HOME AUTOMATION

HOME AUTOMATION

Home automation is the domestic application of building automation. Imagine a situation were all the devices in your house could connect to the Internet? Not just computers and smartphones, but everything: clocks, garage doors, speakers, lights, doors, windows, window blinds, door bells, water heaters, appliances, every thing. what if these devices could all communicate, send you information, and take your commands? No magic; it's the Internet of Things (IoT), and it's a key component of home automation. 

 

Home automation is the use and control of home appliances remotely or automatically. Early home automation began with labour-saving machines like washing machines. Some home automation appliances are stand alone and do not communicate, such as a programmable light switch, while others are part of the internet of things and are networked for remote control and data transfer. Hardware devices can include sensors (like cameras and thermometers), controllers, actuators (to do things), and communication systems. Remote control can range from a simple remote control to a smartphone with Bluetooth, to a computer on the other side of the world connected by internet. Home automation systems are available which consist of a suite of products designed to work together. These typically connected through Wi-Fi or power line communication to a hub which is then accessed with a software application

Home automation is nothing more than the ability to control items around the house with a simple push of a button (or a voice command). homes are becoming smarter by the day, we practically on daily bases out phase older technologies with new ones thus bringing together devices that can perform these task. Eventually there is no need to be bothered with the word Automation because it is not actually as difficult as it sounds. there are already a bunch of these devices out there and even within our homes today that can simply be integrated to do cool stuffs at home. Eventually, there is no need tearing down already existing electrical connections for instance in order to outfit them with those that could be automated as there are devices that can be used to bring already existing ones together.

Popular suites of products include X10, Z-Wave, Zigbee and a whole lot more all of which are incompatible with each other. Home automation is the domestic application of building automation.

Home-Automation Technologies

Before you buy a bunch of home-automation products, it helps to understand the technologies involved in setting up and using them. These products use many different communication protocols. Some are wired, some wireless, and some are a combination. Try to stick with one protocol when buying products, or get a hub/gateway that supports multiple protocols.
X10
This granddaddy of home automation protocols dates back to the 1970s and has gone from power line-based to wireless.  X10 is not known for robust speed or great communication between units on the home automation network. It is, however, typically inexpensive. 
 

ZigBeeZigBee is a wireless 802 standard from the IEEE, which is to say, a bunch of gearheads came up with it before an outside group (the Zigbee Alliance) made up of vendors created products that use it. One of the key elements in IEEE 802.15.4 (its real name) is that it makes a mesh network so that most of the devices communicate equally. It's also very low power. (You may also hear about Thread, a new wireless protocol that uses the same radio chips and frequency at ZigBee, and connects up to 250 devices in a home to the cloud.)

Z-Wave
Another wireless home automation protocol,  Z-Wave is owned by one company, Sigma Designs, which makes all the chips for other vendors to make Z-Wave-capable products, known as the Z-Wave Alliance. 


Insteon
This may be the best of all protocols because it combines a wired power line-based protocol with wireless. Both work as a mesh; all nodes on an Insteon home automation network are peers that can communicate when in proximity. If one fails, the other mesh can take over. You can buy Insteon devices at Smarthome.com, which is run by SmartLabs, the developers of Insteon. It's compatible with X10.
 

Wi-Fi
This is the networking protocol we're all used to for sharing an Internet connection among laptops, game consoles, and so much more. It's super-fast and ubiquitous. So, of course, it's inevitable that some vendors would make home automation products to take advantage of it. The other protocols use less power and bandwidth but Wi-Fi's reach can't be understated, even if it is overkill to use it to turn a lamp on and off.



Bluetooth
A staple of every PC, smartphone, and tablet, Bluetooth is better known for connecting items at a short range like keyboards, mice, headphones, and earbuds. But a lot of new products use the Bluetooth 4.0, aka Bluetooth Low Energy, aka Bluetooth Smart. It doesn't require purposeful re-connection all the time, making it a good solution for select IoT items.

Applications

• Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC): it is possible to have remote control of all home energy monitors over the internet incorporating a simple and friendly user interface.
• Lighting control system
• Audio-visual
• Appliance control
• Security: a household security system integrated with a home automation system can provide additional services such as remote surveillance of security cameras over the Internet, or central locking of all perimeter doors and windows.
• Leak detection, smoke and CO detectors
• Indoor positioning systems
• Home automation for the elderly and disabled

• Integration with the smart grid, taking advantage, for instance, of high solar panel output in the middle of the day to run washing machines.