On the Internet, Nobody Knows You're a Lamp
Home appliances and devices are poised to get on the Internet and start messaging one another. Here's why that'll be great for you
Don't look now, but you're on the Internet. It's great, isn't it? Soon your household appliances — refrigerator, stove, alarm clock, air conditioner, garage door opener and lights — will all get on the Internet, too, just like you are.
This idea of "things" getting on the Internet has an unsurprising name: it's called "the Internet of things." The Internet, of course, is a network of computers that are able to connect with one another. When you send an email, for example, that message is broken up into many parts and sent from computer to computer to computer until it's reassembled on the other end. Or if you change a setting on Facebook, you use your computer to make a change on Facebook's computers.
Connecting Your Things
For a computer to be connected to the Internet, it needs to have the kind of hardware and software that makes it "IP addressable," in geek terminology. That just means it's capable of sending and receiving messages in Internet computer language. In recent years various things that aren't really computers, such as security cameras, have been made IP addressable by the addition of built-in computer electronics and software.
The "Internet of things" trend is making all kinds of things IP addressable: appliances, lights and much more. This will enable you to not only control appliances through a computer or smart phone (person to appliance) and to automate them (computer to appliance), but also to enable appliances to connect to one another (appliance to appliance).
What Would Your Appliances Say to One Another?
For example, when you turn off your alarm clock in the morning, your alarm clock could tell the light to go on and the coffee machine to start brewing. Another example: When the lights go off at night, they might tell the door locks to lock.
This kind of automation is currently possible but controlled from a central computer. It's complicated and expensive. The "Internet of things" revolution should make these things simple, easy and inexpensive.
This idea of "things" getting on the Internet has an unsurprising name: it's called "the Internet of things." The Internet, of course, is a network of computers that are able to connect with one another. When you send an email, for example, that message is broken up into many parts and sent from computer to computer to computer until it's reassembled on the other end. Or if you change a setting on Facebook, you use your computer to make a change on Facebook's computers.
Connecting Your Things
For a computer to be connected to the Internet, it needs to have the kind of hardware and software that makes it "IP addressable," in geek terminology. That just means it's capable of sending and receiving messages in Internet computer language. In recent years various things that aren't really computers, such as security cameras, have been made IP addressable by the addition of built-in computer electronics and software.
The "Internet of things" trend is making all kinds of things IP addressable: appliances, lights and much more. This will enable you to not only control appliances through a computer or smart phone (person to appliance) and to automate them (computer to appliance), but also to enable appliances to connect to one another (appliance to appliance).
What Would Your Appliances Say to One Another?
For example, when you turn off your alarm clock in the morning, your alarm clock could tell the light to go on and the coffee machine to start brewing. Another example: When the lights go off at night, they might tell the door locks to lock.
This kind of automation is currently possible but controlled from a central computer. It's complicated and expensive. The "Internet of things" revolution should make these things simple, easy and inexpensive.
GreenWave Reality Connected Lighting Solution
A collaboration between two companies, GreenWave Reality and NXP Semiconductor, has resulted in an Internet-connected LED lightbulb. The bulbs, called the GreenWave Reality Connected Lighting Solution, cost more than $20 each. That sounds like a lot for a lightbulb, but it's a low price for what is in effect a little computer on your home network.
The lightbulbs not only can communicate via Wi-Fi, but they can extend the range of your home network through mesh networking, a technology that enables each mesh networking device in the house to pass along wireless data traffic to and from other devices.
In actual practice that ability to do mesh networking is something for the future, as companies work out the software technologies to make it work. In the meantime the main benefit of products like the GreenWave Reality Connected Lighting Solution is that bulbs can be controlled by smart-phone apps from anywhere, and they can do amazing things to enhance convenience and energy savings.
For just one example, they can be set up to automatically go on based on a combination of motion sensing and lighting conditions — in other words, the bulb will turn on automatically when someone is in the room and it's also dark outside.
The GreenWave Reality Connected Lighting Solution is currently for sale in a few limited markets, but it will become broadly available in the United States and Europe in the near future, according to the companies.
The lightbulbs not only can communicate via Wi-Fi, but they can extend the range of your home network through mesh networking, a technology that enables each mesh networking device in the house to pass along wireless data traffic to and from other devices.
In actual practice that ability to do mesh networking is something for the future, as companies work out the software technologies to make it work. In the meantime the main benefit of products like the GreenWave Reality Connected Lighting Solution is that bulbs can be controlled by smart-phone apps from anywhere, and they can do amazing things to enhance convenience and energy savings.
For just one example, they can be set up to automatically go on based on a combination of motion sensing and lighting conditions — in other words, the bulb will turn on automatically when someone is in the room and it's also dark outside.
The GreenWave Reality Connected Lighting Solution is currently for sale in a few limited markets, but it will become broadly available in the United States and Europe in the near future, according to the companies.
Ninja Blocks
One of the exciting promises of the "Internet of things" is that in addition to being remote controllable and automated, home appliances will be able to be controlled by environmental conditions.
For this to happen, you need sensors — gadgets that can tell what those environmental conditions are. One unique new product that provides many of those sensors for the "Internet of things" in the home is called Ninja Blocks. Ninja Blocks can sense all kinds of things, including motion, sound, light, distance and even humidity. They can also record other data, including sound and video.
Ninja Blocks connect to the Internet, and from there to an online service called the Ninja Cloud. That service can serve as a traffic cop, routing messages to social networks and other cloud services.
After you set up an account on the Ninja Cloud, then plug in a Ninja Block sensor, that sensor — and the data it gathers — instantly appears on your Ninja Cloud dashboard. From there you can point and click your way to setting up rules for what happens under specific conditions detected by the sensor.
