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| Crestron's TPMC-10 touchscreen |
A home automation system essentially gives you automatic or remote control of various parts of your home including lighting, appliances, security systems, home theatre systems and much more.
The idea behind home automation is to automate day-to-day tasks such as switching off all the lights in your house before bed or turning on the air conditioner, or even recording your favourite programs on TV. It is also possible to set up whole-house video and audio systems, which allow you to play different music or watch different movies in different rooms of the house.
You can control all the different components you choose to automate by using anything from a touch screen, keypad, remote control or, if your system is IP-based, from any Web browser.
Some of the many conveniences of an automated home include being able to turn off all the lights in your home from the comfort of your bed, using a remote control. You can use the Internet at work to turn your heating on or to preheat your oven so it is ready to go when you arrive home. You could even turn on your garden sprinklers from a Web browser when on holidays.
From a security perspective, it can be handy to program your house to turn on certain lights inside to create a lived in look when you're on holidays. Use security or even Web cameras to keep an eye on the kids playing in the games room from a screen in the kitchen. And if you have a PVR, you can record the footage of all the security cameras around the home as well.
Keep in mind that not everyone needs to automate everything. A good rule of thumb is to automate only functions that are part of your ordinary daily routine, like turning lights on and off, locking up the house, playing music, and watching movies, for example.
What you need to plan
Wiring: Some home control systems communicate with subsystems via standard electrical wiring; others communicate over dedicated low-voltage cabling. Those that use electrical wiring, called powerline-based systems, are less expensive and usually easier to install. However, they are often less reliable and less intelligent than low-voltage-based home control systems. For example, you may not be able to integrate the dimming of lights and the control of audio/video equipment into the control sequences of an inexpensive home control system. The sophistication of the subsystems and the level of automation you desire may require the horsepower of a low-voltage home control system (a security system or lighting control system can often perform as a home control system).
Keypads: Think long and hard about what kinds of devices you'd like to use to interact with the subsystems of a home control system. Touchscreens are expensive, but are usually the most intuitive to use; keypads are more affordable, but might be a good choice as a secondary means of control. Web tablets, PDAs, telephones and remote controls can also be used to issue commands to a home control system. A high-speed broadband Internet service is a must if you want to take advantage of the number of home control systems that are accessible via the Web.
A Headend: The process of each subsystem connects to the central processing unit of a home control system via wire. Dedicate a space inside your home's basement in which to house these critical pieces of equipment.
Installation: Your builder should be notified early on (before the blueprints are drawn) of your intentions. First and foremost, your builder will
need to construct a central area in the basement in which to house the processors of the home control system and its connected subsystems. A 1.5 metre-square area should suffice for a 400 metre-square home.
Inside this equipment closet your electrician should install a sufficient number of electrical outlets, as well as plenty of surge suppression to protect the gear. Because the current that travels over electrical wiring can interfere with the signals that pass over low-voltage cabling, it's essential that your home systems installer and your electrician share their wiring plans. If necessary, they can modify the paths of their wiring slightly to accommodate each other.
A home systems installer will mount keypads and touchscreens into the walls of your home. It's important to decide early on what kinds of keypads and/or touchscreens you'll be using, so that the appropriate-sized hole can be cut into the wall. Ideally, situate a keypad and/or touchscreen at the entrance of each main room of the house.
A variety of sensors can trigger routines of a home control system. An occupancy sensor, for example, can elicit a routine that turns on the room lights, adjusts the temperature and cues the stereo system. Together, an outdoor temperature sensor and a light (photocell) sensor can trip a scene that shuts the motorised drapes, raises the thermostats and turns on the exterior light fixtures. Placement is the key to any sensor's accuracy; your builder, landscaper and interior designer should know where these sensors reside, so that no obstructions (furniture, trees, or parts of the house) will interfere. At the same time, the builder, landscaper and interior designer can help render these sensors less conspicuous through special construction and design techniques.
