Re: Software feature set for automation

["E. Lee Dickinson" <lee@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"Marc F Hult" <MFHult@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote"

> Quoting from the article  "Home Automation: If you provide it will they
> come?" in the July 2005 issue of Security Systems News,  "I's still a very
> niche market"  attractive to " people how have an interest in gadgets".
> Making an analogy to homeowners' unprogrammed VCR's, "It's blinking 12. We
> can program [all-in-one home automation] panels but the consumer can't
> operate it."


My interest in Home Automation was purely a hobby, driven by me interest in
gadgets, for years.  That interest was enough to spark me to buy some cheap
X10 switches and a few stick-on remotes.

A week ago, I hurt my back and have just now been able to get off the couch,
yesterday.  That was the motivation I needed to finally start building my
"full" system.

The things I want controlled:

Security:  intrusion detection (motion and magnetic), door cams, door
intercoms accessible from a number of locations, and an electric door strike
or two.

Lighting:  Scene lighting in kitchen, master suite, living room, and
outside.  More basic control in guest room, office, and hallways etc.
Lighting must respond to rules:  "If it's dark, and the bedroom light is
off, when the bathroom light is turned on, ramp it up gently to 20%"

AV: Control projector, 100 disc DVD Changer, MP3s, etc. Provide ability to
distribute any media to any media center. System must be able to learn IR
codes (roomba, fans, other gadgets).

User Interface:  8" touchscreens in kitchen cabinet, and on each side of
master bed. PDA-sized touchscreens in light switch locations in guest rooms,
office, living room, etc.  Touch screens should be able to display media
(TV, MP3s, news feeds, door cams) as well as be able to access lighting
control and arm/disarm the security system.

So that's sortof my hardware listing.  The software must be able to:

1) Easily structure rules.  Outlook-like wizards would be nice, so that
anyone can use them.  I could use a dead-simple object oriented script, but
most users won't.  The more creative ways a software developer can think to
allow users to easily do complex things, the better.  Maybe a drag-n-drop
flowchart like the Lego Mindstorms?

2) Ability to create and serve user interfaces. Served via http is fine,
everything has web browsers these days.  A bit of animation is nice -- a
flash driven interface would be cool. But harder to modify by the user,
unless the backend between HA and Interface is totally dynamically scripted.
At least give advanced users access to programming objects through
javascript or soemthing else that will allow them to create their own UI.

3) Ease of creating interfaces between systems.  It should be a no-brainer
to create a button that sends a specified ASCII command out a specified
serial port.  It should be equally as easy to write macros that are
triggered by an incomming specified command.  (I was a little disheartened
to read in another thread that security mfgs don't typically provide access
to their serial control stuff. That's too bad.)

5) Media Integration.  This, in my opinion, is where the current offerings
are most lacking.  I would LOVE to see a BeyondMedia-like system for one of
the automation packages or an automation package that integrated with
Windows Media Center Edition. I want TV on my touchscreens. I want lighting
on my computers. There should be a single front-end that gives me access to
everything from recorded TV programs to security system to lighting. Having
to minimize one app and access another isn't going to cut it.  Having to
change channels to a modulated distro channel and pick up the other remote
isn't gonna cut it.

The media center idea is going, in my opinion, to be the entry point for
automation into more homes. A tightly integrated, customizable package with
a pretty interface and loads of remote client options.

We're getting close.


E. Lee Dickinson
Entertainment Design and Technology

mobile: 804.564.1097
www.leedickinson.com