Connected Home for AT&T

Transcription

1 Connected Home for AT&T EDSGN 100: Intro to Engineering Design, Section 009 Spencer Seipt- Adam DiPillo- Devin Jury- Tyler Daniels- Team 3: Wolves of Wall Street Submitted to Wallace Catanach 5/5/14 1

2 Index 3) Introduction, Mission Statement 4) Executive Summary 5) Customer Needs 6) Target Specifications 8) Benchmarking 9) Concept Generation 10) External Research 14) Concept Selection 16) Conclusion 2

3 Introduction The Wolves of Wall Street Engineering Firm LLC has decided to get involved in the growing market of the Internet of Things (IoT). This concept of connecting all aspects of life, including home, auto, and personal, has recently taken precedence in the mind of many leading communication companies, and we believe we have the perfect opportunity for AT&T Corporation. Our engineers have been hard at work devising a way to connect virtually one s entire home, starting with a basic project plan outlining a schedule, followed by determining what the most pressing needs for consumers of today would be. We used these needs to create several concept selection matrices, and benchmarked our creation against systems already in production. We have created diagrams and a digital model to better convey how we intend this system will function, and we hope to fulfill all of AT&T s ambitions in regards to the IoT. 3

4 Executive Summary While working towards our current product, we did extensive research on existing technology which have had successful sales runs. The team then took lessons learned from those systems, be it good or bad, and incorporated them into our final design. The project evolved from controlling the entertainment system of a living room, to controlling potentially every electronic system in the home, and some which are typically not. We decided to not only include housekeeping items like dishwashers, washers and dryers, and the oven, but also door locks, the original entertainment system as intended, alarm clocks, lighting. Several ideas for how the system would communicate were introduced including wi-fi, Bluetooth, radio, and infrared. We also researched the pulseworx lighting control system, which uses UPB (Universal Powerline Bus) technology to control all of the lighting in a residential home. We decided we were most interested in pursuing this type of technology because it would minimize the need for installation of new wires, and have the capability of controlling nearly every appliance in a home which is connected to a power outlet. While this type of system is relatively untested in this type of application and some growing pains and bugs are likely to occur, we believe this will be a revolution in smart home technology and it will be well worth the price of making sure this product delivers the consistent and reliable performance consumers expect from a product from AT&T. 4

5 Customer Needs Analysis Wireless Connection The purpose of this system is to connect the user to devices throughout his/her home via their smartphone or device that can access applications. Secure System The user wants a system that can only be controlled by people given access. The system cannot be able to be hacked into because of all the control this system has over the whole entire house. Control from short and far distances The system needs to be able to be controlled in the home, out of the home, and anywhere in the world. They want to be able to view the security cameras footage no matter where they are. Control of all electronic devices/appliances They want this system to control every device, from the TV and lights, to the microwave and locks on the doors. Anything that can be plugged in needs to be able to be controlled by the click of a button on a smart phone. Customer Needs It must turn the oven and other appliances on and off. It must act as a remote for the TV and speakers. It must be able to turn lights on and off in any room as well as outdoor lights. It must be able to lock the house from another location. It must be easy to follow and operate. It must be easy to fix. It must be able to be used by multiple devices other than just a phone. Need Statements Wireless control of all appliances. Wireless control of entertainment systems. Wireless control of lights. Wireless control of security system. Simple interface. Easy maintenance. Integrates with other devices. 5

6 Target Specifications Wi-Fi The Wi-Fi should have a speed of 80 Mbps or greater 4G Should have at least 6 Mbps 3G Should have a speed of at least 1 Mbps HUB p HD touchscreen display mounted flush with the wall. It will be 4 thick and weigh 3 lbs. It will contain a 2.3 GHz quadcore CPU. Locks Electrical door locks (handle and deadbolt). Unlockable/lockable via phone, code entered on key pad or key. UPB(Universal Power line Bus) Have a frequency of 60 Hz and speed of 240 Bps. The UPB will run to every outlet in the home. 6

