Smart Home Products Research Articles

Research and Analysis of Smart Home Products Based on the Emotional Needs of Generation Z Living Alone

Abstract: With the rapid transformation of Chinas economic structure, the concentration of industrial resources, and the widespread access to education, the young Generation Z has undergone a conceptual metamorphosis, flocking to first- and second-tier cities, resulting in a phenomenon of living alone. In a sense, these individuals drive social development through their own efforts; however, their collective psychological characteristics often clash with the heterogeneous and transient environment in which they reside. The issue of unmet emotional needs stemming from their solitude is becoming increasingly pronounced. This paper examines the living conditions and consumption characteristics of Generation Z living alone and, from the perspective of their emotional needs, explores their preferences and demands in the application of smart home products. The goal is to provide meaningful insights for improving the quality of life for young urban dwellers living alone and to contribute to the research and development direction of smart home product design.

Understanding User Experience with Smart Home Products

ABSTRACT There has been a surge in the popularity of smart home products. Existing literature primarily focuses on the initial adoption of these products, with less attention given to the post-adoption stage. This has created a research gap in understanding user experience (UX) and the key dimensions of user satisfaction and dissatisfaction. This study aims to address this gap by examining both positive and negative user experiences with smart home products. Using robotic vacuum cleaners as a case study, we analyze key UX dimensions derived from their positive and negative reviews on Amazon.com that influence user satisfaction and dissatisfaction, respectively. Dimensions contributing to satisfaction include “functionality,” “smartness,” and “enhanced capacity (mopping feature).” In contrast, “insufficient smartness,” “poor customer service,” and “connectivity problems” are critical dimensions for user dissatisfaction. Notably, “smartness” serves as a double-edged sword, potentially leading to high satisfaction but also significant dissatisfaction if poorly implemented. Our analysis also includes a comparative examination of robotic vacuums with traditional vacuums, highlighting the different UX dimensions associated with each product type. Using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), we further examine the configurations of these UX dimensions that contribute to satisfaction and dissatisfaction. To generalize our findings, we applied our framework to smart thermostats and proposed a UX model for smart home products. Our findings not only fill the research gap in smart home literature but also offer valuable insights for practitioners in designing smart home products and developing marketing strategies. Our research method can be applied to understand user experience with various types of smart home products and other innovative technologies.

Design of an Energy-Saving System for Smart Home Decoration Based on Situational Awareness

This article analyzes the specific energy-saving requirements for smart home decoration in the current market to determine the overall plan of the entire smart home decoration energy-saving system. Based on situational analysis combined with grounded theory, organize and summarize the original data, and use factor analysis for dimensionality reduction analysis. Combining the multi-level analysis method, experts evaluated and scored the user experience evaluation indicators, obtained the weight assignment of each influencing factor, and constructed a user experience evaluation model for smart home products based on situational theory. After extensive testing, it was found that the ZigBee based smart home network implemented in this article has low energy consumption, overcomes many shortcomings of smart home networks, and has high application value.

Analysis of Home Furnishing Marketing Based on Internet of Things in the Intelligent Environment

How to improve marketing efficiency and how to formulate scientific, effective and practical marketing strategies according to changes in the market environment are important issues facing current smart home companies. This paper adopts the analysis methods such as PEST macro model analysis method, Porter's five forces model, SWOT analysis model and STP analysis, taking Suzhou as the research object, conducts an in-depth analysis of the development environment of smart home, and clarifies the suitable smart home market. From the aspects of 6P marketing mix (product, price, channel, promotion, public relations and political rights), it proposes a Suzhou smart home marketing mix strategy based on mid-to-high-end smart home products. The research results of this paper will promote the development of the city's smart home market and have important reference value for other cities to carry out smart home marketing and can also be used as a reference for relevant government departments to formulate policies.

Implementing multi-attribute utility theory in service recovery: An operational management perspective on online retailing

How corporate decision-makers allocate resources to address the major issues of service recovery is critical. This article, from the perspective of operations management, integrates Multi-Attribute Utility theory into the field of service recovery. Through the use of online review data from smart home products, the PCRA-Multi-Attribute Utility model is proposed. Based on the model, this paper presents a prioritization strategy for service recovery and reveals that the utility of intelligent products is primarily influenced by service attitude. Furthermore, we discovered that manager's response strategies should pay more attention to recovery related to vital attributes. Strategy optimization can be achieved by adjusting the response length of these key attributes.

