Originally Posted by
Shaggy Hiker
I don't want to be discouraging, but I have two objections:
1) I've been looking at home automation for nearly a decade, and I STILL can't figure out a single thing that I feel is worth doing. Frankly, the home security system I put in would do most of the things you are talking about, but for some significant cash (I probably have over $1000 in the system, with contact switches on 6-10 windows and doors, four smoke detectors, a couple flood sensors, and a glass break detector. I could add a component so that it would call me via cell phone for whatever reason, and it can be connected to an X-10 system that can turn on lights remotely via signals sent through the power lines (I may have one hooked up, I can't remember). That's all wireless, too, and the batteries have lasted for ten years thus far in all sensors other than the smoke detectors (which expire roughly yearly, though the system tells me when they do), the glass break sensor (which lasts about 3-4 years), and the motion detector (which lasted about 9 years). Still, beyond that system, I can't think of what I would care to automate. There are various systems out there that will automatically configure lights and turn them on/off, set to various levels, and so forth, but....why would I want to? There are systems that will open and close blinds, but those are expensive on several levels, since you need servos to make them work, which requires more juice, and once again, why would I want to?
That's the problem with home automation: It's fun to set up, but pretty quickly you start wondering whether or not you gained anything other than the experience of building the things. Building the stuff is pretty cool, and the skills are useful, so that's all pretty good, but you have to keep in mind that there are already multiple systems on the market that do most home automation tasks, so you'll be hard pressed to build a mousetrap sufficiently better than what is already available in this area.
On the other hand, just last night I thought up a device that could be pretty valuable for fish hatcheries that would make use of techniques like what you are doing, and I KNOW that device doesn't exist right now, so the real goal of such a thing is to learn the skills. Once you have that, if you want to profit from those skills, it's a bit harder to find a niche that somebody hasn't already moved into in a commercial way, but those niches do exist. I'm skeptical that they exist in home automation, but there might still be unfilled spaces in that realm....I just can't think of any that I would bother with.
EDIT: There actually are two objections in there, I just ran them together so much that it may not be clear. The two are these:
1) What is worth doing.
2) There are already several big companies in that market, so you may not be covering new ground.