7 This metrics matrix is organized with customer needs on the left, metrics on the top, and specifications on the bottom. We used this matrix to aid with concept creation, screening, and scoring in reaching our final product. This matrix helped us understand which customer needs affected which metrics which allowed us to better understand which metrics were most important to the customer. 7

8 Benchmarking Existing Systems: 6. Iris Iris has one big advantage over other home automation systems. It s readily avaible at your local Lowe s. So if you re curious about how Iris works, you can not only see it in person, but can also ask someone face-to-face. Starting at around $179, Iris allows you to control lights, climate, security and even locking and unlocking doors from a computer, tablet, or smartphone. 5. Vivint Vivint does what most other home automation systems achieve, but bundling it with their wellrespected home security system gives this option some serious consideration. We alo like the fact that Vivint offers a Solar Energy Package as well. 4. JDS Technologies Not only is JDS one of the original DIY/pro home control systems, the company features the nifty HomeRunner RBI which allows users to create graphical interfaces in minutes. This is done by simply snapping a pic of a room and then create hot spots for touch control. Works on iphone, ipad and Android operating systems. 3. SmartThings SmartThings has features that many other home automation systems don t offer. Some of the outstanding features include everything from being notified if a window or door suddenly opens to keeping track of your car keys. 2. HomeSeer HomeSeer is an effective system that can control appliances, lights, garage doors, climate and even sprinkles. Other features include security, netcams and being able to manage energy. Overall, HomeSeer is a well-rounded system that it s easy to use. 1. mcontrol This award-winning system is powerful, flexible and covers all the basic functions you re looking for in a home automation system. The mcontrol V3 also includes data logging if you want to keep track of your home s status over time. But, what makes this a top-notch system is its compatible and easy to use hardware and software. 8

9 Concept Generation Clarification of the Problem: Creating a smart and connected home including almost all in home appliances. Functional Diagram: This diagram represents the main goals we attempted to achieve with this project. 9

10 External Research Literature Review: A company that is at the forefront of electricity flow management is Pulseworx. This company provides systems that allow owners to create custom light settings for different times of the day. The method this company utilizes for electrical signals is Universal Powerline Bus (UPB). While transmitting, one UPB Pulse is generated each half-cycle of the 60 Hz AC electrical power cycle. The generation of each UPB Pulse is precisely timed to occur in one of four predefined positions in the half-cycle of the AC powerline. The position of each UPB Pulse determines its value as either 0, 1, 2, or 3. This method of encoding data as a relative position of a pulse is a well-known and used method in digital communications known as Pulse-position modulation (PPM). Since each UPB Pulse can encode two bits of digital information and there are 120 AC half-cycles per second (at 60 Hz), UPB communication has a raw speed of 240 bits per second. Although this speed isn t fast enough for high bandwidth applications, it is perfectly adequate for command and control communication. ADT has become a prominent company in the field of wireless security systems, and their models now dominate the market. From burglary protection, to video surveillance, to carbon monoxide and fire monitoring, ADT has covered all the bases in terms of automated home security. Some features that ADT s Pulse system offers are the ability to remotely arm and disarm your system, view secure real-time video, control lights, thermostats, small appliances and more. Users can also receive or text message alerts of expected and unexpected events happening at home. They can also manage their energy consumption with automated programming or wireless control by setting the thermostat or the lights to turn on and off based on their schedule. When it comes to burglary protection, ADT has monitoring centers with world-class back-up capabilities which ensure 24/7 service through any condition. When an alarm is received, ADT can notify the police, fire department, or ambulance even if you re not home. There are also wireless home security options like the ability to lock the doors from afar through your smart phone. There is also a two-way intercom system that allows you to speak with an ADT representative whenever an alarm goes off. Other features include advanced smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, which are also connected to the monitoring centers. A company that has focused more on the wireless connection to appliances is Belkin. This company has created the Wi-Fi enabled WeMo Switch, which lets users turn electronic devices on or off from anywhere. The WeMo Switch uses the existing home Wi-Fi network to provide wireless control of TVs, lamps, stereos, heaters, fans and more. Users simply have to download the WeMo App from the Google Play Store or the Apple App store, plug the switch into an outlet in your home, and plug any device into the switch. Then they are able to turn that device on or off using their smartphone or tablet (running Android 4.0 and later or ios 5 or higher). Users can also set schedules for their devices and control them remotely using a mobile internet connection. 10

