A guide to smart home automation

Unless it is a new build, the challenge in creating a smart home is that the technology must work irrespective of the age of the property.

While it is far from mainstream, more and more smart home technology is starting to appear in the market. Energy supplier Npower recently started offering Nest, the smart central heating controller from Google in the UK, and last year, rival British Gas launched its internet-connected central heating system, Hive.

But beyond the big energy providers, a new industry is emerging to integrate computer control into the home. In the past, companies such as Lutron were synonymous with intelligent lighting installed in high-end homes.

Like the trend in IT consumerisation, smart home technology is becoming more accessible. For instance, electronics and white goods manufacturer Philips' Hue family provides a Wi-Fi-enabled light that fits into a standard light socket and can be made to dim and change colour using a smartphone app.

Other companies, such as D-Link, are focusing on remote home security, such as its Wi-Fi-connected CCTV cameras. Motorised curtains and shutters can be controlled remotely via RS434 control boxes. Meanwhile, smart TV and stereo equipment manufacturers such as Sonus offer devices compatible with the Digital Living Network Alliance (DNLA) specification, which means they play media and can be controlled via a local area network.

What many of the newer smart home products have in common is that they are underpinned by internet connectivity and cloud services, and, collectively, they are part of what the IT industry calls the internet of things (IoT). These products offer some degree of intelligence either built-in or via the cloud and they may contain a sensor, such as in internet-connected CCTV cameras, fire alarms and thermostats.

Unlike a smartphone, central heating systems and white goods such as fridges and washing machines generally last a fair number of years. Although some newer domestic appliances may have smart technology built in, consumers should not have to upgrade to take advantage of what a smart home can potentially offer.

But these timescales are not compatible with the six to 18-month schedules that seem to drive consumer electronics.

Past experience has shown that the computer industry does not have the appetite or the patience to support products that may be around for decade.

Last year, British Gass Connected Homes business ran a competition in which startups were invited to showcase smart energy technology for the home. Although there were plenty of innovative product demonstrations, a responsible home owner might question whether the technology being embedded in the home, and the companies that provide it, will last as long as the bricks and mortar.

Read the original here:
A guide to smart home automation