3 Important Notes about the Smart Environment
Do you happen to remember those old Sci-fi movies where the main character would just walk into a room, lights would turn on, smooth jazz (or techno, if that was the preference) would play in the background, and a smooth voice would act as a butler, asking questions about its next task and bringing up the character’s schedule? As it turns out, we are really not far from it. Smart spaces, or smart environments, are rooms that are tuned to your needs ready to serve as soon as you need something. Here are three pieces of info you might find useful.
Bill Gates Did It Before It Was Cool
Here’s the thing – the Internet of Things became popular only recently when it became apparent that there are more and more smart devices that can act as homemakers, at least in part. Inspired by the fictitious mansion owned by Charles Foster Kane, Bll Gates named his house Xanadu 2.0.
Construction started in 1988, but the house was opened in 2005. As early as then it became apparent what Gates’ vision was – a fully automated home that caters to personal preferences of its host and guests. This was, as it turned out, the prototype for what’s in store for the world today – a smart home for the average user.
The Progress
Up until recently, voice-activated software was full of bugs and couldn’t easily identify what the user was saying. With smart assistants, like Siri and Alexa, you can easily express your desires to your smart devices. Not only that, but the houses can be equipped to recognize you and your friends before deciding whether the door should remain locked and police contacted. Other features include motion sensors, networking, and internet access.
This means that you can set up a few smart devices in your home and control everything remotely, without fear that someone is going to break in since the system acts as a guard dog, only less vicious and more efficient. You can set up the recording of your favorite shows, reheat dinner, turn the AC on, and listen to your favorite song when you come into the house.
It Is a Form of IoT
Smart homes are a logical extension of the development of a network system known as the Internet of Things, or IoT. This technology has been growing in both popularity and business enterprises, as more and more companies are throwing their hats into the ring to create hubs for fully automated smart systems that can be used in healthcare, eldercare, transportation, agriculture, and so on.
The point is this – it is a system that requires little-to-no human interaction. At least, that is the goal of the project. Of course, there are those that are skeptical and timid in the face of progress, fearing that the system will go rogue, or that too much private information will be in the hands of the system designers and administrators, though there are few and most of their concerns are largely unfounded.