List/Projects/Research
From Drexel Smart House
This is the master Projects page, which offers a brief overview of each project and it's goals. For a more in depth look at the up to date progress on each project, see Current Projects.
Architectural Coatings: Near IR Scattering Layer
Using selective near-IR scattering nanoparticles, the goal of this project is to optimize an acrylic based architectural coating for maximum infrared reflection. Optimization is based on Mie theory calculations and selection of the nanomaterial scattering/filler phase of the coating. Once optimized, this coating will reflect a large fraction of radiant energy from the sun- reducing surface temperatures of the home and decreasing cooling costs. Other applications this coating has pertain to solar cell efficiency and solar water heating panel improvements.
Initial samples prepared show very promising results in comparison to other commercial reflective coatings and titanium dioxide paints. More pictures and data will be posted soon.
Earth Concretes
10% of the world’s carbon dioxide emission is produced during concrete production. This is equivalent to the total production of Japan. Earth cements utilize a different chemical formulation which upon curing produces very little to no CO2 emission. Instead of using limestone, Earth Cements are produced from slag, a currently unused byproduct from steel refining. It should be possible to completely replace Portland cement with Earth cements in non-load bearing applications within the house.
Multitouch Interaction
Multitouch has the potential to revolutionize the way people interact with computers. Most people have only seen multitouch on Apple iPhone or the Microsoft Surface products, but multitouch displays are very much up and coming today. Imagine the entire wall of a house as a large computer screen. Interacting with this screen is as simple as walking up to it and using your fingers to directly control everything. Multitouch technology even allows for multiple users on the same screen. By implementing these displays within the Smart House, the research team will have a blank slate with which to innovate with - by designing new user interfaces for everyday computing and media tasks.
Several displays are planned, and at least one is in the works. The Multi touch team will be using the FTIR method to detect interaction on a rear projected polycarbonate surface. Additional multi touch technologies and software are currently being evaluated.
Human Computer Interactions
This group will explore new methods of interfacing users with computers. Potential projects include gesture recognition from video feeds, voice recognition and voice activated functions, biometric facial recognition, and eye control methods. If you are a computer science, computer engineering, or software engineering student, or if you are a professor at Drexel University interested in researching this cutting edge and truly innovative field, please contact us!
HVAC Control Systems
Sensors located on the air handling unit, and at thermostats throughout the house, will provide both a live display of those data points and the ability to make adjustments remotely, on any computer. The software that interfaces the HVAC system will also intelligently adjust the settings of cooling, heating, and air movement based on levels of comfort and energy usage.
The type of control system is classified as "digital direct control."
The control system will consist of analog and digital inputs and outputs to control any and all units associated with the HVAC system including but not limited to dampers, valves, air handling units, boilers, chillers, heat exchangers, cooling/evaporating equipment, energy conservation equipment, thermostats, and any devices measuring temperature, humidity, velocity, pressure, and air quality of particulates.
The Drexel Smart House HVAC Control System requirements:
1) The mechanical system should be capable of conditioning the air supplied to a space in the following ways: a) heating b) cooling c) humidification d) dehumidification e) velocity f) pressure
2) The control system should be capable of turning full on, full off, and any level in between, all of the above actions at any given time depending on input.
3) The control system should recieve input from the outside environment, from the inside conditioned space, and from users.
4) The control system should adjust according to the input while not exceeding its operating limits in such a way that it causes harm to itself, the house, or the occupants.
5) The control system should be compatable with any different equipment, and it should be upgradable.
6) Once configured after installation, the control system should provide for ease of use and adjustment by a non-professional user withing the limits of normal use.
7) The control system should adjust the levels of variables 1a through 1f in order to achieve the maximum comfort level, according to feedback, for the occupants in the space.
8) When no occupants are in a space, the control system should adjust the levels of 1a through 1f to achieve the lowest possible energy usage.
9) The control system should be controlled from within the home at the site of the equipment, from different space within the house, and remotely outside of the house.
10) The control system should provide real-time data to different spaces within the house, and remotely outside of the house.
11) The mechanical system should have the capability to, and the control system should be able to manage, different levels of 1a through 1f in each zone throughout the house, simultaneously. The zones may be defined as single or multiple spaces within the house, or several zones may be contained within the same room.
Diet Monitoring & Smart Kitchen
The smart kitchen technologies include an RFID inventory system that tracks every individual item in the kitchen. Coupled with health monitoring data provided about each occupant, the kitchen will be able to make recommendations on snacks and meals based on the current inventory of food. User interaction will likely be done through the multitouch kitchen table or through embedded screens in an oven or refrigerator door. As an example, data collected by the system will be able to identify when an occupant’s weekly or daily sodium intake has exceeded a limit. The data is also useful for creating shopping lists based on which items were recently thrown out.
