Internet Based Home Control System Essay

We viewed development as a process of change and a continuous learning.. Technological and institutional change or capabilities are at the heart of this process. Technology is much more than an ingredient in development strategies; it is a conditioning element of their viability. As technology rapidly changes, it sets the condition that generates development opportunities. Development becomes one of the learning that benefit from such changing opportunities. While learning is within a single technological revolution, a new technological revolution would constitute major discontinuities and shifts in the direction of change, providing new opportunities for learning and catching up. Technology is at the heart of the innovative process, and it has become a tool for amplifying brainpower. It further brings about changes within and among institutions and accelerates the rate of innovation. Steve Ballmer[1], CEO of Microsoft’s Corporation stressed that the number one benefit of technology is that it empowers people to do what they want to do, letting people be creative and productive Thus, through new technology, a little creativity, and a lot of thinking, we have begun to produce home appliances control system that makes anything possible for the people especially elderly and handicapped to live by themselves and meet their potentials. The recent drive in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry toward new wireless communication devices and systems and their utilization in addressing a wide variety of real-world problems have resulted in several new areas of active research and wireless home automation being one such hot topic. Home appliances control system designates an emerging practice of increased automation of household appliances and fixtures in residential dwellings, particularly through electronic means. This allows impracticable, overly expensive or simply not possible things in recent past decades to be implemented. Home Automation Technology is a relatively new field and the home automation products available currently in the market are expensive, and not everybody can afford these devices. However, looking at the increasing popularity of home automation, most manufacturing companies are trying to develop products that will be affordable to the middle class customers. Hence, the proponents through this study design and develop a system of controlling home appliances remotely via the Internet. With this project, a user can control his home appliances across country away from home. Background of the Study Home appliances and lighting are major source of electricity consumption. Commercial public sector buildings and residential houses account for 95% of the electricity used for home appliances. There are common problems that home owners encountered in relation with home appliances system. One of this is due to some negligence like leaving the lights ON that result to having greater power consumption. This additional power consumption that can be wasted varies directly to our electric bills. Another problem is that those busy home owners who arrive at home late at night; they want to have immediate access to turn on the lights to have preventive measures against robbery and crimes.[2] For effective management and protection of homes, operational monitoring of home appliances conditions is a necessary tool. Fixed control system contributes significantly in monitoring the entire home appliances network. The past decade has seen significant advancement in the field of consumer electronics. Various â€Å"intelligent† appliances such as cellular phones, air-conditioners, home security devices, home theaters, etc. are set to realize the concept of a smart home. They have given rise to a personal area network in home environment, where all these appliances can be interconnected and monitored using a single controller. Busy families and individuals with physical limitation represent an attractive market for home automation and networking. Thus, a unifying solution started with the emergence of the first home automation product known as the Model 1503 which was introduced in 1988 and was meant for fire and burglar protection, home lighting and appliance control.[3] Moreover, a technology called X-10 was developed by Jeff Denenholz,[4] which allows your computer and your appliances to communicate over the existing power lines in your home. Among the many possibilities that this technology provides is the possibility for a fully automated and responsive home. One of the basic systems on the market is made by iControl and is easy to install and expandable. The system uses the 802.11 wireless protocol to transmit signals from the various devices to a control box which is connected to the internet. Some of the devices the company offers specifically for elderly care include: cameras, window/door sensors, motion sensors, water sensors, freeze sensors, panic pendants/wristwatches, smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, lamp modules, and thermostats. All of the devices are connected wirelessly to the control box which then allows the devices to be monitored and controlled using the company’s website. The system is perfect for the elderly because it is easy to use and it allows family members to monitor the house to ensure that their relative is safe, it is portable and can easily be installed in an existing home. Another key project is ongoing at The University of Florida. They have built a 500 square foot smart house that is designed assist and to provide medical care to users. The house implements devices including a microwave that recognizes entrees and automatically determines how long to cook them and devices to track the individuals location within the home. The house also uses devices to detect water on the floor and a camera that allows the person to view who is at the door and let them in using a cell phone. The smart house at the University of Florida relies on a centralized computer network to deliver electronically coordinated assistance. However, the aforementioned projects pose problems on the implementation of such systems. The major drawbacks of these systems are that it requires the use of several costly technologies to operate. The concept of a smart home requires a user to have internet access available as well as router to install the control box. Thus, the introduction of home automation in the 1970’s failed to improve the lifestyle of users because determining the economic benefits of home automation technologies is difficult. The cost of implementing smart home technology must be justified by the effects brought about by their installation. There is a need for home automation technologies to be cost-effective and easy to install and flexible with many network infrastructures and appliances. Therefore, the study Microcontroller-based Home Appliances Control System via Internet aims at developing a module for home appliance and control system combining embedded system and web technology. The goal of this project is to design a system that communicates with the web in controlling the user’s home.. This approach will provide an easy way to operate and is cost effective approach to benefit the elderly and those with disabilities to function as normal as possible. Statement of the Problem The main problem of this study is to design and develop a prototype of a microcontroller-based home appliances control system using the internet that will demonstrate power automation of home appliances. The proposed system is web-based in nature which will replace physical control and provide automation with regard to the home appliances.