Setting Home Automation Standards

Smart Homes

Creating a smart home involves collusion of diverse disciplines including computers, software, networking, communication, security, entertainment, energy, appliance, ventilation, lighting, and others.  Sensors and monitoring devices located in the dwelling are controlled either with a local interface or remotely, typically by means of apps as shown in Figure 1.  The trend of major manufactures to incorporate intelligence into their home appliance products mirrors the public’s embrace of smart devices.  User-friendly apps assist with monitoring, information, communication, notification, operation, regulation, and diagnostics.  IMS Research (2012) estimated that, “over 25 million ‘smart grid-enabled’ devices, such as smart thermostats, smart energy displays, and smart appliances with the ability to communicate with smart meters, will be shipped in the U.S. in the next five years.”  Strategy Analytics (2013) further estimated that,

The US market for smart home systems and services will reach more than $30B by 2018 as it becomes a major market opportunity for technology and service providers.  Over the next five years to 2018 revenue growth will be driven by the adoption of interactive, professionally monitored security systems.  Professionally installed control and entertainment systems will remain major contributors to smart home revenues, but will decline as percentage of the total market as more mass-market systems are adopted.

 

Large companies in the home improvement industry are beginning to offer low cost smart home products including Sears (GE Brillion™ Connected Appliances), Belkin (WeMo), Sub-Zero® / Wolf® (Smart Appliance Module™), Lowe’s (Iris), Verizon (Home Monitoring and Control) and others.  Larger companies are beginning to enter the market and offer lower priced do-it-yourself smart home products.  One example of this new competition is Lowe’s Iris which is a simple to use kit comprised of a central hub, sensors and smart plugs all controlled from an app and sold for under $300.  There are two primary factors that have significantly influenced the smart home market:

·   Financial.  SMARThome (2009) estimated that whole home smart system installation costs can reach over $200 per square meter not including actuators and recurring monthly service provider fees; the estimated costs also supported by Kern (2012).  However, the improved efficiency of home energy, lighting, appliance run times may result in some cost payback.  Also, better control systems are generally modular, allowing incremental expansion of subsystems over time so that the entire home need not be provisioned all at once.  By comparison, the cost for installation of the same traditional (non-smart) devices was estimated at about $125 per square meter.  As more retailers and customers enter the market as previously noted, economy of scale will result in lower costs.

·   Technological.  High speed broadband Internet is available in most areas of the developed world.  Home area network standards are consolidating around Z-Wave and ZigBee wireless.  The ZigBee Alliance is a consortium of more than 220 member companies and other organizations supporting the development of the standard and promoting its use.  The Z-Wave Alliance, consortium of more than 160 companies that design and sell wireless home control products based on the Z-Wave standard, plays a major role in the Z-Wave system.  Currently, more than 575 interoperable products are available in 22 countries.

Even as smart home habitats remain very much embryonic it is clearly evident that there will be significant market penetration and companies want to take early leadership positions to expand their market share.  Sherden (2011) described the Bandwagon Effect in which, “The continued process of success breeding success can escalate to a point where an irreversible pathway of future events determines the victor” (p. 67).  Even in the absence of an official standard, if any of the major vendors lock-in a large share of the market then their protocol will become the de-facto standard, which is why Z-Wave and ZigBee have not agreed to a single standard.  Similar historical examples include Apple Computer versus Microsoft operating systems and Betamax versus VHS VCR videotape formats. 

Intelligent Homes

Looking ahead, the next innovation in home automation will be employment of an inference capability that applies artificial reasoning to make intelligent decisions.  Researchers have been cataloging various types of home activities such as sleeping, cooking, and bathing based upon sensor monitoring.  Studies have documented a normal range of time and space to accomplish the activities, which then permits an intelligent system to make adjustments or send notifications when there is abnormal activity.  Such profiling and support are particularly advantageous for infirmed, disabled and elderly individuals.  Cook, Crandall, Thomas and Krishnan (2012) summarize such home intelligence by stating,

In the home environment, computer software that plays the role of an intelligent agent perceives the state of the physical environment and residents using sensors, reasons about this state using artificial intelligence techniques, and then takes actions to achieve specified goals. (p. 62) 

Because the domiciliary artificial intelligence capability is not yet commercially available, no marketplace leader has emerged.  However, there will surely be significant competition to set the standard for the proliferation of The Internet of Things within the extensive residential market.  Just as with the basic smart home environment, the financial and technological factors will have a significant impact.  Any company that seeks to establish itself as a market leader must develop a sociotechnical plan that takes these factors into consideration, hoping that others will then jump on their bandwagon. 

References

Cook, D., Crandall, A., Thomas, B., & Krishnan, N. (2012). CASAS: A smart home in a box. Computer, 46(7), 62-69.  IEEE, DOI: 10.1109/MC.2012.328

IMS Research. (2012, March 1). Over 25 million ‘smart’ energy management devices will be shipped to us consumers in the next five years. Retrieved 25 August 2013 from: http://www.imsresearch.com/news-events/press-template.php?pr_id=2668

Jones, M. (2013, May 23). Smart homes. Retrieved 25 August 2013 from: http://safetycomesfirst.info/smart-homes/

Kern, T. (2012). Home automation used to be for the wealthy—but not anymore. Retrieved 25 August 2013 from: http://www.eichlernetwork.com/article/smart-homes-average-joe?page=0,1

Sherden, W. A. (2011). Best laid plans: The tyranny of unintended consequences and how to avoid them. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.

SMARThome. (2009). How much does a smart home system cost? Retrieved 25 August 2013 from: http://www.smarthome.eu/a/how-much-does-a-smart-home-system-cost.html.

Strategy Analytics. (2013, May 22). Smart home systems and services forecast: United States. Retrieved 25 August 2013 from: https://www.strategyanalytics.com/default.aspx?mod=reportabstractviewer&a0=8526