Home automation is much more than a one-trick pony. When you build on a strong foundation, such as an advanced operating system that powers your whole home, the possibilities are endless.
Smart Lighting Ideas
One touch of a button that turns all lighting for a given room on/off; not just one light.
Double-tap the same button to turn everything (lighting, electronics, devices, etc.) in the room off.
Lights flash in your garage when someone rings the doorbell.
When then garage door opens after dark, the lights automatically turn on, leading up to your door.
Motion sensors in key areas can signal the automation system to switch off lights when a room has been vacant for a period of time.
Landscape lighting can turn on automatically at sunset and off again at sunrise.
A “Bedtime” scene can set bedside lamps at a level just low enough for comfortable reading.
With the touch of an “All Off” button, all of the lights in your entire home turn off.
Motion sensing – At night, when motion is sensed, ramp lights to 15% (just enough light to see, not to be blinded).
If the natural light in the room is less than 50%, lights adjust to 50%. If natural light is less than 40%, lights adjust to 60%, and so on. This helps for when the shades are drawn, or on a cloudy day in the middle of summer.
Landscape lighting – have the lights come on brighter at sunset but dim to 20% at 11pm to conserve energy.
Smart Music Ideas
Stream music to every room in your home, with a dedicated keypad placed in each room.
Push all of your stored music throughout the home via distributed audio zones accessed through your smart phone, keypads, and touch screens.
Double tap the volume button to turn off an audio zone.
Install a touch screen behind a waterproof wall mount in your shower to control music streaming in the shower.
Use your grand piano as an audio source, which can be played through your entire home’s in-ceiling speakers.
Create a “Music” scene, which sets the lights at 30% and volume at your favorite level – perfect for late-night focus while working on a project.
Entertaining Automation Ideas
A “Party” scene – create instant ambiance with the press of a button with lighting that illuminates key decorative elements and a customized playlist that starts up automatically.
Home Cinema Automation Ideas
Remote finder – triple tap a light switch and your remote will immediately start beeping.
When you press play, dim the lights gradually over 7 seconds.
When you press pause, bring the lights up by 30%.
With the press of a button, a 4K Ultra High Definition TV ascends on a motorized lift from a cabinet, motorized speakers in the ceiling tilt downward, a surround-sound system activates, the shades close and the lights dim.
Have every TV in your home automatically turn on to your favorite channel when you come home from work after opening the garage door.
Set the volume of a child’s TV to a preset level.
A “Good Night” scene, which provides a push notification on your kids’ iPad to turn off their TVs. The lights in each bedroom flash as a warning, and 10 minutes later the TVs switch off automatically and the remote controls and keypads in the kids’ rooms get disabled for the night.
Smart Security Ideas
Automate your bedroom touch screen to see who’s at the door when the bell rings.
Watching TV when someone rings the doorbell? Have an image from the surveillance camera appear on any TV that happens to be on, pausing the TV show or movie for 15 seconds.
Built-in alerts which will notify you if the front door is left open for longer than five minutes or if the front gate is ajar for longer than ten.
Access security video feed remotely from your smart phone, from anywhere in the world.
Receive a text when your security cameras detect motion.
Program the lights (including in the master shower) to flash three times when an exterior door opens.
If there’s a security breach, program every light in the house to illuminate to 100%. Simultaneously, the front door automatically locks, the motorized shades open and every TV displays views from all surveillance cameras.
“Mockupancy” scenes – lighting that is automated to make the house appear occupied, when you’re away on a trip.
Are you away, but want to give a guest access to your home? Create temporary access codes for your guests, which they can punch into your home’s smart locks, notifying you of their arrival.
Create personalized entry codes for individual family members.
Set a timer that closes the garage door automatically if it is left open for longer than 10 minutes. A motion sensor can be used to keep the door open when you’re working in the garage.
Driveway motion sensor – when motion is sensed, cameras go to home position and start recording, outside lights ramp up, and text message alerts are sent to smart devices.
When the back door to the garage opens, turn on the inside garage lights if natural lighting is below 50%.
When the garage door is closed and the motion sensor to the garage zone doesn’t detect motion, dim lights to zero over 10 seconds and lock the back door.
Everyday Alerts and Noticfications
Receive a text alert when a garage door is left open.
Receive an automatic text alert for a problematic event, such as a pipe leak in the basement.
Get a text message or push notification when the kids get home from school.
Receive a notification when motion has been detected in a specific room (such as your home office or the wine cellar).
Automation Ideas for Daily Life
A keypad on your wall by your entry that starts music streaming or your favorite TV station in the kitchen when you arrive, all with one touch of a button.
Heated towel racks that kick in at a set time for those early morning showers.
Climate Control Ideas
Program shades and drapes to open and close automatically based on the position of the sun and home occupancy.
“Wakeup” scene that opens the drapes, gradually raises lighting over the course of five minutes, and sets the temperature to your preferred level.
Automatically turn down heat when you leave for work in the morning.
Energy Friendly Ideas
Measure your entire home’s energy consumption, circuit by circuit, automatically with your home automation system.
Set sprinklers and lawn systems to respond automatically to weather conditions (so you’re not watering the lawn on rainy days).
