Re: Ethernet-based systems for DIY?

[Tommi Herva <extin@poista_tämä_tästä_suomi24.fi>]

Don Stratton kirjoitti:
> I have been carefully considering what I would like to see in total
> home automation for a long time.  it can best be described as Star Trek
> technology; I want to know pretty much everything going on in my home
> and I want a high level of computing assistance (voice responce,
> internet interactivity, intelligent alarm systems that correlate
> multiple sensors to evaluate threat and response, tons more).
>
> Needless to say I have not found it.
>
> I can find pretty much all of it in bits and pieces, but nothing that
> would logically stitch together very well.  Systems like X10 are weak
> in security, alarm systems are weak in home automation, media systems
> ignore both, very little of it embraces a do-it-yourselfer, most
> systems don't scale or intergrate well with each other, and good
> software is absolutely non-existant.  Which brings me to my point.
>
> _IF_ I am right and nothing "good" exists, I may be interested in
> building it myself.  I say this both as an interested homeowner who's
> handy with a soldering iron, and as the owner and senior engineer of a
> company that makes consumer electronic gear.  I did a quick block
> design of a data aquisition module I thought would be a good idea
> (multiple A/D, multiple GPIO and video inputs with ethernet out back to
> the base), checked the net to find nothing quite like it, and am
> intrigued by the idea of developing it into a full-fledged commercial
> product.  My thinking is that systems like this should be more cellular
> in nature, and this DAQ would seem to allow for all home security
> sensing needs, some or all of home monitoring needs, easy as hell for
> DIY installation and integration into existing sensor systems, and
> absolute expandability in the form of ethernet output.  VERY simple
> software would allow you to do a lot, very complex software boggles my
> mind in terms of sheer potential (the Star Trek stuff).
>
> Am I wrong?  Can someone recommend what they think are good systems and
> components?
>
>
> --Don
>
I'm thinking of doing something alike. There really isn't any good
choices for doing what you want (or I haven't found one). The tibbo
suggested earlier costs >50$ and you need hardware around it too.
Have a look at http://www.tuxgraphics.org/electronics/
this is one approach I'm considering. It certainly isn't fast enough to
deliver video, audio could be possible, but this would make for a cheap
networked data acquisition. AVR's have A/D and GPIO built in. Cost per
unit in small quantities is quite low ~15$. Mix in power over ethernet,
and you've got yourself a good start.

--
Tommi Herva