Utility
The utility concept at home is related to the comfort or well being definition. What someone says to be an utility at home means somehow a value added for his own comfort. An utility can be something that simplifies a task, speeds it up or even helps to get a better “environment” at home.
We can be just talking of a simple remote control, time programmer, appliance module, presence detector or something else.
The important is that any user could find of some utility dedicated equipment to special applications at home, to personalize his own environment at home.
Since the well being at home is something that is in continuos evolution, anything that could be installed, must be set up to sustain time evolution, integrating or being compatible to future modules or changed without costs. Taking this under consideration, we have to assume the power line carrier as one of the best cabling system to accept any changes at any time. Any other cabling system carrier implies a technical and economical reflection about it’s need and it’s utility, which conclusions never meet end user interests.
More than an alternative to the power line carrier, there is the radio frequency communication carrier. It uses low power emitters and has the advantage (over the infrared signals) to cross the walls, allowing, for example to control any device from any room of the house.
Any equipment to be installed at end users houses must be considered by them necessary and of some utility.
Alex book extract: Domótica & Segurança Electrónica
"A Inteligência que se Instala"