Barriers to Older Adults Adapting Smart Homes: Perceived Risk Scale Development

The 21st century has marked the dawn of an aging population. China’s aging process ranks first worldwide. The country has recognized the gravity of this demographic shift and implemented strategies to address it at the national level. A vast majority of elderly Chinese individuals (approximately 90%) aspire to age in their own homes. Smart homes, endowed with cutting-edge digital technologies, such as AI, the Internet of Things, and big data, hold vast potential for enabling this vision. However, acceptance of smart home products and services among elderly individuals in China remains low. The main reason is that the related products and services fail to effectively alleviate the perceived risk of this population in the R&D process of related products and services, and there is a lack of effective measurement methods. To holistically assess the potential obstacles faced by elderly individuals using smart home products and services, this study targeted individuals aged 45–60 years in China. This study aimed to develop a comprehensive perceived risk scale specific to smart homes for this demographic. Initially, this study identified key risk dimensions and corresponding measurement items through a rigorous literature review, user interviews, and expert consultations. Subsequently, it ensured the reliability and validity of each dimension and its corresponding observation variables through preliminary research, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis. This approach allowed for a comprehensive understanding of the challenges faced by future elderly individuals when utilizing smart home products and services, thus enabling the development of more effective solutions. The scale encompassed ten factors and seventy measurement items, including Privacy and Security Risk (seven items), Physical Risk (seven items), Technological Risk (nine items), Performance Risk (seven items), Service Risk (nine items), Financial Risk (five items), Psychological Risk (seven items), Industry and Market Risk (six items), Social Support Risk (six items), and Policy and Legal risk (seven items). The measurement scale developed in this study represents a groundbreaking first attempt to create a systematic scale for assessing the perceived risks associated with smart homes for the elderly in China. It not only enables professionals, businesses, and manufacturers to avoid or reduce barriers in the R&D process of related products and services, facilitating smart home industry growth and enhancing user adoption, but also serves as a universal reference for the potential obstacles that digital technology may encounter in addressing aging-related issues, which has significant theoretical value and practical importance.

Unfulfilled Promises of Child Safety and Privacy: Portrayals and Use of Children in Smart Home Marketing

Smart home technologies are making their way into families. Parents' and children's shared use of smart home technologies has received growing attention in CSCW and related research communities. Families and children are also frequently featured as target audiences in smart home product marketing. However, there is limited knowledge of how exactly children and family interactions are portrayed in smart home product marketing, and to what extent those portrayals align with the actual consideration of children and families in product features and resources for child safety and privacy. We conducted a content analysis of product websites and online resources of 102 smart home products, as these materials constitute a main marketing channel and information source about products for consumers. We found that despite featuring children in smart home marketing, most analyzed product websites did not mention child safety features and lacked sufficient information on how children's data is collected and used. Specifically, our findings highlight misalignments in three aspects: (1) children are depicted as users of smart home products but there are insufficient child-friendly product features; (2) harmonious child-product co-presence is portrayed but potential child safety issues are neglected; and (3) children are shown as the subject of monitoring and datafication but there is limited information on child data collection and use. We discuss how parent-child relationships and parenting may be negatively impacted by such marketing depictions, and we provide design and policy recommendations for better incorporating child safety and privacy considerations into smart home products.

A study on smart home use intention of elderly consumers based on technology acceptance models.

Smart home devices have great potential to improve the quality of life and independence of older people, positively impacting their health, safety, and comfort. However, Chinese research in this field is still in its early stages. Therefore, more comprehensive and in-depth studies are needed to comprehend the various aspects influencing the acceptance and use of smart homes by older users. This study adopted the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and included perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, usage intention, intergenerational technology support, perceived value, and perceived risk as extension variables to delve deeper into the behavioral intentions of older users in smart home services. The study used a convenience sampling method to randomly distribute 236 questionnaires among older adults over the age of 60 in the school's community and neighboring urban communities who have experience in smart home use and who can complete human-computer interactions either independently or with the help of others, mainly focusing on the four sections: user characteristics, family situation, experience of use, and usage intention. The study used structural equation modeling (SEM) and factor analysis to analyze the completion of questionnaires. Finally, we conducted a validation analysis of the rationality and scientificity of the model and derived the six dimensions of the model of the influencing factors on the use of smart home products by the elderly and the weight sizes of their corresponding 13 influencing factors. The results show that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use have a positive effect on users' intention to use smart homes. Perceived ease of use has a positive effect on the perceived usefulness of smart homes. In addition, intergenerational technology support, perceived value, and perceived risk impact users' perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of the smart home. This research aims to describe the factors influencing older users' willingness to use smart homes. The findings are not only significant for the elderly in China but also of broad value to other regions and countries facing similar demographic challenges. The development of smart homes not only involves the elderly but is also closely related to all segments of society. The government should increase policy support and guide more social forces to participate in the development of the smart home industry. Service providers and designers should fully understand the demand situation and user experience of target users to develop easy-to-use smart home solutions. At the same time, smart homes, as intelligent products for the elderly, need to focus not only on the basic needs of the elderly such as material life and home safety, but also on the spiritual needs of elderly users. Children or caregivers should always pay attention to the psychological state of the elderly and actively guide them to use smart homes to help them realize their self-worth. We look forward to more research focusing on this area in the future and further exploring the specific issues and solutions involved.

