member of the NXP Partner Program, a global network of engineering companies collaborating with NXP to bring you exceptional software, tools, training and services, and ultimately speed your time to market. You can learn more about Crank Software products and services and their support of NXP EdgeVerse processors on the Crank Software partner profile here.

To learn more, visit cranksoftware.com.

 

Media inquiries:

Roy Sarkar, Crank Software, rsarkar@cranksoftware.com, (613) 853-8618