Security Talk Blog

Yesterday we examined exactly how fast your computer wants to communicate on the network.   Most desktop PC and Macs communicated at Fast Ethernet (100BASE-X)  until early 2009 when they started converting to Gigabit Ethernet (1000BASE-X).   The reason for this shift was primarily due to the high demands of moving video on the network.  Your security system and smart appliances only consume a small fraction of this communication bandwidth… but video is big and demanding.  A two hour HD movie can consume up to 9 GB of storage, and this video file will take hours to transfer on a Ethernet (10BASE-X) network.

In short, the conclusion is to make sure that your network switcher can simultaneously handle 10Base-x and 1000Base-x ethernet.  The day your son-in-law comes over and wants to transfer his weekend-videos to your network… you will be happy.

Wait one more minute before buying your new switcher/router.   How about wireless?

Basically, wireless is the solution to rewiring your house every time you want to add a new smart appliance or new features to your home monitoring solution.    You need to carefully add the wireless capacity to your switcher/router.   There are basically three varieties of wireless that you will come accross.   WiFi: 802.11b, WiFi: 802.11g, WiFi: 802.11n  (often referred to as wireless b, g, and n.     In a nutshell the higher the letter designation the faster the speed and the further the wireless signal reaches.  If you could simply choose, pick (n) for speed and distance.  However, my iPhone, iPad, and other devices still all use (g).   So you need to pick a wireless network that simultaneously handles (g) and (n).   Yes… simultaneously.   If you just go in to your local network store they will sell you a switcher/router that steps-down to the lowest rate…  (yikes!  stop!).   We want every device on the network to communicate at its highest rate!   This means simultaneous network speeds.

So lets wrap up by selecting a couple of switchers/routers that simultaneiously handle “fast” and “gigabit” ethernet and simultaneously handle Wifi (g) and (n).

• NETGEAR N900 Wireless Dual Band Gigabit Router
• Linksys Maximum Performance Dual-Band N900 Router (E4200 v2)

Your home security system can be self contained and simply monitor the status of your house and send appropriate alerts to your monitoring company.    For many home security needs these stand alone installations work perfect.  However, when you start asking questions about sending alerts to your office, or checking your monitoring system on your iPad, or expanding your home system to monitor all appliances… then you need to have a home network.   You may request that your home security expert team install and maintain your network… or with a few hours of research you can manage your own home network.

Before you go out and buy your network products you should take just a few minutes to understand the basics of home networking.   So over the next few blogs I will attempt to cut to the truth with as little unneccessary dialog as possible.

A home network is simply a method of allowing computers, printers, appliances, media devices, and security sytems to communicate with one another.   The backbone of the network is the wires, ( or wirless signal), routers, switcher, and internet connection that allow your devices to all talk to each other.    The first consideration is the wire or wireless signal that transmits the communication between devices.  (In this blog we will only cover wired networks and then in the next installation we will cover wireless.)    When you purchase your ethernet cables you want to ask for Cat 5E cable with standard RJ45 connectors.     Your ethernet cables need to run from your computers and devices to a central router/switcher.

Each of your network connected devices talk to one another through a switcher.   Your entire network can share a internet connection through the use of a router.   The router connects your network (devices and switch) to external networks.   Fortunately you can purchase combination router/switchers that take care of both tasks.   Example:   Cisco-Linksys EtherFast Cable/DSL Router with 4-Port 10/100 Switch.     One last thing before you run out and buy your cables and router/switcher… “how fast do you want your network to run?”

If you just bought a new BMW 740 series vehicle you probably are thinking “let’s get this car on a good freeway where I can open it up.”   A new computer is no different… if it can communicate at a blazing rate and your network is made for a horse and buggy… then you have a problem.   Network devices are built to communicate at a given speed:

• Ethernet (10BASE-X)     1.25 MB/s
• Fast Ethernet (100BASE-X)   12.5 MB/s
• Gigabit Ethernet (1000BASE-X)     125 MB/s
• 100 Gigabit Ethernet (100GBASE-X)  12.5 GB/s

A megabyte per second (MB/s) is a unit of data transfer rate equal to: 1,000,000 bytes per second.
A gigabyte per second (GB/s) is a unit of data transfer rate equal to:  1,000,000,000 bytes per second.

Lets end this session today with you looking up how fast your computer is designed to communicate.    For a PC here is how:  open up your device manager and look at your “network adapter” settings.    This will tell you which one of the above speeds your computer wants to use for communication.

Over the last few weeks we have investigated the concepts and major companies behind the “home automation” movement. It is difficult to read through even one document in this emerging market without a reference to the Smart Grid and Smart Appliances. There appears to be substantial misunderstanding of these two terms and considering the momentum behind this movement it is important to clarify the terms.

Extracted from a whitepager delivered by Energy.gov: “Smart grid” generally refers to a class of technology people are using to bring utility electricity delivery systems into the 21st century, using computer-based remote control and automation. These systems are made possible by two-way communication technology and computer processing that has been used for decades in other industries. They are beginning to be used on electricity networks, from the power plants and wind farms all the way to the consumers of electricity in homes and businesses. They offer many benefits to utilities and consumers — mostly seen in big improvements in energy efficiency on the electricity grid and in the energy users’ homes and offices.