A novel coreless current sensing mechanism for two-wire power cord

In the development of smart home products, energy monitoring, and control systems, there is a significant need for precise and reliable electric current measurement. Most domestic appliances, whether residential or commercial, are powered by power cords with two wires. A reliable and accurate current probe would be required to detect current in two-wire power cables. Existing current sensors for two-wire power cables are complex, bulky (they use a magnetic core), and need full access to the power cord. In this paper a coreless, contactless current probe that requires only limited access of the space around the two-wire power cable is proposed. The sensor unit presented here measures the current accurately even for certain types of misalignments of the power cord. This makes the current measurement less sensitive to minor mechanical displacements, radius of the conductors, and the overall insulation thickness of power cord. In the proposed current probe, one-of-a-kind and highly reliable arrangement of magnetic field sensors, are used to measure the magnetic flux density caused by the current passing in the power cord. The current is computed using a derived mathematical formula which is expressed in terms of the voltage outputs of the magnetic sensors. To provide a clear understanding of the measurement process, an analysis using the Finite Element Method (FEM) is performed. The functionality of the proposed current probe is theoretically tested. Considering different sources of errors, an accuracy of less than 1.5% is obtained.

The effects of technology readiness, risks, and benefits on smart home technology adoption: extending the Theory of Planned Behavior model

Grounded in the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), this study investigated generational differences in the roles of technology readiness (TR), risks, and benefits on the behavioral intention of smart home technology. Data were gathered from a probability sample of 501 respondents by conducting a telephone survey in 2020. Findings showed that smart home technologies were not widely adopted in Hong Kong at the time of the survey. People who reported higher intention to adopt were all driven by components in the TPB model, TR (optimism and innovativeness), tangible benefits (such as saving energy, money, and time), and trendiness; however, this intention was inhibited by psychological risks. Furthermore, the interaction effect identified in the study provides a more nuanced view about the ways in which attitude toward IoT can interact with tangible benefits to regulate the behavioral intention of smart home products. This study suggests that designers and marketers of smart home products should recognize the role played by both intrinsic (e.g., optimism and innovativeness towards technology) and extrinsic factors (e.g., perceived risks and benefits) in significantly influencing the intention to adopt.

Talking About the Development Prospect of Senior Smart Home

This paper discusses in detail the growth trend of China's elderly population and the challenges posed by aging to society.It points out the shortcomings of current senior smart home products, especially in meeting the specific needs of the elderly. The current situation of the development of senior smart home is analysed, highlighting the needs in terms of safety monitoring, health management, life convenience and social interaction. At the same time, the future development prospects of senior smart homes are envisioned, highlighting the importance of the deep integration of Internet technology, humanised design, safety, security and environmental adaptability, as well as social interaction and entertainment. Overall, the article concludes that the senior smart home market has a broad development prospect, and with the advancement of technology and the continuous improvement of design, it enables the elderly to enjoy the convenience brought by technology without restriction.

Research on Consumer Purchasing Factors of Smart Home

With the continuous development of science and technology, smart home products have been widely used in daily life. The purpose of this paper is to explore smart home consumer purchasing factors and to gain insight into the main considerations of consumers in purchasing smart home products by analysing current market data. The findings show that privacy and security, compatibility with other products, ease of installation and use, cost-effectiveness and brand reputation are the main factors influencing the purchase decision of smart home products. Meanwhile, consumers' income level and willingness to spend budget for them also have some influence on their purchase intention.

