• Investment World
• eWorld
• Brand Line
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest
• The New Manager

Stocks

• Quotes
• SE Diary
• Scoreboard
• Open-End Mutual Fund

Cross Currency

• Rates
  
  

Shipping

• Ports
  
  

Archives

• Yesterday
• Datewise
• Resources

Group Sites

• The Hindu
• Business Line
• Sportstar
• Frontline
• The Hindu eBooks
• The Hindu Images

M. Somasekhar

Hong Kong , May 17

Not too far in the future, your `home sweet home', could well also be converted into a `Smart Home', if you so desire and can afford it. Technology is already in place, and all it requires is service providers, availability of broadband and defining utility applications that one needs.

How would this Smart Home', billed as the next big communications experience be? Just imagine a cocktail of gadgets such as the common TV, camera, PC, Internet, PDA and mobile phone linked through a network acting in `symphony' or independently, both at home and as you are on the move. The result of this combination would be realisation of services that would make your life both secure and comfortable.

You would have entertainment through the Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) and gaming; make the home secure through surveillance that the gadgets can perform with the help of a security firm; ensure health of the people at home, by getting hooked onto remote healthcare services and finally, when on the move, communicate with functional utilities such as refrigerators, lighting systems, and heaters to make things easy on arrival back home.

Giving insights, Seimens Communications, one of the pioneers in developing the `Smart Home', announced new steps at the ongoing Broadband World Forum Asia-2006, said the growth of IPTV and the increasing capacities of broadband, will drive the early realisation of this concept, first unveiled in March 2005.

Mr Christian Unterberger, President of Siemens Communications (Fixed Networks), told journalists from Asia that "We have the technology and gadgets ready to make the smart home real. What is required is a sound, broadband network, service providers and a revenue model to reach it at a cost-effective price." Countries such as Belgium, Holland, Thailand and China have already made progress in their efforts towards building Smart Homes of the future with the launch of the IPTV in the last one year

Healthcare feature

A typical healthcare feature of Smart Homes could be like this. Monitoring of health status through routine tests such as reading BP and sugar, and getting advise from a physician, will be remotely done.

Physicians, clinics, hospitals will be linked by the health service provider to bring the facilities to the doorstep of the patient. All this can be achieved through video, short messaging system (SMS), email or any other relevant gadget.

How about India? Mr Unterberger said, Siemens has offered its IPTV version called Surpass Home Entertainment, which requires a set top box, to some Indian customers on a trial basis and was hopeful of a good response. "As for Smart Homes we have given demonstrations, but it does not seem to be of highest priority now in the country."

More Stories on : Science & Technology | Convergence

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
FMC to address urad futures contract issues

Copyright © 2006, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line