11 Patent Search: Expandable home automation system US A A system for and a method of providing an expandable home automation controller is disclosed which supports multiple numbers and multiple different types of data communications with both appliances and subsystems within the home as well as systems external to the home. The system is based upon a central processor, such as a microprocessor-based computer, and is connected by means of a data bus to control the various products and subsystems within a home or commercial building, such as lighting systems, security systems, various sensors, multiple external terminals, as well as to allow for the input of commands by a variety of means such as 11

12 touchscreens, voice recognition systems, telephones, custom switches or any device capable of providing an input to a computer system. The system functions can be readily controlled by the user utilizing a high resolution graphics display and associated touchscreen interface. Pictured above is a schematic block diagram showing the apparatus of the present invention. This picture is complex and contains many different parts that have even more specific aspects. This is the overview of the patent as a whole, and illustrates the interconnection of the various aspects of the extensive building automation design. This patent covers all of the areas of interest for this design project, and contains many similar concepts to the design our team has in mind. (Image Source: 12

13 System and method for performing an action on a structure in computer-generated data US A A system and method causes a computer to detect and perform actions on structures identified in computer data. The system provides an analyzer server, an application program interface, a user interface and an action processor. The analyzer server receives from an application running concurrently data having recognizable structures, uses a pattern analysis unit, such as a parser or fast string search function, to detect structures in the data, and links relevant actions to the detected structures. The application program interface communicates with the application running concurrently, and transmits relevant information to the user interface. Thus, the user interface can present and enable selection of the detected structures, and upon selection of a detected structure, present the linked candidate actions. Upon selection of an action, the action processor performs the action on the detected structure. Pictured above is a block diagram of a computer system 100 including a CPU 120. Computer system 100 is preferably a microprocessor-based computer, such as a Power Macintosh manufactured by Apple Computer, Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. An input device 110, such as a keyboard and mouse, and an output device 105, such as a CRT or voice module, are coupled to CPU 120. ROM 155, RAM 170 and disk storage 175 are coupled to CPU 120 via signal bus 115. Computer system 100 optionally further comprises a printer 180, a communications interface 185, and a floppy disk drive 190, each coupled to CPU 120 via signal bus 115. This design is one of 38 new patents granted to Apple Computer Inc, and all of these patents relate to Apple s intent on entering the field of home automation. (Image Source: Surveys 13

14 Concept Selection Concept Screening Matrices: These matrices were used to initially narrow down the number of concepts considered to streamline the design process. All those with positive or zero end scores were pursued further. 14

15 Conclusions: We decided to exclude Bluetooth, LiFi, Voice Command, and Fridge Control. Weighted Scoring Matrix: We used this matrix to decide which of the Based on these matrices we kept all of the elements which made it through our original screening matrices because they all had a unique and important role in our system. 15

16 Conclusion This project took us through the design process of creating a new, innovative product. We utilized the skills and experience we gained from the first project to make this project process run more smoothly. The new teammate we gained helped teach us how to adapt and immediately integrate him into the process and he did the same. This proved to be no challenge to the chemistry of our group. Together we went step by step through the design process and successfully created a desirable product. In this second design project we learned a lot about how to develop a product that fully satisfies the customer s needs. Our connected home device goes above and beyond similar competitors products. We now understand how far you have to go to create a new product desirable enough that a company like AT&T would be will to buy it. With the amount of connected devices that already exist today we had to make sure our product combined them all into one simple product. Upon completion we could look back and say this is something that we would want in our home. Although it took a lot of brainstorming to reach our final product we can say we included all wanted devices in our connected home product. We learned a lot from this project, including teamwork skills, design skills, and problem solving skills. 16