Exercise Monitoring
Data will be collected from exercise equipment, physiological monitoring, and user input. This data will be used to monitor each occupant’s use and progress, and is useful for occupants to follow a healthy exercise regimen and identify exercise trends and areas for improvement.
Health Monitoring
Health monitoring systems include fall detection, detection of irregular breathing during sleep, remote heart rate monitoring, and many more. This system will work in conjunction with the diet and exercise monitoring to create a health profile for each occupant. The goal is to proactively identify health problems and automatically notify 911 in case of an emergency.
Smart Toilet
Media Distribution
The Smart House will have the capability to deliver user specific video to any room (and almost any surface) of the house through the high bandwidth network. This video may be television, DVD, IPTV content, or even a users computer desktop. Display technologies found throughout the home will be a mix of free standing and mounted LCD screens, flush mounted, embedded LCD screens (for example, an lcd screen disguised inside a mirror in a bathroom), projectors, multitouch projectors (e.g., the kitchen table may be a large touch screen), and newer technologies such as OLED screens as they become available.
See also
Possible ideas for a Media Center
Server Backbone
Laundry Automation
Imagine your closet being your washing machine. You just hang up your clothes at the end of the day, and the RFID tag in each article of clothing gives care instructions to your closet. Your clothes are washed, dried, and pressed automatically, all you have to do is hang them up.
RFID Technology in the Kitchen & Home
RFID has great potential to revolutionize the way a home is aware of it's contents and more importantly, it's residents. This project's goal is to explore new possibilities when RFID scanners are placed throughout a home. The concept relies on each consumable item within a home having an RFID tag. These RFID tags can help residents physically allocate supplies, food, and other products throughout storage areas and living space. Additionally, RFID can assist residents in configuring and syncing electronic devices within a home, clothing management, and computer interactions.
This research is being conducted in collaboration with an outside startup company.
Lighting: Daylight Waveguides
The goal of this three-part daylighting research is to develop design tools for the selection of materials and for determining configuration models that can provide optimal daylighting solutions with desired illumination levels in building interiors located away from daylighting sources, which are characteristically located near exterior walls. This interest is driven by international concerns for the quality of the indoor environment as well as by international efforts to reduce building energy use.
The long term research goal of this multi-disciplinary research team is to promote the design and adoption of efficient and healthy lighting systems for a built environment, including both daylighting and artificial lighting systems, by producing: 1) a design methodology, 2) innovative material and design strategies for lighting fixtures and shading devices, and 3) user-friendly design tools.
To achieve the above long term goal, our first-year research goals will be to develop daylighting strategies by using three experiments: 1) daylight waveguide design; 2) color temperature compensation and artificial light supplementation; 3) integration with lighting control systems.
This research team is currently seeking funding.
Lighting Fixtures: Variable Color Temperature Via LED Full Color Fixtures
When experimenting with natural light in a room in conjunction with artificial light, the lighting design team was faced with a dilemma; the color of natural and artificial light doesn't match. Since the goal of using artificial light is to mimic natural light, the resident should be unaware of the use of artificial ambient light. The color (or color temperature) of incandescent, fluorescent, and tungsten light does not match that of daylight without the use of filters. Because of this, it becomes obvious to a resident when artificial light is added to supplement daylight.
This project proposes the use of sensors to detect the color temperature of ambient lighting conditions and then to reproduce the light using color mixing LED fixtures. An initial concept design of an inexpensive sensor array and a pulse width modulation LED driver circuit has been drafted.
This project is currently in the process of obtaining funding.
Lighting Fixtures: LED Lighting
LEDs offer a low power, high brightness alternative to incandescent lighting. Together with the house distributed DC power system, LED lights can create sufficient amounts of task oriented light anywhere in the house.
Currently, it is being decided which color temperature of light to use and which LED package to work into the design of fixtures. Precise voltage control and dimming via pulse width modulation (PWM) will be necessary at the fixture level; an affordable and compact solution is currently being sought.
Initial design features
The initial design for the led fixtures will be based on a can style fixture housing several components. The LED itself will be a high powered star chip with a columnating lens and diffusion film. The LED chip will be heat sinked using a specially designed lightweight aluminum heat sink. Also housed within the fixture will be a voltage regulator and a pulse width modulation controller for dimming.
Fixtures will be powered via the power over ethernet or another whole house dc power system to ensure highest efficiency. Mounting options are currently under review.
Lighting Fixtures: CeeLite LEC Lighting (Electroluminescent)
Ceelite’s LEC lights are a low power, versatile form of diffuse light. The lamps are entirely flat, produce no heat, and have no filament. They can be implemented with plastic films or rigid panels and can be up to 3’ x 6’ in size. This type of lighting opens up many new possibilities. Consider lighting surfaces such as countertops, floors, and walls by integrating Ceelite panels. More info can be found at CeeLite's website [1].
