Home automation (HA) is something that just hasn't caught on.
I first got into HA about 20 years ago. At that time, HA meant the X-10 system and still does. Various schemes came along to replace X-10, but it still lives on. The advantage of X-10 is that is uses your household wiring to transmit device control signals - no additional wiring is needed. All you need is one or more of the various transmitters (PC controller, hand-held remote, wall switches, etc.) to transmit the desired signals, and receivers to receive them. Receivers can turn on lights, dim them, turn on appliances, draw drapes, turn on watering systems, and a host of other applications. X-10 is sometimes also called PLC (Power Line Controller).
At the height of my X-10 use, back in Raleigh, I had many indoor and outdoor lights controlled through my PC. At dusk, the outdoor floodlights would automatically come on, along with some indoor lights. I controlled my thermostats; I controlled the hot water heater (turned off to minimize power use during peak periods); it made my coffee in the morning; I had motion detectors that would turn on lights automatically when I entered the garage; I even had an X-10 security system.
But the key to it all was the X-10 interface to my PC. The first such interface was called the CP-290. The primary advantage of the CP-290 was that you could download a program (a series of commands to turn on and off devices) into the unit which would them be able to function independently from the PC. You could turn off the PC when you went away, and the faithful CP-290 would run your house for you.
At some point in time, my CP-290 started to get a bit cranky and I decided to upgrade to a newer, (hopefully) better unit. The CM-11A was the answer. But soon after I got it, I found a big problem. The CM-11A overheated badly. There was much discussion on Internet chat groups as to why and how it could be fixed. It was astounding that the manufacturer never to my knowledge ever fixed it. And, it is being sold even today, but I have to assume its been fixed. But another disadvantage of the CM-11A was that it would run independent of the PC, but the amount of "programming" that you could download into it was insufficient for my needs. I thus went back to my faithful CP-290 and managed to fix its problems. When I moved here to the beach I did install it, but my X-10 usage here was minimal.
The CP-290 is still performing well, but after 20 years of life I thought it would be a good time to explore new options. I found another manufacturer who offered a downloadable controller, called the PowerLinc. The PowerLinc seems to run very well and has extensive download capabilities. So today the CP-290 was unplugged, perhaps for the last time. Call my crazy, but I do have a nostalgic feeling about these things, especially if I have written programs for them. I still have program listings for programs I wrote for the TRS-80 computer in the late 70's.
But, getting back to home automation, I am still surprised that it just isn't very popular. When I moved here and was considering some kind of semi-retired employment, I thought doing HA installations and working with builders to do HA implementations in new homes would be a good business. But although I continue to offer that service, there has been no demand. I guess I will continue to be a techie loner for the rest of my life!
(Bob Seidel is a local computer consultant in the Southport / Oak Island area. You can visit his website at www.bobseidel.com or e-mail him at bsc@bobseidel.com).