Home Automation Technologies Research Articles

Mobile Remote Control for Home Automation

Existing home automation technologies permit persons to control elements of the home using a computer connected to a local network. However, the real challenge is to remotely control objects, permitting users to exercise greater freedom and versatility. This work presents an inexpensive controller device developed for high density constructions typical of many developing countries throughout the world that is designed to remotely control home luminescence, air conditioner and water pumps through mobile devices such as a smart phone or tablet. Results show the packet delivery was acceptable within a range of 15 meters in a concrete, two-story dwelling, thus demonstrating its applicability in small homes in countries which share the same construction features as those of Mexico.

EVALUATION METRICS FOR WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORK SECURITY: ALGORITHMS REVIEW AND SOFTWARE TOOL

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) is currently receiving a significant attention due to their potential i mpact into several real life applications such as militar y and home automation technology. The work in this study is a complementary part of what’s discussed. In thi s study, we propose a software tool to simulate and evaluate the six evaluation metrics presented for n on-deterministic wireless sensor network in which are: Scalability, Key Connectivity, Memory complexity, Communication complexity, Power Consumption and Confidentiality. The evaluation metrics were simulated as well as evaluated to help the network designer choosing the best probabilisti c security key management algorithm for certain randomly distributed sensory network.

The Forecasting of the Development of Home Automation

As technology grows, the automation technologies integrated into the realm we live, and it continuously to provide people more comfortable and efficient environment. This study systematically applies the TRIZ theory to find out the problems in home automation development. We use contradiction matrix and 76 standard solutions provided by TRIZ to filter out the possible development of these home automation issues in the future. In this research, we conclude the factors of home automation technologies as follows: (1) the efficiency of operating environment; (2) the installation and maintenance of Internet; (3) the security and privacy of Internet. After analyzing through the directions of TRIZ innovation principles and standard solutions, this study proposes the development trend of each sub-problem.

DoMAIns: Domain-based modeling for Ambient Intelligence

Ambient Intelligence and Smart Home Automation systems are currently emerging as feasible and ready to exploit solutions to support more intelligent features inside future and current homes. Thanks to increased availability of off-the-shelf components and to relatively easy to implement solutions we are experiencing a steady evolution of households, causing an ever-increasing users’ awareness of the capabilities of such innovative environments. To foster effective adoption of Smart Home Automation technologies in our home environments, traditional architectural and plant design must be complemented by sound design methodologies and tools, supporting the whole environment design cycle, including for example modeling, simulation and emulation, as well as, when feasible, formal model-checking and verification. Several research efforts have already addressed the design of expressive modeling tools, mostly based on Semantic Web technologies, as well as of suitable platforms for adding interoperation and rule-based intelligence to home environments. This paper proposes a new modeling methodology designed to fit the different phases of Intelligent Environments design, with a particular focus on validation and verification of the whole system. Carefully designed separation of modeled entities permits to exploit the DoMAIns framework during all phases of the environment design, from early abstract conception to the final in-field deployment. The DoMAIns design methodology is applied to a sample use case that involves comprehensive modeling and simulation of a Bank Security Booth, including the environment, the control algorithms, the automation devices and the user. Results show that the approach is feasible and that can easily handle different types of environment modeling, required in the different design phases, and for each of them it may support simulation, emulation, or other verification techniques.

Green Home: Sustainable Energy Management and Home Automation

Abstract While much has been made of sustainable living, green architecture and home design, the vast majority of green home technologies and related environmental innovations have been developed and tested in countries that do not possess the harsh climate found in Qatar. Systems and equipment designed and tested in the UK, for example, would not have been exposed to the heat, humidity and dust commonly found here, and, therefore, their suitability is uncertain. Similarly, there is a data vacuum on the subject of how green home technologies actually do perform in Qatar. Exactly how efficient are some of these technologies and should they be considered as viable alternatives in the support of sustainability planning? The Green Home Automation Project (GHAP) is an environmental research in which data was collected on the electricity and water usage of a faculty member's villa for a one-year period. The same villa was then theoretically analysed for energy savings using green home automation technologies, energy efficient LED lighting and improved HVAC systems. A comparative study was performed between the Old Current System (OCS) and the New Proposed System (NPS). Results of the theoretical comparative study showed significant energy savings when compared to the operation of the test villa. Using the suggested improvements, the NPS used 70% less energy for lighting and 40% less energy for HVAC than the OCS. These savings were calculated and compared for a “typical year” per villa. Phase II of GHAP involved automating the same test villa to determine additional savings that could make the test villa greener. Both the lighting and the air-conditioning was controller via a central controller. Data has been collected over the last six months and indicates a 45% savings in electricity over the previous year. This real world data supports the conclusion that (1) home automation can substantially reduce energy consumption in the State of Qatar and (2) and that further investigations into other green home innovations that can be automated should be undertaken.

