Articles and whitepapers

Product Article: Carlo Gavazzi smart-house (5/1/2012)

By Kevin Sheldrake, Carlo Gavazzi

For 80 years, Carlo Gavazzi has been a leading force in energy management and industrial and building automation, built on innovative research and development activities, all underpinned by continued cautious financial growth.

The company opened its doors in 1931, establishing a Milan headquarters for distribution of Johnson oil burners and Honeywell instrumentation. Now, Carlo Gavazzi Automation Components operates through 21 wholly-owned sales companies and selected representatives in more than 65 countries from the Pacific Rim to the United States.

Today's strengths in renewable energy and industrial automation are at the forefront of the company's strategy for the future, evidenced by current annual growth rates of 12 percent per annum in building automation markets.

Carlo Gavazzi has a solution for domestic home automation which is sold under the brand name of smart-house. The system is built on the sound foundations of its industrial counterpart, Dupline, which has a strong reputation in the world of distributed I/O for being robust and simple to install and commission.

The Carlo Gavazzi smart-house encompasses every aspect of home comfort, entertainment, safety and security.

Core elements of smart-house

The smart-house system uses an advanced central controller based on the robust Windows CE platform. The controller contains the core program to provide the necessary control for the home, and is also the gateway to integrate third-party products such as alarm panels, audio systems and touchscreens.

The smart-house controller.

Remote control is possible with a built-in webserver allowing access from anywhere with an Internet connection - ideal for switching on heating before you come back from holiday or if you just want to know the status of your home.

The built-in webserver allows you to know the status of your home, or control it, from anywhere.

Simple wiring

A simple two-wire bus cable using free topology is all that is required to connect all the devices in the home to the controller. No additional power is required as most of the keypads are powered by the bus itself. The bus-based system makes for a very simple installation as well as the option to expand the system at a later date.

Keypads

Smart-house keypads for the control of lighting, blinds and heating have been designed to fit standard wall plates, with a wide choice of finishes and styles for the home owner. The AURORA 44 x 44 range will fit wall plates from Niko and Legrand, while the EUNICA 55 x 55 range will fit wall plates from Elko, Gira and Jung.

Smart-house keypads are supplied with white or anthracite covers to complement the chosen wall plate design. Each keypad button has two programmable LED indicators that can be customised to suit the home owner's requirements.

Four-button keypad from the smart-house Eunica range, in white and anthracite finishes.

The backlit smart-house temperature display shows the room temperature from its built-in temperature sensor, while the four-button keypad allows heating and cooling set points to be adjusted between pre-defined limits. Manual override of heating or cooling, and energy-saving night setback can also be implemented temporarily, but returns to automatic control at the next time setting.

Sensors

PIR sensors complement the keypads to provide a stylish solution for the control of lighting and heating. Other sensors and devices are available for detecting outside temperature, light level and for interfacing to third-party devices such as heat sensors.

smart-house sensors provide a stylish solution (insert shows wall-mounted motion sensor from the smart-house Eunica range).

Output devices

The smart-house system has a broad range of output devices including relay modules for switched lighting, solid state output modules for heating (underfloor heating and radiator) together with a range of dimmers for scene control. The latest version of the smart-house dimmer has been designed specifically to work with the latest generation of dimmable LED fittings that are becoming available.

smart-house 500W dimmer module.

The controller

The smart-house controller is provided with a very simple and effective configuration tool. Using just three steps, installers first define a layout of the house by floor and then room. Next, all of the addresses are generated automatically for the input and output modules using the information from step one. Finally the control features required are defined in the functions section, and then the application can be downloaded to the controller.

smart-house in action

One example of smart-house in action is a GB£8.75-million home on the exclusive St George's Hill estate in Surrey, UK. The project incorporates the latest in building technologies and home automation, spanning heating, lighting, security and home entertainment.

The St George’s Hill estate project took its building inspiration from South Africa and Australia whilst using smart-house technology to help bring warmth and security to this exquisite home.

Another installation, a home in Painswick, Gloucestershire, uses a third-party touchpanel interface, which also controls the heating via smart-house relays and temperature sensors, as well as audio and video. Routine scheduled on-off sequences are augmented by the use of external sensors to switch internal lights on at dusk. Here, the smart-house two-wire bus also controls underfloor heating along with a heat recovery system, helping to provide cost savings as well as reduced environmental impact. Bus expansion modules extend automation and control to the garden lighting and garage.

Temperature display from the smart-house Eunica range.

Carlo Gavazzi's Control PC software makes it easy to add new functions and tweak the system via a Wi-Fi or wired Ethernet connection. Furthermore, the web server smart-house installations can be managed and interrogated via the Internet from a browser anywhere in the world.

Example of the smart-house webserver, seen from a standard Internet browser.

The future

For the future, Carlo Gavazzi plans to introduce new platforms for energy management and building automation, along with the strengthening of its research and development activities. Specifically, a new modular Universal Web Platform (UWP) with integrated management, data logging and web communication features, is poised to drive the company to further growth in the areas of energy efficiency and building automation.

Conclusion

The two-wire addressable bus concept of smart house is a real benefit to installers. Not only does it reduce the overall amount of cable required but also allows for changes to the specification if the homeowner decides to add more hardware during or after the installation. In addition, the simple configuration tool used to program the controller also has a powerful diagnostic function, allowing the installer to develop a project more quickly without having to move around the property.

It is important to Carlo Gavazzi that installers of smart-house are properly supported. Free technical support service is always available by telephone or email, including support on everything, from how to install the cable and the section of parts, to assistance with customised programs and general fault finding.

Kevin Sheldrake is the Business Development Manager for Carlo Gavazzi. Carlo Gavazzi is an international electronics group with activities in the design, manufacture and marketing of electronic equipment targeted at the global markets of industrial and building automation.

www.carlogavazzi.co.uk
www.smart-house.it