Smarter Homes

Over the past 100 years, the home has been a battleground for ideas of future living. Fueled by the electrification of cities, the move from the country to cities, post-war recovery and the development of the internet, the way we live at home (alone or with others) has changed beyond recognition. Science fiction writing, the entertainment industry, art, and modern interior design and architecture movements have also contributed to defining our aspirations around a future and now more present and possible ‘smart’ home. From the decade-old smart fridge that tells you if you have run out of milk to smart speakers that let you shop hands-free, some visions of the ‘smart’ home are yet to excite us while others are becoming a reality and will shape how we will live at home very soon. This book breaks down the historical, societal and political context for the changes in focus of that ‘smartness’ from affordability, efficiency, convenience to recently experimentation. These key points in time include: The development and marketing of electrical appliances in early 20th century War-time design the impact of military ergonomics Modernist interior design and building practices of the 1920s The space race and new materials of the post-war era Compact urban living in the 1960s & 70s Connected home entertainment in the 1980s-90s Phones and mobility in the 90s Smart energy & utilities in the early 2000s The internet-connected fridge in 2000 Remote care in a global world economy The sharing economy and new ways to shop at home Invisible ‘smart’ design in the home The second half of the book breaks down what current developments tell us about what our homes will look like in the next 10 years through the lens of spaces, services, appliances and behaviours in our homes. What You'll Learn Understand the historical context for current ‘smart home’ products Understand the social context of home product development Understand what in home technologies are being developed Understand what products are currently available Understand what behaviours are being constantly leveraged Understand how this may affect longer term market trends for consumer products Many new and innovative products are being developed in the consumer and industrial spaces with a copy-paste mindset based on following larger businesses such as Amazon, Google and Apple. Many opportunities in the homespace however will come from understanding the history and multiple players that have contributed to the development of the home in general. For everyone working in product design and development, in R&D or in trends research as well as for everyone interested in the IoT for the home, this book will be a valuable resource and an enjoyable read. This book will give product business owners ideas about what has been done before and and avenues for future development.