Pictures of the Future – Home Automation

Innovations such as cleaning robots, voice control, and household appliances with Internet access will transform domestic life. Here's a look at what it might be like.

In the kitchen, Mark uses voice input to access his electronic cookbook and calls up the Chinese recipe that his girlfriend says she loves so much. He whistles while he works as he tosses some trash into the waste center—which neatly sorts the disposed items into different types of organic and inorganic waste and then completes a self-cleaning cycle. Mark mixes the ingrediants, then relies on the automatic systems in his wok and stove to cook everything to perfection while he heads for the bathroom to freshen up. On the way, he tosses his clothes into the washing machine, which determines the ideal cycle from the electronic tags on the clothes. After bathing and dressing, Mark looks and feels very sharp. He heads over to the living room to set the table (he still considers the new set-the-table robots to be too expensive). That job done, he uses voice commands to have the home system create the scent of roses, the gentle sound of breaking waves and romantic lighting. There's just enough time to survey the scene with satisfaction when the doorbell rings.

The various elements of this scenario aren't as futuristic as they might sound. In fact, they belong to the concepts currently being considered by researchers involved in Home of the Future analysis. Similar scenarios have been developed in the Pictures of the Future studies performed in recent months by BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH (household appliances) with the support of Siemens Corporate Technology (for more information, see Pictures of the Future, Fall 2001 and Spring 2002). "Our study focuses on the 2007 to 2012 period, initially for the European and North American regions," says Dr. Joachim Damrath, head of Corporate Technology for Innovative Products at BSH.

Future Trends. To explore new business opportunities and the technologies these will require, experts began by identifying more than 140 future trends that are significant for innovations in the household. These range from the growing numbers of single households, working women and teleworkers, to an aging population and the increasing value people place on individuality, mobility, convenience, safety and wellness. Of course, they also include the technological trends toward increasing automation and networking.

"One conclusion of the study is that any device, solution or service that saves time, improves convenience and is easy to use represents a promising development," explains Damrath. BSH takes the increase in networking into account through ideas such as Smart@Home. Here, users employ their cell phones while away from home to check status and error messages in household appliances such as kitchen ranges and washing machines, and then contact customer service via the Internet, or even control these devices remotely. Later this year, BSH will roll out the first Internet-capable and networked products for such an intelligent home.

Another idea from the engineers' drawing board is the home delivery box with different compartments for a refrigerator, freezer and dry cleaning, each of which can be accessed only by the appropriate delivery service. "This is not only going to be a big help for people who are on the road a lot, it's also an interesting combination of devices, services and logistics that encompass such functions as order processing and access authorization," says Damrath. Such delivery boxes have already been installed at some initial trial sites—for example, in the Futurelife house located in Switzerland, which was equipped by Siemens, among others.

Another trend that highlights the huge gap between the household of tomorrow and that of yesterday is the willingness to access outside information. "Since grandmother's heyday, there has been a marked decline in homemaking skills," Damrath explains. "Today's homemaker would just as soon call on expert knowledge when a problem requires it." This is an opportunity for providing Internet services, which might range from exotic recipes to instructions for cleaning Persian rugs. Damrath can even imagine cleaning robots that report spots on the carpet to their master or mistress—and then communicate spot removal instructions via the Internet.

At Home with Robots. Small vacuufloor robots for carpets are currently entering the market. But they are battery-operated and thus lack power—a deficiency they try to offset by combining brushing and suction actions. "Depending on their success, we might witness the introduction of cleaning robots for tile and parquet floors, and possibly even for windows, during the next few years," Damrath ventures. "Humanoid robots capable of climbing stairs, making beds and clearing tables will gradually follow—perhaps later in Europe than in Japan, where acceptance is greater. In Japan, enthusiasm for robots stops short only at child care."

The fact that technological limitations aren't the main barrier to the introduction of new solutions is demonstrated by many business ideas developed in Siemens' Pictures of the Future scenarios for the foods & beverages, cleaning & maintenance and health & wellness process chains. What's more, it's entirely possible to build a refrigerator or freezer that automatically inventories its contents and issues replacement orders via the Internet. Such devices are enthusiastically reported on in the media. Here, problems relate more to logistics. The food industry would have to tag its products appropriately, for instance with polymer tags (see article Transforming Production with Tiny Transponders). But, as Damrath points out, "That still doesn't solve the question of what you would do with homemade foods such as jams or with partially empty containers."

Synergies with Siemens. In all these developments, BSH enjoys an important advantage through its close ties with Bosch and Siemens. The companies work together in areas such as new materials for scratch-resistant and easily cleanable surfaces, sensors, voice recognition, security technologies, user interfaces, robotics, fuel cells, automation and information and communications technologies. "There are numerous synergies," Damrath says. "Even our Pictures of the Future are an example of synergy with Siemens—in fact, that's where the whole systematic approach was developed.".

Ulrich Eberl