Nest: at the infancy of a design revolution
Some would suggest that Google’s acquisition of Nest, the maker of smart thermostats, is the beginning of the end, and the world is going to hell and a handbag. Jessica Guynn in her article in the LA times talks about a wave of paranoia concerning Google’s intrusion into our homes. Google is riding another wave. For them, it is the beginning of the beginning or maybe more accurately as Winston Churchill said in 1942, “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." I suspect that Google's interest in thermostats is not at the top of it's agenda, but that using Android to control them is.
Nest and other control devices such as Lutron’s Countdown eco-time switch are changing many elements of design, though they are just scratching the surface. Nest claims to, and does, save energy by dialing into the occupants lifestyle and offering remote capabilities on mobile devices, but does not address the fact that most homes are not smart, have woefully expensive and inefficient HVAC systems, and are poorly designed and poorly insulated. Here comes Android, watch out Apple and Lutron.
Living walls
At the University of Colorado, “John Zhai, an architectural engineering professor, leads a multidisciplinary team of engineers and architects on a creative venture of a lifetime. They’re designing what they call a Living Wall.”
The living wall looks to be the begining of the future in which buidings are seriously working in smart ways with technology.
No more keys with the Kevo by Kwickset
Receiving accolalades and awards, the new Kevo lock from Kwickset shows us how the smart phones (or other smart mobile devices such as watches) will be ubiquitous in smart buildings of the future. The Kevo is currently compatible with the iphone, though an Android app is on the way.
"The app is used for initial setup, sending, disabling and deleting Electronic Keys (eKeys), viewing history of lock activity, and setting up other configurable features and options. The Kevo App runs in the background on your device so there is no need to open the app to enter your home."
"You can send an ekey to anyone, anywhere, anytime or temporarily disable or permanently delete any user from the Kevo system."
The only concern I have is the quality of the lock itself. Time will tell. Meanwhile we can expect other lock manufacturers to follow Kwickset's lead.
How does all this technology innovation effect design?
California is moving towards Zero Net Energy Buildings in new construction by 2020. This is an ambitious goal which will radically change the way architects, designers and builders think.
What can we expect in our homes?
Lights that work by voice command or intelligent sensors. No more switches. Lights will all be LED and respond to all sorts of commands that create mood and color. Hopefully the Nest will reduce in size to an almost invisible temperature sensor in the wall with the brains somewhere else. Window coverings will (some already are) be super smart energy saving devices moving according to the weather or occupancy, creating privacy or not and protecting furnishings from UV light. Window glass will be become complex layers that will induce or reflect light and heat as needed (this is already beginning to happening in select commercial buildings).
The old meets the new
Some new technologies will really be old technologies re-visited and improved. Roofs will harvest rain water and the whole waste water system will be based on re-use and not waste. Septic systems and sewage disposal systems will become living systems that rejuvenate themselves.