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Topic:
Occupancy Sensing, Ideas Wanted
This thread has 13 replies. Displaying all posts.
Post 1 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 02:15
David B
Historic Forum Post
I recently read an article that mentions Bill Gates gives visitors a pin (sensor) that his home computer/controller can use to track their whereabouts in his house.

X-10 Motion sensors can detect when someone enter their field of view. Are they sensitive enough to detect someone sleeping on the sofa if they don't move, except to breath?

I'd like to be able to figure out who they are and exactly where in the room they are.

There are several ways of sensing someone. You could measure the displacement of air, detecting them by their volume. Put weight sensors in an array beneath the carpet, detecting them by their weight. Measure the change in heat of the room. Listen for sounds they make. Sense their smell. Have an array of invisible laser beams criss crossing the room for them to break. And so on.

What are your (anyone?) ideas on how any X-10 products might be used to track and identify in a home?
OP | Post 2 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 02:27
Jim Fouch
Historic Forum Post
If there is more than one person in the house, it is virtually impossible to tell if a room is occupied -- unless you use xmitters on each person like Gates does -- I bit much to ask of our families and friends..

Cheers, Jim.
OP | Post 3 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 10:25
Chris Couture
Historic Forum Post
If you had retina scanners in each entryway, this would only allow access for those authorized. It would also log activities (see if the kids are sneaking out) and allow different scenes for different people. No really, what about voice recognition systems? The Smartlinc products work with voice recognition (its not really advertised to but if you download the software and look in the “Help” section under “Voice Recognition” you can read about it). Anyway, it could be taught different voices. Check this out: “I’m home” you say and the A/V system turns on, tunes to your channel and lights adjust to your liking. The wife comes in and says, “Now I’m home” and it all changes. Mics in each room could track activities and allow hands free operation from anywhere in the house.

Chris Couture
OP | Post 4 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 10:42
David B
Historic Forum Post
Imagine listening to your favorite music in the Den. You walk to the bedroom, and since the "house" tracks you, so does your music. Speakers in the hallway and any room you enter get switched to your selection. If you like the lights a different way than your spouse, the smart house would adjust to YOU without your need to ask or press a button. If you had TVs in every room, your TV selection would appear on the room's monitor as you entered. Of course TWO people in a room might need some clever "arbitration" programming, but that's another bridge I'll cross when I come to it.

Dave
OP | Post 5 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 10:50
David B
Historic Forum Post
Of course, if you give up on knowing WHERE in a room it's a much simpler problem. Just catch people at the doorways. Sensors at each side could determine the Direction (into or out of the room) You could weigh them at the threshold, comparing the weight to a list to figure out who it was. Then again, I'd be the first to try and outsmart my smart house... entering a doorway, then backing out... and so on.
OP | Post 6 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 11:04
Chris
Historic Forum Post
As far as the “Music Tracking” this is a nice feature I currently have in my home. It’s pretty cool and easy to do. Now it doesn’t know who’s in the room but it knows someone is there I go to the pool and, yes, there is music there also! As far as a system that knows whose there, that’s asking a lot for ANY system. Transmitters would be the most logical way to perform this task. I know in the auto security, there is “transmitters” that the car senses and allow a start. Without the transmitter being around, the car won’t start (Corvettes have this). This inexpensive technology could be employed in a home and track people. Also, they are starting to “chip” animals, putting a small microchip just under the skin. This allows identifying of animals at zoos, but it could be used in “your” home. Contact your local vet to see if he would “chip” your family. You could have exterior chips, to be worn as a charm or something, that you could pass out to friends and family who visit.

Chris Couture
OP | Post 7 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 13:10
David B.
Historic Forum Post
Animal "ID" chips are passive (no battery), and only send a signal when a special electronic wand is passed over them. I have Veterinarians as relatives, so I can get them. I just don't think sensing them would be trivial. Clever thought, though. Do you know the manufacturer of the RF transmitter used in the corvette? It may be too short of range also, but it's worth checking into.

Dave
OP | Post 8 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 13:37
Roland S
Historic Forum Post
If anyone figures out the people tracking idea, I have another spin-off.

For those with small children, what about a small RF transmitting device (radio beacon) that can be clipped on their clothes? And for yourself, a small handheld digital compass-like device that can tell you the distance and direction they are from you.

Many people think those kiddie "leashes" are quite inhumane.

Roland
(i know this is swaying away from X-10)
OP | Post 9 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 14:30
Chris Couture
Historic Forum Post
Roland,
They have this technology already, it’s called Lo-jack and it used by law enforsment to track stollden vehicles. Downsizeing the device to a pager size unit would not really be a problem since it is already small (about the size of a cellular phone brain).

Dave,
As far as the car alarm part, the range is very limited but bet it could be imporoved. Check it out @ [Link: seco-larm.com].

Chris
OP | Post 10 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 16:14
David B
Historic Forum Post
I've heard and read that a new generation of satelite based location finding devices will include "child finders" and related products. The kid's pin induces it's location and sends that info via RF to the parent's device. Great for locating them in a mall, I suppose.

I don't have any kids (yet) so I'm more focused on just the house knowing where I or my wife is for the sake of entertaining us. I'd rather NOT have to depend on us carrying anything. Still pondering.

Dave
OP | Post 11 made on Friday September 10, 1999 at 16:52
Roland S
Historic Forum Post
What about tying a long bungee cord between you and your wife? That way, if she wanders too far, it'll bounce her back.

He he! Sorry, 40 minutes of work left for the week. I'm getting delirious. :P

Have a good weekend, all of you!

Roland
OP | Post 12 made on Saturday September 11, 1999 at 19:31
Jim Fouch
Historic Forum Post
>>your local vet to see if he would “chip” your family. You could have exterior chips, to be worn as a charm or something, that you could pass out to friends and family who visit.

Sounds like a great way to keep your vistors from ever wanting to return - lol.

Cheers, Jim.
OP | Post 13 made on Monday September 13, 1999 at 00:53
Xtremist
Historic Forum Post
This Dave guy seems to take it all to the MAX! Lets just get down to basics and explore things that will do us all good!

Xtremist
OP | Post 14 made on Monday September 13, 1999 at 11:30
David B
Historic Forum Post
There is a burglar hitting houses in my neighborhood. He's tried my house, and I've caught him on my porch camera. Unfortunately it was too dark for identifiable video. He looks for unlocked doors and enters if he finds them. A sensing system that could discern my wife and I could also determine that an unidentified person in the house was a burglar, and initiate an appropriate response. Hmmm... maybe lure him into the vault with a sequence of lights illuminating the path. Sense that he's fully inside, and shut the door. Wake me up, telling me the "vault is closed", and automatically calling the police.

Now if I only had a walk in vault!

Xtremist... No reason to NOT explore the max. It's good exercise for the mind. You can sit this one out if you need to.

Dave


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