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PAPERS |
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This article is based on an interview by Utilimetrics News. Dr. Wacks was asked to comment on the progress toward developing home area networks that will enable consumers to participate in electricity demand-management programs. He has seen interest in such programs come and go since the 1980s. This time, the interest might be more permanent. |
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This article explores the home network. A home network forms the basis for an emerging industry called home systems. The business potential for a home systems industry started to attract major manufacturers and organizations about 20 years ago. The impetus for significant growth has been the recent proliferation of broadband access to the Internet. Once consumers pay for high-speed service via cable or DSL (high-speed data via telephone lines), they want access from more than one location in the house. The solution is a home network implemented with an organized set of cables call "structured cabling." |
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It has been about 20 years since manufacturers in the consumer electronics industry started to explore the business potential in home automation. Until then hobbyists had been jury-rigging controls for various home applications, such as lighting and entertainment. About a billion dollars has been invested in developing networking technologies and components for home systems, yet we are constantly on the verge of significant market growth, but not quite there. Why? |
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Services ranging from Internet Access to entertainment to home automation depend on a connection between the home and the outside world. This connection is provided by a residential gateway. A world standard is being developed for the residential gateway, informally called HomeGate. This paper introduces HomeGate by first explaining the role of the residential gateway and the value of specifying a standard gateway. |
| Home Sweet Home – When Integration Becomes a Reality (click here) |
Manufacturers of appliance and consumer electronics are constantly seeking new products that can command higher margins in a very competitive market. These manufacturers are investigating product opportunities in home systems that enable new consumer features by interconnecting appliances, sensors, and control panels. The home systems industry has been developing since the mid-1980s. This industry is now emerging as a major market segment for appliances and consumer electronics makers. The hallmark of this industry segment is the transition from stand-alone appliances to systems made possible by a home network. The home network enables the communications of commands, control, data, audio, and video among devices via wires or wirelessly. |
Many home theater problems stem from the traditional method of selling consumer electronics as self-contained boxed items. A home theater is composed of many devices including a display, speakers, DVD player, cable or satellite decoder, antenna, remote control unit, and cables. All these devices must be chosen to complement one another and must be connected properly, calibrated, and supplied with audio and video content. The content may be delivered via broadcast TV, satellite, cable, DVD (standard definition or HD), video cassette, or streamed from the Internet. This paper explores some practical issues in creating a theatrical experience at home. |
The 32 countries eligible to vote on international home and building automation standards approved a new model of a security system. This generic model defines the components and structure of a system that provides security for homes and small buildings. The model was created to validate a communications language being written by the standards committee. It also promotes interoperability among subsystems, considered an important goal of home automation. This article presents the basic concepts common to most security systems. Potential applications of home security extend beyond detecting intruders to include safety and monitoring of personal well-being. The physical components of a security system are introduced.
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In previous article, "The Basics of a Security System," I
introduced a new international model of a security system for home
and building automation. This model is part of the Home Electronic
System, an international standard under development by the member
nations of the ISO and IEC (International Organization for
Standardization and International Electrotechnical Commission). As
explained in the prior article, this model extends applications of
a security system beyond intrusion detection to include activity
monitoring for the elderly and "latch-key children," duress
notification, and safety monitoring. Safety is especially
important for commercial customers needing quick notification about
environmental pollutants, water leaks, unusual temperature
variations, and machinery failures.
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Most television stations in the United States discontinued analog broadcasts in June 2009 in favor of digital TV (DTV). DTV is a signal carrying a digital encoding of either standard definition TV (SDTV) or high definition TV (HDTV) programs. Broadcasters can transmit four or more SD signals in one channel in place of one HD signal, thereby generating more ad revenue. This paper explains how to receive the best possible signal using an antenna or cable TV. |
According to the Consumer Electronics Association flat screen TVs capable of displaying HDTV penetrated 40% of U.S. households by 2007. About half of the HDTV owners subscribe to HD signals from cable or satellite operators, or receive HD from antennas. Ironically 10% think they are getting HD, but are not, while more than 80% are playing standard definition DVD movies. This paper examines what is real HDTV versus advertised HDTV. |
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The mature television industry is now in the midst of a renaissance
with the advent of new TV technologies. Customers are snapping up
DTVs (Digital TVs), HDTVs (High Definition TVs), plasma TVs, LCD
TVs, etc. Do they know what they are buying? Are they getting the
expected knock-your-socks-off experience from their relatively
expensive purchases? Unfortunately, the answers too often are no -
the experience is less than the expectation. Unhappy customers
lead to product returns, as some retailers are finding. What is
the problem? There is serious confusion in the consumer
electronics industry with blame distributed among manufacturers and
retailers..
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Home entertainment ranks high among consumer discretionary spending. Most entertainment equipment consists of self-contained units, such as CD and MP3 players, VCR and DVD players/recorders, and TV sets. Component systems with discrete players, amplifiers, and speakers constitute a smaller market of media room installers and audio/video aficionados. A recent addition to entertainment products is the Media Server. In this article, we introduce the Media Server and explore the potential impact a Media Server might have on the growth of home network installations. |
In 2005 and 2007 the United States Congress passed important energy policy laws mandating improvements in the distribution of electricity. To facilitate this process the United States Department of Energy is supporting the GridWiseŽ Architecture Council, consisting of 13 experts from the U.S. and Europe. In March 2008 Dr. Wacks was appointed to the GridWise Architecture Council because of his focus on utility customer services, including the link between the utility grid and networks in homes and buildings. This paper introduces the goals and activities of the Council.
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Utilities started to develop various techniques for demand-side management (DSM) of energy in the 1990s. However, a few years later most of the innovative DSM programs were abandoned and utilities refocused on financial transactions such as mergers and acquisitions. Reality returned following the Enron-induced crisis in California where wholesale price manipulation widely affected consumers and resulted in a major utility bankruptcy. The U.S. Energy Policy Act of 2005 is mandating that utilities revisit energy management with appropriate equipment and tariffs. This article examines the goals and technologies being developed for effective management of electric energy. |
For about a century the energy utility industry has been stable
because of government franchises and exclusive service territories.
Legal changes to allow competition began in the United Kingdom and
New Zealand in the 1990s ago and are spreading to North America.
This article examines the profound transformations of the energy
utility industry. New business organizations and marketing
strategies are described.
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This article presents an overview of potential solutions tobuilding and appliance designs that can accommodate changes in energy costs with minimal impact on occupants' budgets and daily activities. Architects and home system designers need to prepare for the inevitable energy crisis and to be aware of plans by the utility industry. A pro-active stance for energy efficiency will serve customers far better than reacting to the next energy price spike or shortage.
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Kenneth
Wacks, Ph.D +1 781 662-6211 |
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