An Integral and Networked Home Automation Solution for Indoor Ambient Intelligence

We've long heard about the wide functionality that home automation technologies offer for improving our lives and securing our houses. However, price and an unstable domotics market have restricted such systems' deployment. Nowadays, companies offer too technology-dependent solutions that don't cover user demands completely. Meanwhile, research works focus on small innovations on specific parts of home automation systems, which don't consider integration and deployment issues to present practical designs. The system presented in this article considers user requirements, including novel advances, all in an integral home automation solution suitable for many services. The architecture's modular nature allows direct adaptation to specific cases using standard domotic technologies, for managing in-house devices, and a proposal of an IP-based network for connecting the main home automation module with other platform elements. A remote security system has been developed, and managing tasks are enabled via in-home control panels and an advanced 3D application for local and remote homeowner access. The system has been deployed on a prototype house, testing a wide set of domotic services. Moreover, the range of indoor pervasive applications has also been extended to e-health, elderly adaptation, greenhouse automation, and energy efficiency.

Introduction to special issue: mobile business and information systems

The articles in this special issue are major extensions and revisions of some of the best conference papers that were presented at the Sixth International Conference on Mobile Business, organized by the McMaster University eBusiness Research Centre and held in Toronto, Canada in July 2007. These papers cover a number of highly relevant aspects of mobile business and related applications. The first paper in this issue, by Goetz Botterweck, J. Felix Hampe, Stefan Stein, and Andreas Rosendahl addresses mobile home automation, involving the integration of mobile application platforms and home automation technologies. Through a two-dimensional mobility model, the authors review home automation services from the user perspective and tie this into a general system architecture for design decisions. Their proposed design is implemented and demonstrated through a research prototype. In the next paper, Harry Bouwman, Christer Carlsson, Pirkko Walden, and Francisco J Molina-Castillo use the experience of Finland, which has arguably the highest penetration of mobile handset use in the world, to examine trends in service adoption over a 3-year period. They tested models in which innovativeness, flexibility, status, and entertainment value were related to applications of mobile services, concluding that characteristics and user values of mobile services must be considered in order to understand current use and to predict future use. Hakon Ursin Steen’s paper examines the complex world of standards wars as different standards compete for dominance as radio carriers during the development of mobile digital broadcasting. This study draws on insights from multi-sided market theory and structural constraints that influence the selection and stabilization

Mobile home automation: merging mobile value added services and home automation technologies

In this paper we study mobile home automation, a field that emerges from an integration of mobile application platforms and home automation technologies. We motivate our research and provide a conceptual introduction, which illustrates the need for such applications by a two-dimensional conceptual model of mobility. As a first steps towards a solution we take the user’s perspective and discuss different options of how he might access a mobile home automation service and the controlled devices. Subsequently, we suggest a general system architecture for mobile home automation services and discuss related design decision. This design has been implemented in a research prototype, which we named Remotile. This helps us to discuss typical components, such as modules that integrate various home automation devices.

AUTOMATION AND TELEMATICS FOR ASSISTING PEOPLE LIVING AT HOME

This paper describes a robotic and automation system presently under development for studying home automation and indoor robotic technologies as well as new service scenarios based on these technologies. The system consists of remote users, a home automation server, home automation equipment and home robots. Alarms and data are sent outside the home to helpers and caretakers. A remote user connects to the home server from the Internet to interact with the home and the people residing there. A demonstration system, that is open to the public, has been built in a model home.