Lighting Control & Dimming
The lighting control system will be able to accept commands from other systems within the house, offering a unified system to control all forms of light within the house. The system will intelligently adapt for task oriented lighting in such a way to reduce energy consumption. Users program “scenes” into the control system which can then be activated through a variety of input devices throughout the home. Automated window shades may be part of the control system.
Lighting Efficiency: Surfaces
The goal of this project is to coat select surfaces within a room with reflective glass beads in order to reflect light in a more useful manner. This provides a means of selectively lighting a room while using whole room lights. Coatings will also be intended for aesthetic appeal.
Low Voltage Distributed DC Power
Power over ethernet is an established way of delivering low voltage DC power throughout offices. The advantage to using DC power is that AC power must first be transformed to DC low voltage for many devices and appliances throughout the home, wasting energy. DC Power on the other hand can be directly utilized by many appliances, electronics, and devices around the house, so no energy is wasted in the AC to DC conversion.
Distributed DC power in the Drexel Smart House is key to ensuring that other projects, such as led lighting, remain energy efficient.
Currently under investigation is how POE will integrate with the modular wall system and how interconnects will connect to a variety of electronics and devices. Initial designs are being drafted for a LM317T based voltage regulator cable that connects to the ubiquitous mini USB connector for powering and charging a variety of devices.
Solar Power
The Drexel Smart House seeks to have an economic means of reducing its energy consumption. To address growing energy costs, a portion of the energy used in the home will be generated on site with rooftop photovoltaic cells and solar water heating panels.
This combination of two technologies compliment one another; hot water and heating demands for the house will be addressed by the solar water heating system, and excess hot water will be used to generate DC electricity. During higher hot water demand, electricity will be used to heat the solar heated hot water utility.
Since one of the goals of the Smart House will be to have a majority of the devices, systems, and personal electronics and appliances run off of DC power, there should be a constant demand for DC power within the home. Power generated from the solar system will supplement the DC power distribution within the home, making most efficient use of the resource.
Solar Water Heating & Power Generation System
Solar water heating panels will also be placed along the roof and sides of the home. The system uses vacuum insulated panels (approx 3” thick) and insulated copper lines to circulate hot process water. The mode of heating is through sun radiation and will work regardless of the season. The water is circulated through a counterflow heat exchanger and can provide hot water to sinks and showers. When there is no demand for hot water, the solar water heating system can use a stirling engine to generate electricity.
Hydrogen Generation & Storage
Drexel Smart House is investigating the possibility to generate hydrogen on site for later conversion into electricity. The system will use solar cells and an electrolyzer to convert water into hydrogen for bulk storage. The hydrogen equipment consists of several tanks, a compressor, electrolyzer, and some electrical equipment which should all fit within a 64 square foot or smaller space.
Building Materials Innovation
Stronger, cheaper, & sustainable building materials from renewable resources. lumber stud replacement, drywall, plywood, roofing tiles, etc.
reinforced earth concrete?
Hybrid Solar Lighting
The Smart House will utilize natural daylight to supplement artificial light in the home. Daylight is brought to daylight fixtures using optical filters, ducts, and mirrors. The daylight fixtures are integrated with the lighting control system and can be placed anywhere in the home.
Home Monitoring System
For research purposes. distributed thermocouple network, air flow sensors, etc. Monitor the following:
temperature
stresses (stresses induced on structure)
air currents
humidity
light
motion (people)
power usage (throw an inductor on the power cord of a widget & calibrate)
Security
Outdoor CCTV cameras will be placed around the home; students will use their Dragon Card to access the front door. Biometric identification methods (facial recognition, etc.) are also under consideration. Keys will be replaced with RFID tags within the home.
Modular Living Environment
The Smart House technologies must maintain a certain level of upgradeability, since improvements will constantly be made to designs. Therefore, it is important that nothing is too “hardwired” into the home, and that the spaces under floors and inside walls are reasonably accessible. Remember, students will be living in this home, so if, for example, we want to change out the in wall insulation or add new wiring, it must be relatively easy to do. We are considering removable floor and wall panels and extra wide conduits from floor to floor and room to room to allow for new cables and wiring. Technology and instrumentation will be designed in “packages” wherever possible to facilitate removal for replacement or modifications.
Kitchens, bathrooms, power generators & systems, etc.
Flex tubing plumbing
Modular walls & paneled floors; paneled facade
Wireless Power
“Power zones” that are capable of charging small, hand held electronics with no wires or cables. The zone would be a designated area for such devices.
Sol-Gel Materials - aka "Aerogel"
The lightest solid material and the best solid phase insulator known to man may have many applications within the home. The goals of this project are to identify opportunities to use sol-gel materials and to develop processes to manufacture them at low cost.
Biomass Air Filtration
Biomass air filtration will use selective mosses and plants to provide natural air filtration, humidification, cooling, and oxygenation to air in the home. This system will be designed into the HVAC system and the biomass may grown along the side of the home in a possible green house addition.
