What started as a multi-million dollar warehouse of computing
technology in the 1950s has shrunk to an affordable pocket sized device
with enough computing power to send a human to the moon. The growing
ubiquity and integration of computing technology has created new
frontiers and ideas of how to use it to improve lives. With the
advent of the smartphone, the way we save money and protect our homes is
moving into a touchscreen-powered digital age.
Old school smarts So called "smart houses" have actually been around in some form for
some time. The first step in turning homes into
smart houses started in 1852, when Edwin Holmes invented the first electrical home alarm system
in Boston. This allowed houses to take care of themselves when the
inhabitant was away - one of the central concepts a smart house is built
upon. While the technology has advanced dramatically since then, home alarm systems have often been on the cutting edge of turning your home into a self-sufficient system.
New school smart Turning a home into a smart house is relatively similar to equipping a home with an alarm
system. A fully technologically integrated house needs two things: a
central computer to monitor and manage, and sensors that can act
independently and communicate with the central computer. The growth of wireless or near-wireless technology
makes it easier for essential components of your home to communicate
with a central computer and deliver data to both you and the home’s
computer to better manage how it runs. Add on sensors that can activate
certain actions and remote controls that can be integrated into existing
smart devices, and the oldest of homes can become a technological
wonder that runs more efficiently.
How to save Technology today has enabled houses to go beyond the ability to protect
itself with alarm systems to helping to manage the home itself. The
biggest contributor to an energy bill is the cost of heating and cooling
a home. When integrated with a computer, homes can turn heating and
cooling systems on and off at a set schedule or be programmed to be
reactive and only operate when the house knows there’s somebody home to
enjoy the temperature. Using sensors or remote controls (such as smart
phones) houses can better reflect our energy needs and not waste energy. Smart houses are made up of smart components, and those components are
slowly integrating themselves into every corner of your home. Light bulbs that automatically turn on and off
as you enter or exit a room, coffee makers that are activated when you
rouse from bed, and windows that open and close depending on the outside
temperature already exist and with the inevitable increase of these
technologies, houses will have no choice but to "smarten-up."
Tech savvy homes Computing technology and the idea of "smart houses" have come along way
since their inception. By using existing and emerging computer
technology, homes can use energy more efficiently and thereby reduce
one’s carbon footprint as well as save money. Regardless of the age of a
house, retrofitting it with sensors and a central computing unit is
easy and attainable.
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