According to AHAM: Smart Appliances refers to a modernization of the electricity usage system of a home appliance so that it monitors, protects and automatically adjusts its operation to the needs of its owner.

The following six key features that are associated with Smart Appliances:

1. Dynamic electricity pricing information is delivered to the user, providing the ability to adjust demand of electrical energy use.

2. Automatically ―shed or reduce usage based on the consumer‘s previously established guidelines or manual overrides.

3. Integrity of its operation is maintained while automatically adjusting its operation to respond to emergency power situations and help prevent brown or blackouts.

4. The consumer can override all previously programmed selections or instructions from the Smart Grid, while insuring the appliance‘s safety functions remain active.

5. When connected through a Home Area Network and/or controlled via a Home Energy Management system, Smart Appliances allow for a ―total home energy usage‖ approach. This enables the consumer to develop their own Energy Usage Profile and use the data according to how it best benefits them.

6. It can leverage features to use renewable energy by shifting power usage to an optimal time for renewable energy generation, i.e., when the wind is blowing or sun is shining.

Examples of Smart Appliances are:

Freezers, Dishwashers, Cloths Dryers, Alarm Systems, Refrigerators, Range Tops, Ovens, Microwaves…

Smart Grid and Smart Appliances are dramatically shifting the way people everywhere consume energy. Although these appliances may come with a higher price tag in the beginning, the increased saving in utilities combined with government rebates is prompting more and more consumers to replace their old appliances.

ZigBee is a set of standards that help define how you can integrate all the devices of your home or office into a single intelligent system. ZigBee is the only standards-based wireless technology designed to address the unique needs of low-cost, low-power wireless sensor and control networks in just about any market. Zigbee provides hundreds of manufactures a common standard to conform to and provides certification services for these standards.

What this means to the consumer is the integration of all the home systems to a common standard and huge savings resulting from reduced duplication of equipment, energy savings, and hundreds of new features that provide a safer and healthier home.

Zigbee offers standards across of the following categories:

• Smart Energy Products
• Home Automation Products
• Remote Control Products
• Telecom Services Products
• Gateway Products

As you start to investigate how you can save money and enhance the security in your home, you should study the Zigbee website and then ask your product sales people to explain how ZigBee standards fit into the master home automation plan. Here are just a few examples of ZigBee enabled home automation devices: Door Sensors, Occupancy Sensors, Smart Locks, Energy Monitors, Lighting Controllers, Home theater systems, heating control systems… and the list goes on and on.

This week we continue our research into the major players in the home automation world. CABA ( Continental Automated Buildings Association) is an international not-for-profit industry association dedicated to the advancement of intelligent home and intelligent building technologies. The organization is supported by an international membership of nearly 400 companies involved in the design, manufacture, installation and retailing of products relating to home automation and building automation. Public organizations, including utilities and government are also members.

CABA is dedicated to advancing integration of automation for residential and commercial buildings, helping members create increased market opportunities, supporting multi-disciplinary partnerships, while serving as a preferred global source of information, knowledge and networking for key stakeholders.

Over its 23-year history, CABA has carved out a niche for itself in the most unlikely of areas: home automation. This field deals broadly with the creation of “smart” or “connected” technologies in the home and it is a sector with which the common consumer is largely unaware. Yet, according to CABA officials, this technology is the way of the future.

CABA does not advocate a particular methodology or product, but focuses on promoting the best of the new smart technologies. In a recent talk, Ron Zimmer, the president and CEO of CABA explained, “Home automation encompasses everything from safety and security technology, to climate control, to lighting, to energy management, and even to entertainment and multi-room AV systems,” he said. CABA remains undaunted, though it has ta ken on such a diverse number of platforms. The organization has taken a ‘full court press’ approach, aggressively researching each platform with marked skill and expertise.

On the CABA website you will find dozens of research papers on the entire range of home automation. My favorite paper on the site is “iHomes and Buildings.” Start with this well-written overview document and then dive into the website.

Over the last few weeks we have starting covering “Home Automation” and how your fire and security needs integrate with the larger home network. For many of our reader the question occurs; “Why do I want to integrate my fire and security solutions with my home network?” The simple answer is; “In the long run it simplifies maintenance and provides additional levels of security.”

If we look at the evolution of the modern house we trace the development of indoor plumbing, electrical systems, heating/cooling systems, watering systems, telephone systems, TV/entertainment systems, computer networks, wireless networks, home security systems, and fire alarms. As these systems evolve the idea of each system being isolated starts to add complexity and costs to the maintenance of your home. At the primary level you probably ask; “Why can’t I control everything from a central computer (or ipad)?” If you could control all of these systems from your computer you could simply stop wasting resources and stop duplicating communication networks. “Why install more wires for your alarm system… why install more wires for your home entertainment system?” No matter how you look at it …. at some point you will want to stop duplicating systems, and every time you eliminate a duplicate system you start to save money.