Causal Factors of Acceptance Smart Home Technology System Among Adolescents in Zhengzhou, Henan

Objective: This study aims to investigate the factors influencing the behavioral habits of adolescent users regarding the use of smart home products. Theoretical Framework: Smart homes represent an innovative integration of electronic devices within a private home environment, utilizing technologies such as the Internet of Things, automatic control, and network communications to enhance efficiency, energy conservation, and security. This study is grounded in the theoretical framework of technology acceptance models and behavioral intentions to understand the adoption of smart home technology systems among adolescents. Method: Qualitative research was conducted using a structured questionnaire to collect data from 390 users in Zhengzhou, Henan. The data were filtered to eliminate outliers. Descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling were employed to determine the style and scale of smart home product design and the relationship between user attitudes and usage behavior. Results and Conclusion: The study found a direct and positive relationship between smart home product attitudes and teenage users' behavioral intentions. Additionally, it revealed that user personal capabilities significantly predict the actual adoption of smart home technology systems among adolescents. The findings provide valuable insights for designing smart home technology systems and products tailored to adolescent users in Zhengzhou, Henan, contributing to the advancement of management practices in the field of smart home technology. Originality/Value: This study contributes to the advancement of science in the field of smart home technology by revealing causal factors influencing the acceptance of smart home technology systems among adolescents in Zhengzhou, Henan.

Research on Aging-Friendly Smart Home Products in Interior Design

Research on Aging-Friendly Smart Home Products in Interior Design

An empirical analysis of the factors driving customers' purchase intention of green smart home products.

With the improvement of consumers' environmental awareness and the popularity of the Internet of Things, green smart home products (GSHPs) are becoming the dominant trend of future home life. This shift not only makes tedious home life easier and more convenient but also helps families save energy and reduce carbon emissions. However, given the impact of the current technological level, the proportion of users who actually purchase GSHPs remains small. Thus, seeking ways to promote the consumption of GSHPs has become an urgent issue. Hence, this study seeks to fill the gap in the existing research on green consumption behavior and obtain a full understanding of the factors influencing the purchase intention of GSHPs. To do so, this work uses task-technology fit theory and considers the actual situation of green smart home consumption to add social-technology fit into the original theoretical basis. In particular, this research focuses on middle- and high-end Chinese consumers who have experience in purchasing GSHPs. Moreover, it aims for an in-depth exploration of the formation mechanism of Chinese consumers' purchase intention for GSHPs through structural equation modeling. Using survey data collected from 331 green smart home product users in China, the study empirically examines the relationships among autonomy, environmental agility, sense of belonging, and self-actualization, and both task-technology fit and social-technology fit, which are expected to shape the purchase intention of GSHP users. The empirical results provide broad support for our hypotheses. The results of this study offer important contributions to the increasing research on GSHPs consumption and shed light on the importance of both technology characteristics and the needs of users in achieving both task-technology fit and social-technology fit and, ultimately enhancing the users' intention to purchase GSHPs.

Design of IoT Home System for the Elderly based on Different Scenarios

China has entered an aging society. Based on investigating the living status of the elderly and smart home products at home and abroad, this paper puts forward a smart home system design based on Internet of Things according to the life needs of the elderly. The system has the functions of daily data collection, data transmission and prompt alarm in real time, which can meet the needs of remote real-time monitoring. It can transmit the processed information to users in time and receive indoor temperature, smoke concentration and other home environment information at any time. Once a dangerous situation occurs, the smart home system will alert the user so that the user can take measures in time.

An empirical study on the collaborative usability of age-appropriate smart home interface design.

The smart home has become a popular product, but with the development of the aging population, the differentiated characteristics of the elderly smart home products in terms of demand and use are becoming more and more significant. The existing smart products are complicated to operate and cumbersome to interact with, which increases the cognitive load of the elderly group and hinders the daily use and user experience feeling of the elderly. The purpose of this paper is to study the interface data information and interface visual design starting from hardware and software, interface interaction, to explore the better interface data information and interface visual design, and to output, a new prototype of the operating interface of smart home system for the elderly, so that the smart products can be better used by the elderly. Thirty-two participants aged 55-75 were invited to conduct the test, and subjective evaluation was conducted at the end of the test. Through the tests, the operability of the prototype structure for smart furniture systems for the elderly was demonstrated. In terms of functionality a new task based on a combination of icons and text is proposed. In the control of devices, the switching status of devices, etc., needs to be clearly distinguished visually, eye-protective bright colors are used, paired with low saturation to highlight the focus, and high bright colors with gray to distinguish the device status. In terms of the density of the content, an appropriate proportion of images and text were used to make the information less dense. ln the arrangement of web content, information content relevant to users was placed first as much as possible. Based on this, a secondary optimal design was carried out to improve the interactive design of the smart home for the elderly and output it as a prototype interactive interface. Thus, the operability, rationality, and aesthetic comfort of the prototype design of smart home interaction in an age-friendly scenario are improved, allowing the elderly to have a better experience when using the smart home.

