Sensors are at the heart of the smart home. They detect and notify the smart home platform or hub about the situation. In return, software applications running in the platform will instruct smart devices – lights, plugs, door locks, speakers, thermostats, and so on—how to react, all in an instant. For example, upon getting the notification from a motion sensor that someone is walking downstairs in the middle of the night, the hub may turn on the light. By the way, reporting the situation to homeowners through smartphone apps has also become a common smart home feature.
Apart from convenience, sensors could be a great help to protect homes from the damage likely to be caused by water leaks, theft, and fire. Many of them detect just one parameter like temperature or water leak, while there are a few multitaskers. Although many homes already have a few of them, you get your smart home once you install a few more and integrate them over the Internet with a hub.
Functioning, compatibility, and performance issues of smart home sensors:
For having an integrated home automation system, sensors need to be set and configured to work in partnership with other devices. With the help of a smartphone app, we need to connect sensors with the platform—a smart home software ecosystem. Hence, the ecosystem we choose should be compatible with a whole bunch of sensors and devices. It happens to be that many different companies make them. Therefore, we need to select an appropriate intelligent home platform. Some of them are Amazon Alexa, Apple HomeKit, Google Home, and Samsung SmartThings.
In sensor selection, essential performance parameters are (i) reliability, (ii) range, (iii) response time, (iv) setup and installation, (v) pet immunity, (vi) battery life, and (vii) ease of connectivity with the hub. Furthermore, we should look into the security and privacy of sensors we select for our smart home. Here are a few smart home sensors for more convenience, greater safety, and higher efficiency in your living.
Fire and CO detection:
Smoke detectors have been a great help in detecting and beeping at the early sign of fire. However, in addition to smoke, several types of pollutants that can threaten our home environment and air quality. One of the common culprits is CO. Due to its odorless and undetectable, sensors could help detect its presence. The connectivity of a CO detector to an emergency monitoring service could even be a lifesaver. Some new sensors (chemical) can detect both fire (smoke) and CO. Surprisingly, for monitoring the overall air quality at home, they can also watch for pollutants like dust, soot, pollen, temperature, humidity, air staleness, pollution, and particulates.
Motion sensor:
By detecting movements of objects in the target area and reporting to the hub, motion sensors help implement several innovative home features. For example, based on motion sensors’ data, lights could be turned on or off, or become aware of unwanted movements in the residence. The performance of the motion detection sensor varies due to different approaches. Some of the standard motion detection technologies are (i) passive infrared (PIR), microwave (MW), dual technology motion sensors, area reflective type, ultrasonic, and vibration.
Door sensor:
It’s a simple magnetic sensor. Notably, it’s useful for the garage. Based on data provided by the sensor through WFi, homeowners can open and shut their garage door from the phone, from any location. We can also attach this sensor to doors and windows in making them smart. This sensor will push an instant notification about when the door or window is opened or closed.
Leak, water, and moisture sensor:
Water and freezing damage is a grave concern for homeowners. It’s the 2nd leading cause of home insurance claims in the U.S. Fortunately, a moisture detection sensor can give us an early warning about freezing pipes or a broken water line. These sensors provide us with an early warning before extensive damage takes place. We can place them around anything at risk for water leakages such as water heaters, dishwashers, refrigerators, sinks, and sump pumps. In a case when you are not at home, the smart home hub can send notifications through your smartphone, so you can hurry home to attend to the issue.
Smart thermostat:
It is a regulating device. Smart thermostats are not only excellent in sensing and taking actions to maintain the temperature within a set threshold level; in doing so, they save money too. A state-of-the-art thermostat adjusts the temperature on a room-by-room basis as per the preset schedule. Hence, it gives the convenience of maintaining a comfortable temperate while in the room and offers the option of switching to energy-saving mode when no one is in the room. Furthermore, the application of cognitive technology empowers your home to know your lifestyle and adapt the temperature to your preferences and activity level at different parts of the house.
Video doorbell: an early member of smart home sensors
It’s a combination of doorbell sensing and a camera attached next to the door. The doorbell ringing triggers the camera and starts streaming video to your smartphone. Hence, you not only can see who is at the door, but you can also remotely respond even when you are not home. . In addition to offering your convenience to attend the door, it also scares away thieves. For this reason, it’s one of the most preferred and earliest intelligent home sensors.
Multipurpose sensor:
Instead of detecting just one parameter like temperature, a multi-purpose sensor combines several sensors into one device. The combination of multiple capabilities, including motion, temperature, light, humidity, vibration, and UV, has become an industry standard
Smart home sensors turn into IoTs:
The availability of internet connectivity, microcontroller, and ease of turning home into a WiFi hotspot has made it quite technologically and economically feasible to attach wireless connectivity to home sensors, turning them into IoTs. These IoT features have made it viable and convenient to get notifications from sensors through a smartphone. Such development has substantially contributed to the value proposition of smart homes.
Many of these sensors are not new. Possibly, they have not been developed for smart home automation either. But they have been adapted for innovative smart home applications. Notably, the internet connectivity and interface with the smartphone have made it quite conducive to the smart home features. Further advancement of software will lead to the sensor and hub level cognitive capability. As a result, intelligent homes will be capable of learning and adapting to the lifestyle and preferences of occupants. Moreover, such advancement also optimizes the consumption of electricity and water. Hence, the economics of Innovation will likely keep making smart home sensors increasingly more intelligent and multifunctional.
