The automation of homes is an obvious development in the near future to make domestic energy consumption more efficient. However, very few people currently have smart thermostats, lighting, virtual assistants, or appliances with these functionalities. A low-cost transition for consumers is necessary, one that is easy to use and as effective as possible to create a habit of using new technologies to facilitate energy savings. Some existing and commercialized technologies are not being fully exploited in design and have the potential to be much more efficient with a shift in paradigm.
This project explores the vast possibilities of monitoring, scheduling, and energy saving with the most basic and affordable home automation device on the market: smart plugs. In doing so, we discover the combinations of technologies and experiences that can be accessed with nothing more than a mid-range smartphone and smart plugs.
Spark Manager is a digital product designed to fully exploit the capabilities of smart plugs. The user can map their home (even without having “lidar” on their smartphone) through the camera using an artificial intelligence like NVIDIA Instant Nerf. Once the house plan is created and the smart plugs are connected, they combine their locators with the smartphone’s to provide precise location tracking.
Spark Manager leverages advanced home automation techniques using only smart plugs, such as location-based scheduling. The user can easily access the plugs through the floor plan of their home.
The user subscribed to Spark Manager saves money, as well as daily concerns and micro-tasks. Additionally, the Spark Manager package provides optimized plugs for seamless communication with the application.
