{TekCrack}

I have been thinking and experimenting really hard lately. I’ve bee trying to figure out exactly which on of the 500 projects I want to debark on. There are just so many in my mind but I do believe I want a project that will put all of my skills (so far acquired) to the test.

So I’ve decided the best way to test everything from programming, sensors, wireless communicatings, etc should end in Home Automation.

First let me start by mentioning who I am when it comes to getting up and getting stuff done. I’m horrible. I mean really bad. I can go to bed early and still sleep past the ‘alarm’. BTW, we are talking like 10-12 hours of sleep here. The messed up thing is that I can’t control it.

This started my endeavor to create a complete system with micro-devices to enable my life to be much easier. I want to automate everything. Imagine this:

Before you even wake up in the morning, a small device sets a cascade of events in motion. It has a few jobs to do before you even open your eyes. It starts by opening the blinds. As we all know sun light wakes up the brain due to our pituitary gland. The first function ensures that our brains notice that it is morning.

Yes for most people, they already get it. But what about those night howls? The people that would easily sleep till noon if they could?

Well after openning the blinds, things get interesting. A motion sensor monitors the bedroom. If there is no motion after a certain amount of time, an audible alarm sounds. This could be anything from a tone, radio, or MP3 playlist that assists in the wake up process.

In the meantime, a symphony of events are already in motion elsewhere in the house. The cofee maker turns on to brew that precious cup of coffee you need when you first wake up. The shower in your bathroom comes to life and warms up quickly so after you take those few sips you can get read for the day. After you exit the shower, the stove/oven/microwave heats up breakfast for you ensuring that its ready and just right when you are done getting ready.

Meanwhile, all of the lights in your house are set up on sensors to ensure you don’t run up your electric bill. The system is even smart enough to ensure you are as GREEN as possible. The same is true for your TV. After all, who doesn’t want to watch the morning news while they eat their breakfast. The biggest problem with your TV and stereo amp is that they waist power when they are turned off. Why not have the system activate them when you’re ready?

The best part about your home automation system is that it controls itself. It knows when you pull the tasty breakfast/lunch/dinner off of the stove or out of the oven. It knows to power down when your done. The system even controls your heating and air conditioning system. Detecting when you’re home to ensure the temperature you want is always running when you enter and when you stay home. As soon as you leave, it knows to save some energy so you aren’t taxed by TXU next month.

My Idea
There are so many simple devices in your house. So many things a tiny device can control. Imagine taking each of these commonly used devices and integrating them in a wireless network. This would allow a computer or smaller device to control exactly what you want.

Imagine locking the door to your house. That even would trigger a serious of events that would occur which would ensure that you house is protected. Not just from intruders, not just from smoke and fire, but to the extint that you can rest assured that your oven is really off…Even if you forgot to turn the knob.

That is the power of the cheap microcontroller. That is my goal!

I am looking to do something that you have read about….that you have heard about. A cheap way to control every light switch, every power switch, every function in your home that makes you productive. The best part about it is you can Go Green. Something that will save you and the environment a lot of wasted resources and dollars.

Lets face it…if we actually did Go Green we would cut our Electric bill in half. Something that would make all of us happy in this world. On top of it, we would significantly reduce our footprint in todays world.

The Solution
…Is automation. That’s all we’re missing. We can control so much in todays world; the problem is we do not take advantage of it. Therefore, I set out now to fix two problems:

a) I want to ensure I get up every morning. I want to ensure that getting ready is as fast as possible so I can get a jump on the morning. I want to ensure that everything is ready when I am ready to use it and that its off when I don’t.

b) I want to reduce my foot print. I’m tired of everything in my house using power when I’m not home. Hell, lets just say for a moment that you don’t care about global warming. Do you realize that if everything plugged into your house was actually unplugged that you would save 20-25% on electricity per month?

Multiply that by smart decisions by a programmed controller when it comes to the heating and A/C and a lot of other factors and you would easily pay for a small setup in an apartment easily in 3 months (via energy savings alone). The benefits are just to great to ignore.

My Project
This is what I am working on and I need as much help as possible. I know, together, we can pull this off. Just by my small experiements alone; I know its possible. I want to automate everything. Bring it down to a sensor level. Yes, it could be your mobile phone that triggers something. It could be something else. The point is, why no reduce your energy bill, pay for the setup, and still get a way with murder.

That is my goal. I will find a way.

I need help so if you’re interested, call me. I need developers, EEs, testing personnel, and clients. Yes I said clients. They can help get what I see as an open source solution off the ground. We need to take action now!

Trackback URI | Comments RSS