Construction Set: Smart Home

Transcription

1 Construction Set: Smart Home Curriculum for Grades 6-8 Teacher Edition Center for Mathematics, Science, and Technology Illinois State University

2 Introduction: The Smart Home contain actual home automation equipment that is currently on the market that can be set up in any home. These are not simulated activities and products. They are the real thing. As such, they can be a bit cumbersome to use in a classroom environment. To better facilitate learning, each Smart Home has its own Wi-Fi and tablet. Each home is paired, so do not try to use the wrong tablet with a different home. They are color coded and numbered. The home is bolted shut with no access to the electronics. This should pose no problem since there is nothing inside the home that needs adjustment other than what can be done via the tablet. All of the loose components are mounted in the drawer and others are packed in the garage. Use: Carefully lift each home from the shipping box by using the 2 handles on the roof. These homes are about 70 pounds and somewhat awkward, so it is recommended that 2 people lift while a third person holds the box down. There is a Student Edition and Teacher Edition of the K-2, 3-5, MS, and HS curriculum available for download and printing at Also, there is a video version of each student edition. The video can be used as an overview to help the students get started or the printed curriculum can be used for guiding their work and as a place to record their discoveries. Each Smart Home can effectively accommodate 4 students. The instructions guide them through the process of setting it up, turning it on, and learning how to use it. Students start by becoming familiar with the systems. There are a number of options found on the Status page and on the Control page. As they touch the buttons, they will discover the capabilities. Some of these may be surprising, such as the ability to not only turn on and off the lights remotely, but also being able to change their brightness and even their color. After becoming somewhat familiar with the capabilities, students can move on to the challenges. These activities guide the students through the use of the home. They select the most energy efficient light bulbs and program the thermostat for various conditions. They also select appliances based on the Energy Guide labels and determine the best locations for solar panels based on measured light intensity. Safety: Since the Smart Home uses actual components, 120 volt AC is present. There is potential for electric shock if students mishandle the devices. They should never have water or other liquids near the Smart Homes. Also, when students plug the light bulbs into the power strip, they MUST screw the bulb into the socket before inserting the socket into the plug. The bulbs can get hot, so be careful when removing them. Please be mindful of the potential for damage during shipment. It is unlikely that anything in the drawer will be broken, but light bulbs are quite fragile. The windows in the Smart Homes are covered in Lexan. This clear polymer is very tough so it is doubtful they will break during shipment, but there is the potential that some breakage occurs due to vandalism. 2

3 Everything gets smarter over time, including homes! The rise of the Internet of Things has allowed us to automate home features like lights, sound, and security. As we combine the power of the smart home and smart grid, the future will only get brighter! Unpacking the Home The various components of our smart home are packed for shipping. You will need to carefully remove each of the items from their place in the drawer and garage, then set them on a nearby table. Be especially careful with the light bulbs found in the home s garage. Before you plug the home in, insert the Multi-Sensor unit s USB cable into the black AC adapter. Then plug that adapter into Switchable 4 on the smart strip and plug the smart strip into the wall. Keep everything else set aside for now, and plug in the home! 3

4 Using the Tablet You can power the tablet on by pressing and holding the button on the tablet s side. If it does not turn on, the battery may be dead. Plug the tablet into the cable at the front of the garage and wait up to 5 minutes before trying again. You may want to ensure all tablets are charged before students use the homes, as there is a minimum charge before the tablet will turn on. In Chrome, you can access the software interface at the address Depending on how the tablet was shut down, this page may already be open. Depending on the page that was last opened, students may already be in the middle of a challenge (and be prompted to choose their team name). You might choose to have students start by typing the address above to reduce confusion. We recommend using the tablet in landscape mode, with the power button oriented at the top of the screen. You are using a tablet to interact with this home, but most home automation systems are set up to be used from a mobile phone sometimes from many miles away! 4

5 Exploring the Smart Home Begin by exploring the Status page and the Control page. This is where you can check the status and control some of your home s systems. Many items can be turned on, off, or changed by tapping on the system s icon or text. Some items will trigger events see what happens when you press the red button on your home s roof or when you use the water sensor. The water sensor is wireless, so don t look for a place to plug it in. The metal probes on the end of the water sensor can be dipped in water but the skin in the palm of your hand probably has enough moisture to set it off. The red button simulates a power outage, represented as an on-screen alert in the message center and by a temporary shutdown of some home systems (including the lights). The water sensor is designed to detect flood conditions and is represented by another on-screen alert through the message center. Note that the water sensor is wireless. It does not plug in anywhere. Notice the switchable power ports on the Control page. They control the outlets on the power strip. Why might this feature be of benefit? What types of devices might you want to switch on or off using a mobile device? What types of devices might you want to plug into unswitchable ports rather than switchable ones? Why? 5