Mainly for Home Geeks and Tinkerers
These flexible Ninja Blocks let you set up your own home "Internet of things." A few examples of what you might use them for: to send you a text message when your doorbell rings, sound an alarm when your dog gets on the couch or turn on a bathroom fan when the shower makes it steamy.
This kind of automation can be done even by people who aren't software programmers or engineers, according to the company. But Ninja Blocks are especially designed for tinkerers. All the software, and even the hardware designs, are open source with published information. So the Ninja Blocks are great for home automation enthusiasts, programmers, engineers and inventors.
For this to happen, you need sensors — gadgets that can tell what those environmental conditions are. One unique new product that provides many of those sensors for the "Internet of things" in the home is called Ninja Blocks. Ninja Blocks can sense all kinds of things, including motion, sound, light, distance and even humidity. They can also record other data, including sound and video.
Ninja Blocks connect to the Internet, and from there to an online service called the Ninja Cloud. That service can serve as a traffic cop, routing messages to social networks and other cloud services.
After you set up an account on the Ninja Cloud, then plug in a Ninja Block sensor, that sensor — and the data it gathers — instantly appears on your Ninja Cloud dashboard. From there you can point and click your way to setting up rules for what happens under specific conditions detected by the sensor.
Mainly for Home Geeks and Tinkerers
These flexible Ninja Blocks let you set up your own home "Internet of things." A few examples of what you might use them for: to send you a text message when your doorbell rings, sound an alarm when your dog gets on the couch or turn on a bathroom fan when the shower makes it steamy.
This kind of automation can be done even by people who aren't software programmers or engineers, according to the company. But Ninja Blocks are especially designed for tinkerers. All the software, and even the hardware designs, are open source with published information. So the Ninja Blocks are great for home automation enthusiasts, programmers, engineers and inventors.
Google Glass
Google applied for a patent recently that would enable you to control your home appliances with eyewear, called Google Glass.
The Google Glass project is a major effort at the Silicon Valley company to create a computer that projects information into one eye, enabling you to see things from the Internet superimposed on what you see with your regular vision.
Google Glass also has a camera on the front, and you can control the system with voice commands, eye movements or both.
A New Way to Look at Your Appliances
Google Glass is designed for advanced augmented reality, which means that what you see is enhanced with information. For example, as you're walking around it could give you directions by showing arrows that appear to hover over the sidewalk. It could use the camera to identify someone you're talking to, giving you their name from your online address book. You can even share pictures of anything you're looking at by saying something like, "Glass: Take a picture and send it to Janet."
Google Glass is available right now only for developers who want to create software for it. But it should be available for general use within a year.
Google's new appliance-control patent is for virtual controls on and around appliances, visible only to someone wearing Google Glass. So, for example, when you look at the refrigerator while wearing Google Glass, you could use a voice command that creates the illusion of temperature controls on the surface of the refrigerator. You could then change the temperature by reaching out and turning a virtual dial or by simply telling the fridge what temperature you'd like it to be at.
All around the house you could conjure up controls and instructions for the TV, air conditioner, washing machine and so on. The technology for controlling home appliances with Google Glass is just a patent application at this point. But it demonstrates the kind of thing that's possible once home devices are connected to the Internet.
The "Internet of things" is a breathtaking new area of technology that promises to revolutionize how everything works. And it's coming home.
More: Smart Bulbs for Better Lighting
The Google Glass project is a major effort at the Silicon Valley company to create a computer that projects information into one eye, enabling you to see things from the Internet superimposed on what you see with your regular vision.
Google Glass also has a camera on the front, and you can control the system with voice commands, eye movements or both.
A New Way to Look at Your Appliances
Google Glass is designed for advanced augmented reality, which means that what you see is enhanced with information. For example, as you're walking around it could give you directions by showing arrows that appear to hover over the sidewalk. It could use the camera to identify someone you're talking to, giving you their name from your online address book. You can even share pictures of anything you're looking at by saying something like, "Glass: Take a picture and send it to Janet."
Google Glass is available right now only for developers who want to create software for it. But it should be available for general use within a year.
Google's new appliance-control patent is for virtual controls on and around appliances, visible only to someone wearing Google Glass. So, for example, when you look at the refrigerator while wearing Google Glass, you could use a voice command that creates the illusion of temperature controls on the surface of the refrigerator. You could then change the temperature by reaching out and turning a virtual dial or by simply telling the fridge what temperature you'd like it to be at.
All around the house you could conjure up controls and instructions for the TV, air conditioner, washing machine and so on. The technology for controlling home appliances with Google Glass is just a patent application at this point. But it demonstrates the kind of thing that's possible once home devices are connected to the Internet.
The "Internet of things" is a breathtaking new area of technology that promises to revolutionize how everything works. And it's coming home.
More: Smart Bulbs for Better Lighting
One of the most popular appliance-connecting products is the Belkin WeMo switch. The WeMo switch plugs into an electrical outlet, then you plug a lamp or an appliance into the switch. It's popular because it's incredibly easy to install and use. Once something is plugged in, it can be turned on or off from an iOS or Android smart phone or tablet.
Belkin recently announced a new partnership with Jarden Corp., which makes a variety of home appliances. Industry watchers predict that Belkin's technology could be built into Jarden's Mr. Coffee coffee pots, Crock-Pot slow cookers and a variety of appliances under the Oster and Sunbeam brands, enabling those appliances to be controlled from smart phones.
The companies say the first Jarden products with WeMo features should ship later this year.