The idea of our smart home was taking solar energy and running an entire house off of it. To do this we created our home with a slanted roof facing the sun in the morning to capture the most sunlight to transform into energy.
We explored a couple of ideas of electronics that could be run on solar energy, these included:
1) Windows that change opacity depending on users preference. This eliminates the need for blinds and shutters.
2) A pool that wraps around the house and is self maintaining. It has censors inside the water to be able to tell when it needs the pH to change or more chlorine. This takes out the manual task of maintaining a pool to make sure it is safe to be used.
3) The pool can be transformed into a part of the lawn by a special material pool cover. It is strong enough to walk across while maintaining turf grass. This allows it not to need regular maintenance. It also allows there to be extra outdoor space which can be important for houses in rural areas with small areas of land.
4) The staircase in the centre of the house can be retracted up to the first floor ceiling as to create an open space on the first floor level.
Smart Home Final Design
Video Presentation of Smart House:
Best Engineering Ideas for each discipline:
Electrical engineering: The best electrical engineering idea was by Team International. They designed their house to operate via face recognition. To get around the house there is a conveyor belt that works by the individual selecting what room they would like to go to and the conveyor belt taking you there.
Mechanical engineering: The SHUmakers had a very good mechanical design with the speakers for the TV being built into the wall. This will create a very good sound system.
Civil engineering: The best civil engineering design was by the SHUmakers. They designed their house to be completely underground with an elevator that takes you from ground level to 3 levels below ground. The bottom level is a greenhouse which I think is a really good idea.
Chemical Engineering: Team international had a great chemical engineering idea where their fire place is used as both an oven and a means to heat and purify water. The fire place is double sided so it is visible from both the kitchen and dining room meaning it serves both as a food cooker, a house warmer and something aesthetically pleasing to look at.
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