Exploring Technology's Impact

Name three no-brainer technologies that all new homes should include, right now.

Modern homes already have basic wiring for lighting, thermostats, telephones, TV and ordinary things like doorbells. The next step is to integrate them so they add more value by working together. This requires the proper design and installation of networks. Home network wiring (sometimes called structured cable) is the single most important thing to get right. But networks can be of different flavors and provide different kinds of functionality. We typically install separate data, phone, control and media distribution networks that meet at one carefully designed location called the structured cable head end.

Next to networks, I think all homes should have provisions for a real media room. Media rooms can be casual, like a family room, or formal with multitiered seating. They should never be an afterthought. All media rooms need proper acoustic design, ambient light control, good ergonomics and comfort.

Finally there should be control integration for lighting and HVAC. Lighting controls and remote controllable thermostats certainly add convenience, but more importantly they can increase energy efficiency in dramatic ways.

What are some technologies being developed now for the residential market that builders and homeowners aren’t even thinking about today?

There will be lots of interesting developments hitting the market in the next few months. Strange as this may seem, cell phones will become an essential device in the home. We will soon see cell phones integrated with media and control systems. For example, from work you could greet the UPS driver who is standing at your front door, let him in, talk to him through your front hall stereo speakers, and then watch him leave from the hall camera. Cell phones will also become a handy remote control for TV, music, lights — you name it. Bluetooth wireless sensing will inform the home control system where you are in the house (and who you are) by detecting your cell phone, allowing some intriguing lifestyle control scenarios.

Games are big, but many families have not found a way to integrate them into a family experience. The days of junior huddled over a game console in his bedroom will soon end. Next-generation consoles will support games that out-perform traditional media, and they will be addictive. My philosophy is to blend games with other family-oriented shared media experiences.

As game technologies progress, we’ll have the tools to create an affordable virtual reality space in the home. I’m talking about a special room versatile enough to allow you to have a video conference with grandma on Sunday morning, or chop the heads off attacking Orcs on a bloody battlefield. Think of the virtual reality room as a media room you can stand up in and interact with.

Another huge development will be robotics. We already have iRobot’s Roomba vacuum cleaner and Scooba floor washer. Little critters like these will find useful niches all around the house. Eventually, robots will become caregivers for the sick and elderly. Which leads me to in-home health monitoring. As baby boomers age at home, they need more elaborate methods for staying in touch with family and caregivers. I’ve been giving a lot of thought to sensors that will detect if someone has gotten out of bed, used the toilet or opened the medicine cabinet.

What’s the one technology that will impact home technology the most in the next few years?