The smart home and Internet of Things are two concepts that cannot be entirely separated because they complement each other. Smart homes are residential places that have been improved with technology to enhance lifestyle quality and for convenience. The occupants in smart homes derive the expected value because the Internet of Things concept has been implemented.
Smart Home and Internet of Things
What is the Internet of Things?
In the simplest terms, the concept- Internet of Things- refers to a smart environment where multiple technological devices interact with each other while performing various functions. The Internet of Things concept explores ways through which all devices can be connected via the internet.
You can relate this with smart homes where you have control over your frequently used electronics and devices via the internet.
How these ideas developed?
Let us take the regular workplace for example. It is a setting where people perform various functions in view of achieving a common goal. The goal is to offer services or products and make profits for the business.
The smart home concept has a similar structure, using the idea behind the Internet of Things; all the devices in a home can be remotely controlled and coordinated to help the homeowners achieve their goals.
At first, the challenge was finding a way to connect all the devices in homes or other places. The developers studied different products and discovered that many of our regular devices in the home could be connected to the internet. Some of the devices considered include the electrical plugs and switches; these were features in our homes needed to control basic things such as light bulbs manually and kitchen devices.
Merging Smart homes and the Internet of Things
Smart homes offer you a chance to control electronic devices and other gadgets in your home. This amazing experience can be made even better by introducing the Internet of Things. Merging the two innovative concepts creates a smart system where all your devices and electronics interact with each other. You will also have real-time access to information sourced directly from the internet.
The introduction of the Internet of Things (IoT) in the home involves the use of more sensors, and chips to detect and monitor features and functions in your home. With the use of sensors, IoT based devices can provide a comprehensive and real-time analysis about the different features in a smart home and how they are performing.
Here are some of the innovative ways the Internet of Things concept has been merged with smart homes.
Data generation
Without the IoT, you would be using the features of your smart home and losing a lot of valuable data. The information gathering structure of the IoT concept provides you with details of the devices in your smart home and also information to improve your lifestyle.
The wealth of consumer data generated by the IoT can also be used by smart home companies to provide more targeted services to increase the value of smart homes. Considering the fast-evolving nature of technology, there is a need for feedback to keep pace and improve customer experience.
Data generated from smart homes are valuable to service providers in sectors such as energy, data analysis, consumer markets, security, and insurance companies.
Remote monitoring
Lifestyle patterns can be monitored by leveraging IoT. The sensors on devices in smart homes can record information to inform occupants in these homes about their consumption patterns and lifestyle features. For example, you can determine what your daily routine looks like, when you sleep, how long you sleep, and the time spent doing stuff like browsing the internet or using social media.
The monitoring capacity in smart homes is also helpful when you have older adults in the home. You can check and ensure that medications are taken, and they are eating the right diet. For example, you can check the data from IoT to determine the average amount of sugar or salt consumed by older people living in a smart home.
Shopping and e-commerce
Smart homes with IoT features can also improve your lifestyle. You can enjoy the convenience of shopping online. This is how it works; smart refrigerators can be programmed to record your food supplies and groceries. You will be notified when a particular food item is almost finished. Even better, you can set the system to place orders online for the foods that are almost finished.
Smart refrigerators can also detect expired or spoiled food; you will be notified about these foods which should be removed before someone else eats the food.
Domestic emergencies
Accidents happen all the time, sadly people who live alone may find it very difficult to call out for help if they fell or experienced a medical emergency. There are smart technologies that can detect these emergencies and contact next of kin or an emergency service.
These devices are usually wearable. They can detect a fall when it happens due to the impact with the ground. If an unusual activity like this happens and there is no response from the user after a few seconds, the device calls for emergency attention. These wearable devices can also monitor heart rate and detect unusual activity. These smart devices have saved so many lives since they were invented, thanks to the IoT.
The internet of things can be integrated into so many ways to improve our lives. While the current applications are impressive, there are on-going studies to find out how the tech concept can be used to track, evaluate, and gather useful information about all the features in our homes.
It is the future of complete home automation. With the IoT managing your home affairs, you can take breaks, go on long vacations or find time to start that project without having to take breaks to handle other things. We expect so much more from this technology. Soon the 5G network will be accessible by more people all over the world. This means faster processing and access to information whenever it is needed.