It’s not often you can find a sure bet in Las Vegas but if you’re looking for one at next week’s International Consumer Electronics Show, you can bet top dollar that 2015 is the year that the Internet of Things is going to get a lot closer to home.
In fact, the advent of “smart homes” might make the Internet of Things (IoT) seem like less of an esoteric buzzword and more like something we experience every day.
Broadcom’s connectivity group offers up a platform, WICED™, that’s enabling the explosion of new smart home devices. Broadcom taps standards-based embedded connectivity such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth® Smart and other protocols to help companies get their apps, devices and objects connected to the Internet, and to each other.
2015 CES Icon LogoThe WICED platform is a big coup for developers: It’s low-power and ready to test and prototype out of the box, enabling startups and IoT entrepreneurs to speed their gadgets to the market – and into consumers’ homes.
The Smart Home has been a focus at CES for some time now. This year, next-gen products are expected to show improvements for more intuitive user experiences, especially when onboarding new devices and managing multiple connected gadgets on a home network.
At CES next month, the smart home gets its own dedicated exhibit space as part of a new exhibit area called Tech West.
Here’s a rundown of how the WICED platform is enabling Broadcom’s partners to innovate with some of the most quotidian bits of hardware in the home— including door locks, thermostats and more.
While You’re Away
homeboy security cameraNo one wants to worry about break-ins or unexpected visitors when they’re not home, and traditional security systems can be expensive and complicated. Homeboy, a WICED platform customer, is taking a different approach with a lightweight camera and some mobile apps that let homeowners assign a “crew” of trusted friends of families to be notified of suspicious activity. Internet connectivity means the system can automatically arm itself when homeowners leave and disarm when they arrive.
You’ve Reached the Front Door
Forgot your keys or fumbling to dig them out in the dark? No problem. RemoteLock is an intelligent system for entrances developed by Lockstate that uses Broadcom chips with code added by Ayla Networks. That means the homeowners can use a passcode to open the door, or generate temporary ones to family members or people that have to get in occasionally, like cleaning staff or repair people.
Inside the House
Netatmo ThermostatIs there an end in sight to the “temperature wars”? The indoor temp control can get much more personalized, ending the standoff between housemates that run cold or warm. That’s because the smart home is using Netatmo, a thermostat that syncs with the smartphones of those living in the house using Wi-Fi connectivity. You can adjust the temperature remotely, but the system is also designed to learn your preferences during the day or even when you sleep.
Now You’re Cooking
One of the first things many of us do once we’re home is get dinner going. Vestel has introduced a range of appliances for smart homes using WICED technology, including a freestanding cooker, air-conditioner and refrigerator that will offer Internet connectivity. These machines will be able to monitor themselves and warn homeowners about breakdowns before they happen, optimize energy usage and convey the status of what they’re doing.
With the Internet of Things just getting started, it’s still anyone’s guess how the possibilities of connected objects will play out. Still, the industry is off to a running start and some might say that, with the flurry of IoT devices that are expected to be on display at CES, the Internet of Things is just beginning to make itself at home.