Perhaps even more important than saving money and reducing complexity is adding new levels of security and safety for your family. It just takes one dead smoke detector to start compromising the safety of your home. An integrated system would simply report that you have a failing smoke alarm… and you fix it. The security of your doors, windows, garage and exterior building is paramount to the security of your family. Even when I am at work, I want to know that my house is safe for my family. If there is an intrusion in my home… I want to know immediately… no matter where I am. These are the services that an integrated system can deliver to you… as your security systems all report to you over the Internet… even when you are in London for a business meeting.

In last weeks blog we started to investigate the 4 top “Home Automation” organizations and how they each contribute to this exciting new field.  One of the first companies you should study is CEDIA (Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association).   CEDIA differentiates itself in the market by a strong focus on education and conferences.   On the CEDIA website you can find hundreds of links to products, educational videos, white papers, emerging standards, and upcoming conferences.   One page on the CEDIA site really stands out as a source for links:   http://www.cedia.net/press_media/inthenews-ip.php.    If you have any intention of participating in the “Home Automation” market, then this is the page to bookmark.

CEDIA provides top-ranked educational conferences, industry professional training, and certification focused on the installation and integration of residential electronic systems that consumers use to enhance their lifestyles. One of CEDIA’s key missions and driving forces is public policy representation. CEDIA’s public policy efforts are designed to support CEDIA members and ensure that their abilities to own and operate their businesses are not impeded.

If you are really serious about this emerging field then you should put aside a few days, (September 5 – 8, 2012),  and attend the CEDIA expo in Indianapolis.   CEDIA EXPO is the show to attend if you are working with technology in the home. Re-energize your revenue at this year’s CEDIA EXPO 2012 where every overlapping technology within the integrated home connects.

Home Automation is a huge field and our experts can tell exactly how to match, connect, and integrate your fire and security requirements with your Home Automation master plan.

The field of Home Automation is exploding with new products, services, and standards.   There is so much excitement in this field that you really should research the companies listed below and catch the wave of this very important movement.   Please note: there are dozens of organizations and companies not list below… this is just a selection of four great examples.

CEDIA

The Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association (CEDIA) is a global trade association of companies involved in the electronic systems industry. Founded in 1989, it has 3,500 members who specialize in home automation, networking, communication, security, lighting control, HVAC and entertainment systems.[1] The organization influences public policy, provides referrals, promotes better business practices, educates members and provides other benefits.

Continental Automated Buildings Association

The Continental Automated Buildings Association (CABA) is a not-for-profit industry association dedicated to the advancement of intelligent home and intelligent building technologies in North America. The organization is supported by an international membership of nearly 400 companies involved in the design, manufacture, installation and retailing of products relating to home automation and building automation. Public organizations, including utilities and government are also members.

Digital Living Network Alliance

The Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) is a non-profit collaborative trade organization established by Sony in June 2003, that is responsible for defining Interoperability Guidelines to enable sharing of digital media between consumer devices such as computers, printers, cameras, cell phones, and other multimedia devices. These guidelines are built upon existing public standards, but the guidelines themselves are private (available for a fee). These guidelines specify a set of restricted ways of using the standards in order to achieve interoperability.

ZigBee

ZigBee is a specification for a suite of high level communication protocols using small, low-power digital radios based on an IEEE 802 standard for personal area networks. Applications include wireless light switches, electrical meters with in-home-displays, and other consumer and industrial equipment that requires short-range wireless transfer of data at relatively low rates. The technology defined by the ZigBee specification is intended to be simpler and less expensive than other WPANs, such as Bluetooth. ZigBee is targeted at radio-frequency (RF) applications that require a low data rate, long battery life, and secure networking. ZigBee has a defined rate of 250 kbps best suited for periodic or intermittent data or a single signal transmission from a sensor or input device.

In the scope of today’s blog it is impossible to cover the scope of the standards and products that these organizations embrace.   Over the next few blogs we will examine the home automation standards and products.

Last week we covered the basic principles of “Intelligent Buildings”, and this week we will extend the concepts in to the field of “Home Automation.” Although the field of “home automation” is extremely diversified, it does not mean that home owners cannot take individual elements from the field that offer cost savings and life savings benefits. Home owners should start asking questions about, “how does this product integrate into the master home automation plan?”

Home automation is the residential extension of “building automation”. It is automation of the home, housework or household activity. Home automation may include centralized control of lighting, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), appliances, and other systems, to provide improved convenience, comfort, energy efficiency and security. Home automation for the elderly and disabled can provide increased quality of life for persons who might otherwise require caregivers or institutional care.

A master home automation plan reaches out and embraces your HVAC, lighting, computers, smart phones, audio / video systems, security, medical alerts, intercoms, domestic robots, yard watering, pet feeding, your new electric car and other systems in your house, garage and yard. (Did I forget the coffee maker?) Although this vision was originally proposed more than 50 years ago, it is only recently that the technology and cost have matured to the extent that this vision is now a reality.

This is a great list to start with. Next blog we will continue by look at the organizations and standards that enable an automated home.