Smart Home Technology Isn't A Dream Anymore
What is perfect home? The home where you want to come back, that waits for you and is ready for your arrival. And this is not a metaphor, the home really waits and is ready: light is switched on, the rooms are winded and warmed to the desired temperature, there is pleasant music and warm dinner, as if someone has prepared everything for you. Sounds like fantasy? No, it is already reality that is called “smart home”.
Smart home – fantasy or reality?
The future has already come. Now our home can become smart. Everything is just like the fiction writers have predicted.
The concept of “smart home”, the home that can do everything instead of you (cooks and serves dinner, washes and irons your clothes, entertains its habitants), appeared about half a century ago. Probably, for the first time smart home was mentioned in the work of American science fiction writer Ray Bradbury in 1950s. Devices that today seem to be weird, such as mechanical arms, special device that ties your shoelaces and mice-cleaners were presented in many of the writer’s works. In course of time many other writers followed the same idea and smart homes started to appear in many novels and short stories, and later in the movies. The smart home technology gradually improved, in 1980s and 1990s it could not only speak, as in Bradbury’s works, but also understood human speech. “Smart home” was even shown in an episode of The Simpsons – traditionally for American fiction there was used Rise of the Machines plot. However in real life smart homes were not very widespread, first of all because of the absence of connection technology between different household devices.
Like many other technologies, the Internet spread has given a push for the development of smart homes. In 1995 already the Java technology developers predict that in the nearest future with the help of the Internet the refrigerators will be able to keep count of food and order products. However, as time has shown, such a technology has not been applied in practice.
Since 2012 Panasonic Company has started to produce the equipment for use in smart homes. By the way, one of the modern aspects of smart homes is energy savings. The AiSEG Panasonic technology allows to unite all the household devices in the house into a single network that gives information about electrical power, gas and water use. All this is automatically controlled by the ECHONET Lite protocol.
In general the modern definition of smart home means combination of the main components of the house into a single management system. Connection, cleaning, heating and conditioning, lighting, power, safety and security of your home or apartment interact, making a man free from the boring and routine work.
The status issue
Since the ancient times it is a common phenomenon that all the technical innovations are tested by so-called elite first, and only then get on the common market. The same happened with smart homes. In the beginning of 2000s only rich people could have smart home technologies. 10 years later there were hundreds of the advertisings about smart home technology installation. Today the technology is also offered in quite budget buildings.
It should be mentioned that there are different approaches to smart homes. For example, in Europe the main reason to install smart home technology is its environmental friendliness, that is reduction of energy consumption and emissions from home, in most of other countries it is prestige.
According to RnR Market Research analysts by 2020 the global market for smart homes will reach 51.77 billion US dollars. At the same time the average annual market growth rate will be more than 17%.
What makes home smart?
Let’s figure out how this system works. For the correct functioning of smart home the most important is interconnection of all the components. In fact, smart home is a superstructure that unites separate functions of a house. There are several types of smart home technology:
LanDrive. This system is the most widespread today. Among its functions there is control of internal and street lighting, electrical power, electrical appliances, and also such systems as heating, conditioning, ventilation, security alarm, control of access and water leaks. Besides, LanDrive can follow the audio and video equipment, home theaters, blinds, shutters, curtains, gates, pumps, engines.
TELETASK (AUTOBUS protocol). It is automation system that can be applies not only to houses, but also to offices and hotels.
X10 is the protocol of electrical appliances control. The disadvantage of this protocol is low data transfer rate, problem of false alarm, absence of the receiver feedback with the transmitter. In addition there can be conflicts between X10 devices of different producers and unauthorized access to the X10 devices via electric network.
Z-Wave is patented wireless communication protocol for home automation. The technology uses low-power and miniature radiofrequency modules that are installed in consumer electronics and various devices, such as lighting, heating, access control, entertainment systems and household appliances.
ONE-NET is open protocol of wireless data network designed for the purposes of buildings automation and distributed object management.
1-Wire is technology that allows to connect many sensors and devices in a single network, which is controlled be the personal computer. Only one wire is used to transfer data in such a network. Its advantages are low cost and easy installation.
The home essence
The home essence is in combination of numerous devices that provide safety and comfort of all the house habitants into a single system. It is absolutely automated and stuffed with high-tech devices. There are special companies that help to choose smart home, they clarify needs and program the system according to the owner’s wishes. Such systems are not cheap at all, but it can be equipped with numerous components that you want to automate. So why is smart home that good and what can it do?
- Coordinate systems work. For example, conditioner will not start working when the window is opened, and when there is a person in the yard, the outside lighting will be switched on automatically.
- Manage all devices centrally. With the help of a special remote controller or a sensor screen the owner may control the system being on a distance.
- Use programmed scheme or scripts. For example, when there is no one at home, it can turn on security system or economical resources consumption mode: turn off the electricity where it is no needed, cut off the water, control the ventilation system work and so on.
- Smart home management system is active all day long and can replace several domestic helpers.
The main task of smart home is to maximally facilitate human communication with the plurality of equipment that is in the house. The professionals will help you to do it.
Five years ago many people did not believe that the house can be “smart”. We thought that absolutely automated house that could perform any whim of its owner was beyond reality. Today more and more people understand that smart home is an essential assistant in the economy of strength, energy and finance.
There is no secret that to make your house really comfortable you need to equip it with high-tech devices: lighting, ventilation and air-conditioning, audio video devices, security alarm system and video surveillance, fire protection systems and so on. Of course, at some point, the host begins to experience difficulties in the management of all these complex multifunctional devices. Here “smart” systems can help you. They can be turned on / off automatically reacting to the given parameters and the state of the environment.
So as you can see this smart home technology essay presents many advantages of smart home owning. It is up to you to decide whether you need it or not, whether you can afford and handle it. Anyway, if you decide to get “smart home” contact professionals who can explain you everything and help in different devices installation. You should ask for specialists’ help not only in technology issues, but also in essay writing. Livecustomwriting.com provides you with the essays of high quality written by professional writers.