Moving Eye - Interactive Telepresence Over Internet with a Ball Shaped Mobile Robot

This paper describes a robotic and automation system presently under development for studying home automation and indoor robotic technologies as well as new service scenarios based on these technologies. The system consists of remote users, a home automation server, home automation equipment and a ball shaped mobile robot called Rollo. A remote user connects to the server from the Internet to interact with the robot by using an augmented reality user interface. The Rollo robot, its behaviour and functions in the system are discussed- Utilizing the system for both educational purposes and to develop a remote home aid system is discussed.

Effectiveness of electronic aids to daily living: Increased independence and decreased frustration

The aim of this study was to determine the impact of a short‐term trial of electronic aids to daily living on people’s perceived levels of independence and frustration when using mains‐powered or infrared controlled appliances. Eight subjects trialed various electronic aid options over a 2‐week period to assist them to access appliances they considered to be a high priority. Subjects rated their independence, frustration level and average time taken to complete the task before, during and after the equipment trial. Results were analyzed as single case study designs run in parallel. All participants indicated the use of electronic aids to daily living increased independence, decreased frustration and decreased time taken to complete the task. As a result of these positive findings, further research in this area may be undertaken. Initially a demonstration centre for clients to trial new home automation technologies is to be set up at the Independent Living Centre of South Australia.

Remote Interaction between Human and Humanoid Robot

The last few years have been characterized by the continuous development of information and communication technologies, robotics technologies, and home automation technologies. The number of application areas for such technologies is increasing, especially in fields rather outside the pure industrial scenario, often identified as “service applications.” These are healthcare, public service provisions, social services for disadvantaged citizens, technical aids for promoting the independence of disabled and elderly people, and many others. With this joint research Scuola Superiore Sant‘Anna and Waseda University, starting from the current availability of several mechatronic prototypes in their research laboratories, intend to validate different telecommunication tools for the remote control of mechatronic systems by demonstrating the feasibility and potential benefits deriving from the integration of such technologies.

Using new technology to support the provision of care services

Pilot work carried out in developing home automation technology products and services for elderly and disabled people is described. Ways in which home automation technology can provide practical support for service provision and how this was realised in a field site established in Spain are illustrated.

Demand side management — The role of the power utility

“Demand side management (DSM) is the deliberate influence of customer appliance selection and energy use patterns to achieve a desired impact or load shape consistent with company goals” (EPRI). Demand side management has two aspects: develop efficient utilization for electricity, (less electricity for each utilization), and take measures to encourage the customer to help flattening the load curve. The tariff policy conducted by the EDF towards the large customers connected to the high voltage and to the medium voltage networks is already very efficienty in flattening the load curve. This paper stresses a particular aspect of DSM: in the actions taken to extend this DSM policy to domestic customers, the same approach based on tariff incentives will be used. In the near future the domestic customer will have the possibility of choosing tarrifs which reflect the variations of the cost of electricity through the day and through the year. To be efficient this policy must rely on the development of products, which make energy management a very easy job for the customer. This is the reason why EDF is involved in the development of home automation technology. This technology will allow low cost communication between the customer meter and different systems in the home (like heating, lighting, domestic appliances). It will also allow the development of services concerning, for instance, security (burglary, fire, water leakages etc.). One of the highest priorities is put on efficient carrier current transmission. It is a backbone of EDF's policy in this matter: it allows transmission of “real time” tariff information from the utility to the customer's meter. It is then one of the media for transmission of information from the meter to all the equipment in the home (with the advantage of requiring no installation). Besides these technical developments, experiments are done to test the acceptance of customers of these new tariffs and services. This DSM policy, based on new technology, and on early testing of services with customers, will allow further improvement in the load curve, to the benefit of the customer and of the utility.

A residential energy management test using CEBus

A test project undertaken for the testing of evaluation of commercial home automation systems and technologies for applicability to residential energy management is discussed. The project consisted of a cooperative program between an electric utility, several major homebuilders, and various appliance manufacturers. Performance and reliability experiments were conducted in residential environments using the proposed CEBus (consumer electronics bus) standard on powerline. Also, an electrical load management system was constructed and tested.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>