Skip to main content

A single sensor could hold the key to the future of the smart home

Synthetic Sensors: Towards General-Purpose Sensing
In the not so distant future, your smart home may not depend on a number of disparate smart appliances; instead, it could just utilize a single device that gives all your appliances a brain. That, at least, is the vision of Carnegie Mellon researchers in the Future Interfaces Group, who have developed a “synthetic sensor-based device that can monitor multiple types of phenomena in a room, including sounds, vibration, light, heat, electromagnetic noise, and temperature,” as reported by The Spoon. This little gadget boasts a total of nine sensors, and is capable of determining if a faucet’s been left on, if a microwave door is open, or the number of paper towels you’ve used.

“The idea is you can plug this in and immediately turn a room into a smart environment,” Gierad Laput, a Ph.D. student in CMU’s Human-Computer Interaction Institute (HCII), told The Spoon. “You don’t have to go out and buy expensive smart appliances, which probably can’t talk to each other anyway, or attach sensors to everything you want to monitor, which can be both hard to maintain and ugly. You just plug it into an outlet.”

The secret behind the smart sensor comes in the form of machine learning algorithms, capable of combining data feeds to distinguish various appliances and their uses. So based purely on an appliance’s sounds and vibration patterns, these sensors can tell whether they’re hearing a blender, a coffee grinder, or a mixer.

But the hope is that the sensors could soon do even more than that. The team is increasing the number of data feeds compatible with the sensors. That means that soon, they could also determine when a human leaves an environment, or when the AC or heater kicks on.

“Smart appliances are expensive and rarely talk to one another,” the researchers noted. “We’ve explored an alternate, general purpose sensing approach where a single, highly capable sensor board can indirectly monitor an entire room.”

And that’s a future we can look forward to.

Editors' Recommendations

Lulu Chang
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…
Echo Show 8 vs. Nest Hub: Does Amazon or Google offer the best smart display?
Google Nest Hub 2nd Gen on table.

Anyone in the market for a reasonably priced smart display has probably stumbled across the Echo Show 8 and Nest Hub. Both clock in at under $150 (often less when on sale) yet provide homes with many of the same features found on premium alternatives like the Nest Hub Max and Echo Show 10.

But is the Echo Show 8 better than the Nest Hub? And what exactly is the difference between these two smart displays? Here's a comprehensive look at both to help you decide which one to bring into your smart home.
Pricing and design

Read more
Nest Hub Max vs. Echo Show 10: which is the better smart display?
The Nest Hub Max on a table.

The world of smart displays is dominated by two companies -- Amazon and Google. Amazon is responsible for the Echo Show 10, while Google is behind the Nest Hub Max. Both offer large screens, access to a massive roster of apps, and the ability to connect (and control) the rest of your smart home. There are a lot of similarities between the two popular displays, but there are a few key differences you should be aware of before adding one to your home.

Here's a closer look at the Echo Show 10 and Nest Hub Max to help you decide which is best.
Pricing and design

Read more
Nest Hub Max vs. Skylight Cal Max: Which is best for your home?
The Cal Max showing a picture while placed near a shelf.

The Nest Hub Max is one of the most premium smart displays available. Offering a vibrant screen, support for tons of apps, and the ability to sync with Google Home, it's a well-rounded and versatile smart display. The recently revealed Skylight Cal Max is a radically different sort of device -- but it's still contending for the same spot in your kitchen. Instead of offering tons of apps and services, it's a streamlined smart calendar that wants to simplify your life.

Trying to decide between these two premium displays? Here's a look at the Nest Hub Max and Skylight Cal Max to help you figure out which is best for your smart home.
Pricing and design

Read more