Drizzle became the world’s first manufacturer of completely automated kitchen appliances for home extracting and purifying of cannabis oil. They were looking for a technology partner skilled in legacy modernization services to assist in the modernization and ongoing support of their cannabis oil extraction software. They approached Euristiq when they recognized the need to improve device software – help refactor the codebase, and implement new features on frontend and backend.
Our client saw an opportunity to make CBD oil more accessible for people who need it for medicinal reasons by creating an oil manufacturing device for consumer use, thus moving the manufacturing process home.
Using 3D printing technology that allows for incredibly fast iterations, our client created an automated kitchen appliance that, in 2-4 hours, can extract 90% of the available cannabinoids from hemp and cannabis. This manufacturing device called Merlin400 is a complex machine with built-in electronics that runs a few programs for extracting CBD and THC oil.
The embedded part of the machine is based on Raspberry PI, a Linux machine that runs code written in Python. The startup founder did most of the coding, but the code was polluted with technical debt, poorly structured, and lacked maintainability. They were looking for a technology partner to address these problems.
Euristiq refactored the codebase and added new features on both frontend and backend. We implemented such processes as testing and CI/CD, which improved the development process and significantly helped with efficient cannabis extraction software modernization.
Replace legacy codebase for improved maintainability
Previously, the firmware was copied from GitHub and installed manually. We introduced automation to firmware updates. The new build is being published through continuous integration, and new firmware is installed automatically in one package.
The new build is being published through continuous integration, and new firmware is installed automatically in one package.
One of the main updates the Euristiq team has carried out is implementing a secure way to update firmware over the air through built-in WiFi. The client wanted to improve device security and use obfuscation. We integrated the obfuscation process in the CI/CD pipeline so the resulting Python code is protected from being tampered with.
Euristiq also added new functionality to the device – actions that manage the device state, like turning the heater on and keeping it operating for 10 min.
The client’s device, Merlin400, allows patients to manufacture their cannabis oil of known and superior quality and save costs. It is effortless to operate and can be used in the comfort of the patient’s home.
Manufactured from plastic compared to expensive stainless steel which is customary in chemistry and extraction machines, it significantly reduces costs for cannabidiol oil production, making it more accessible for people who need it for medicinal reasons.
During this cannabis extraction software modernization project, Euristiq improved the device operability and system development processes – it became easier to test the device, and firmware release became trivial.
The next steps for the client are accelerating production, developing a more user-friendly version of the app, and expanding to the European markets. Drizzle is currently looking for partners to boost the manufacturing process.