6 Entering Challenge Mode Once you are familiar with the system, try your hand at the different Challenges For each challenge, follow the prompts on-screen. Many of the challenges have multiple parts, so continue through each part until you see the completion notification at the bottom of the screen. You may need to scroll to see new information which has appeared below the bottom of the page. Light Bulb Challenge Note: The light bulbs get very hot very quickly. Be sure to follow the on-screen instructions! When it comes time to pack the light bulbs away, it s safest to wear gloves to remove them. Note also that light bulbs will not fit side-by-side there must be one or more empty ports between bulbs. It is important that students not plug adapters in without a bulb in them there is a serious risk of harm if a finger were inserted into a bare adapter. We require that incandescent bulbs be plugged into the switchable ports so the incandescent bulb can be powered off and cooled down before it is removed. After you have finished but before you continue to the next challenge: Compare the Average Bulb Comparison values and those in the Calculated Bulb Comparisons Table. How different are they? Why might the two tables be a little different? The calculated values rely on the actual wattage drawn, which may be different from the average 60W/12W bulb. Note also that the provided bulbs are 40W equivalents rather than 60W equivalents to reduce the amount of heat generated and minimize the risk of burns. 6

7 HVAC Challenge Note: While these controls appear to be the same as those on the Control page, they have been deactivated to allow you to quickly change settings without waiting for the thermostat to react. Pay close attention to the outside temperature. It is written in bold, and it can be found above the blue Thermostat Controls. It changes as you make your selections. After you have finished but before you continue to the next challenge: Take a close look at the graph. This graph is calculated based on your choices. Make note of two trends and explain why you think that trend may be true. Trend 1: Answers will vary, but one possible answer is that it is much more expensive to heat a home when it is 20 degrees outside than it is 60 degrees outside. Explanation: The outdoor temperature does matter. While well-insulated homes lose less heat, all homes lose heat energy to the outside environment. Trend 2: Answers will vary, but another possible answer is that the 60-degree and 100-degree lines are almost inverted from one another. Explanation: No matter what the temperature outside, temperatures drop when the sun goes lower in the sky. This means homes need to be heated more in the afternoon and evening when it is 60 degrees outside and cooled less when it is 100 degrees outside. 7

8 Energy Guide Tag Challenge Remember: as new information appears, it may necessary to scroll to see it below the bottom of the screen. Energy Guide Tags are useful tools when purchasing larger appliances. Besides the devices included in the challenge, what are two appliances whose energy guide tags would be important? Why? Answers will vary, but they may include appliances like freezers, HVAC systems, space heaters, dishwashers, stoves/ovens, Begin Experimenting In addition to challenges, there are several Experiments to complete. For each experiment, follow the prompts on-screen. Many of the experiments have multiple parts, so continue through each one until you see the completion notification at the bottom of the screen. You may need to scroll to see new information which has appeared below the bottom of the page. Pricing Structure Experiment When your home has a smart meter, you may have the option to change how you are billed for your energy. The cost of producing electricity changes constantly, following at-the-moment demand for energy. Power companies have traditionally averaged this and charged a static rate, but hour-by-hour pricing allows consumers to choose whether to use energy when it is most expensive to produce. What hours did you tweak from the average? Why? Answers may vary, but some examples are given in the on-screen prompt itself. Are family members home all day? Increase energy usage through the work day. 8

9 In the last activity, you should have increased your energy usage at some times during the day while decreasing it at other times. How much cheaper could you make the hour-by-hour pricing total without changing the total energy usage? Answers will vary. Saving cents per day is typical. Students may look at a small savings as insignificant, but remember that any savings can be multiplied by 30 to see how much is saved in a month or 365 to see how much is saved in a year. In general, how would you describe the changes you made? Energy is typically cheapest in the late evening and overnight, so increasing usage there (for example, washing and drying clothes) and reducing usage during primetime hours is best. Solar Collection Experiment Where in the room do you get the greatest lux reading? Why do you think that is? Answers will vary. The closer you are to the light source, the greater the luminance. Natural sources are generally better than artificial ones, but windows and distance reduce the luminance of natural light. The Multi-sensor was useful in conducting this experiment, but how could readings like this be used to automate your home? The brightness of the room could be kept constant by modifying the brightness of artificial light based on a lux reading. Dramatic changes in luminance can also be used as an indicator of someone entering a room, which could trigger things like temperature changes. 9

10 Home Automation Experiment What was the plan you developed for your car s arrival? Why was this a good plan? Would your plan help to reduce energy use and/or improve convenience? Answers will vary. Ideal plans would have lights turning on and temperatures changing so that lights are off and less energy is used for heating/cooling throughout the day. You have explored and experimented with many different parts of the smart home. Imagine how these parts could work together to make your home safer, more energyefficient, and less likely to be damaged in an emergency. The homes of the future truly will be smart! Shutting the System Down Because the home includes a computer, it is important to safely shut the system down before pulling the plug. The system should be powered down using the Safe Shutdown option in the tablet s Admin menu. Please be sure to power the tablet off also: press and hold the power button on the side, then press Shut Down on the screen. Repacking the Home Return each of the components to their places in the drawer, and the light bulbs and solar panel to their places in the garage. Please ensure that all components fit snugly in the drawer and that they will not be jostled when the home is shipped to the next school. Problem-Solving If you encounter problems with some of the home s devices, check that each device is intended for that home. (Each item should be labeled to match the home number.) Next, restart the system by going to the Admin menu ( ) and selecting Refresh System. If you are having more major problems, please contact CeMaST. 10

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