Luminescent Solar Concentrators with Dual Functions of Photovoltaic and Piezoelectric Properties for Wireless Self‐Powered Speed Measurement

AbstractThe solar‐only response nature limits the luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) to solar harvesting rather than responding to other stimuli, which restricts the role of LSCs to energy supply in self‐powered internet of things (IoT) systems, and the application potential of LSCs in self‐powered devices has been seriously overlooked. In this work, LSCs with photovoltaic and piezoelectric features are proposed for the first time, extending the application scenario of LSCs to self‐powered sensors with pressure responsiveness. The luminescent layer of perovskite‐polymer composite film is prepared via in situ blade coating with the piezoelectric polymer matrix of poly(vinylidenefluoride‐trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF‐TrFE)). P(VDF‐TrFE) possesses stronger DMF adsorption capacity and higher electroactive phase content than a conventional piezoelectric matrix of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF), which not only reduces the residual‐solvent‐induced defects in perovskite luminophores, but also brings a sensitive pressure response to LSCs. The dual‐functional LSCs achieve a power conversion efficiency of 1.01% and a output piezoelectric voltage of 0.95 V can be obtained even at a low pressure of 0.16 kPa. A self‐powered speed measurement system is demonstrated, and the actual speed measurement is carried out. Such dual‐functional LSCs show great potential in self‐powered electrical devices, which can be applied to low‐energy‐consumption IoT systems and other commercial smart home products.

IoT-based interaction design of smart home products for elderly families

Abstract A LoRa (Long Range Radio) based smart home product interaction system for the elderly is designed to solve the problem of reliability communication in the collection and information transmission of smart home environment parameters, device status parameters and the complex layout of communication lines inside smart devices. A privacy-preserving data aggregation scheme without a trusted authority center is proposed to address the privacy protection problem in the process of Internet of things (IoT) data collection. Firstly, without relying on the trusted authority center, the key exchange algorithm is used to generate shared secret keys and construct encryption keys among terminal devices to ensure the privacy of reported data; secondly, a fault tolerance mechanism is designed according to Carmichael’s theorem, so that the control center can still aggregate the received data when the terminal device fails or the network connection is wrong; in addition, the batch In addition, the integrity of the reported data is ensured by means of batch verification. Finally, the theoretical analysis proves the correctness and security of the scheme in this paper. The performance experiments show that the required computational overhead is lower compared to existing schemes, while some communication overhead is increased in order to have fault tolerance and to improve the verification efficiency of digital signatures. The application of this system will highlight the main position of the elderly, so that they can truly experience and accept the benefits of smart home for their lives and improve their quality of life.

Implementing Intelligent Virtual Assistant

Our daily lives have been immensely enhanced by the rise of intelligent virtual assistants, which has revolutionised the way we engage with technology. These computer programmes replicate human interaction and carry out tasks for users by utilising artificial intelligence and natural language processing. They can be used on a variety of devices and are useful for scheduling, taking notes, doing research, and even writing prescriptions. These virtual assistants respond to consumer inquiries quickly and thoughtfully by using voice input and tools like OpenAI'sChatgpt. They can do searches on a number of different platforms, including Wikipedia, YouTube, Google, and even forecast the weather. These virtual assistants can converse with people in a more human-like manner thanks to the inclusion of natural language processing, which makes the interaction more natural and user-friendly. As more and more smart home and automobile products incorporate these virtual assistants, people will find it simpler to operate their homes and vehicles with just their voice. Additionally, they are used in customer service to offer immediate assistance to customers as well as in healthcare to assist doctors with patient care and diagnosis.Intelligent virtual assistants have countless potential uses, and as technology advances, we may anticipate even more fascinating and creative ways they will enhance our daily lives. Intelligent virtual assistants have developed into a necessary tool for both consumers and enterprises due to their capacity to offer individualised support and streamline corporate procedures