Controlling Smart Home Appliances Using Android App, Raspberry Pi, And Essay.

Android Controlled Smart App for Home Automation

Controlling smart home system at smart homes is a concept existed for several years. Home automation system provides a great research scope in order to create new field in computing as well as engineering. The proposed application consists of centralized control of lights, appliances, gates and doors, television, refrigerator, air condition and security locks and cameras in order to provide enhanced comfort, energy efficient as well as secured system. Present report explains the overview of controlling smart appliances at smart home app. In addition, functionality of the app and justification for the design concept in the terms of the usability of the design are discussed in the report.

Android controlled smart app is able to control smart home appliances effectively and efficiently. In order to develop an android based application, the app has some features like controlling switches of the home appliances. Receiving quality video from cameras in home to the android system would be helpful to get update of security of user’s home. Securing connection channels between application and raspberry pi one of the features of that uses secures protocols over the Wi-Fi. The system is designed in order to help as well as provide support for fulfilling the requirements of controlling the appliances remotely. In addition, making the home appliances flexible in control system helps the users to control such devices capable of Wi-Fi connectivity for controlling appliances of home from remote location.  The app opens an extensible platform to the users for future improvement.

The project for developing application aims to design prototype in order control smart home appliances, which can be controlled without wire through a mobile based application. It has the features of speech recognition, switch mode as well as video streaming. Technical exposures of the project can be explained as followed. The app is supported with open source technology of Google. There is inbuilt support of Wi-Fi technology and interacting with wireless adapter to raspberry pi. Transistor as a switch is used in the application along with embedded programming.

 The android OS provides flexibility of utilizing open source. Moreover, the inbuilt sensors are accessed easily. In addition, the app in the android phones can be sent as switch programming. There are several modes such as switch mode, voice mode and video mode. Switch mode utilizes radio buttons, which can be used to control smart home appliances. The radio button in the app sends status of the switch. Voice mode utilizes button for controlling home appliances by utilizing the process of responding with string data. Video mode displays the video stream of the room. Captured video is generally streamed at android application. All devices are connected to the common network. On the other hand, smart phone, raspberry pi as well as IP camera are connected to the common network. On the other hand, router is utilized to develop common network.

Technical Exposure

However, Wi-Fi adapter is utilized for connecting raspberry pi to the network. It is utilized for maintaining server. The security camera offers freedom in order to get home and business surveillance through network. There is an alarm function. When anybody appears on the camera under the function, the system takes picture and sound alarm. Meanwhile, it immediately emails the pictures to the user. In addition, IP camera can be utilized in several places like warehouses, office, doorkeeper as well as supermarket. 

Raspberry Pi is the controller of processing power as well as large developer community. There are 4 relays connected to power strips. In addition, GPIO pins are connected to the transistors that are used as switch. On the other hand, as a part of software environment, android developer tools are required to develop android application in order to receive live video from cameras. After that, it sends control signals to the control system. RPI-GPIO library includes interface library of GPIO for Raspberry Pi.

The controlling system for smart appliances at smart home includes several programs. The power strip of the app is designed as well as relays connected to the power strip. On the other hand, the home appliances are connected to power strip. However, the relays are connected to GPIO pins of raspberry pi. There are two programming languages used for app development. In addition, development of application is used java program. Software development kit of android is incorporate with Eclipse.

Eclipse software is utilized to write codes for application under the java platform. On the other hand, Raspbian operating system is utilized at raspberry pi. In this perspective, the server is developed at raspberry pi. However, python as a programming language is used for writing codes of the server as well as to control GPIO Pins of the operating system. The app supports IP camera with several features.  There are inbuilt microphones as well as mic that provide two way communications between remote users as well as person in front of IP camera. In addition, alarm service setting gives a chance to detect unauthorized users and their movements.  The app supports file transfer protocol as well as email setting that provides features of emailing video stream and images at regularly.  As Bluetooth is utilized in point to point networks and operates slower rate nearly 720 kbps that is small for  transferring video and moving large amount of data such as image captured from camera and bandwidth of Wi-Fi to 150 Mbps that is ideal for transmission of video. Hence, supporting of Wi-Fi features adds extra advantages for the user.

Design and Implementation of Smart Home Automation System

Advancement of wireless technology, various distinctive connections is introduced like Wi-Fi, GSM as well as Bluetooth. The connections have unique specifications as well as applications. There are four popular wireless connections implemented in the particular project. However, Wi-Fi has been selected as suitable technology. Capabilities of the technology of Wi-Fi are adequate for implementing the design. Current notebook as well as laptop and smart phone have inbuilt functions and directly minimize cost of the system.

In addition, controlling smart home appliances at smart home project has a design of home automation system as well as security system utilizing Raspberry pi operating system and credit size computer.  The particular system provides features of minicomputer. Moreover, GPIO pins and different elements as well as devices are connected with the system.  Registers of GPIO of the OS are utilized for output result. The design of a power strip can be easily connected to the GPOP pins of Raspberry pi. The smart appliances of home are connected with the network that can access status of the appliances through the application. The system presents design as well as implementation of the automation system, which is useful to monitor and control the appliances through android mobile or table.

The proposed project constituted the development of application for monitoring major parts and hardware in order to control the smart home appliances. Management of the project as various steps and processes is involved in it. Hence, the projects can be explained as the steps followed. In the experimentation part, discussion regarding essential equipments as well as materials is included. However, simple algorithms along with appropriate flow chart are used in the project. In designing phase, layout designing of the application is achieved. The essential and important features are included. Designing power strip for connecting home appliances can be controlled through GPIO pins. In addition, development and testing phase are considered as crucial steps for developing the smart appliances controlling application. In the particular phase, development of the application is performed. Errors and bugs are detected as well as removed in this phase. Consulting several software experts for assessment of the application is included in testing phase. Design of hardware involves with the design of power strip. At the last step of developing the application includes with real world testing.

Figure 1: Block diagram of proposed system

The application includes effective and user friendly graphical user interface. It includes several activities. The activities are Start mode activity, option mode activity, voice mode activity, switch mode activity as well as video mode activity. In the start mode activity, each rooms of the home are displayed. User can select essential room from the particular option for controlling smart appliances that are connected to the desired system. On the other hand, Option mode activity offers the user to control and select in switch mode and voice mode for controlling appliances. The voice mode activity provides the user a functionality of speech feedback to the application. The speech data are processed as well as required appliances that can be controlled with the system. The particular mode provides user on/off button in order to control desired home appliances. The particular mode of video of IP camera is connected with the rooms at home.

Proposed Project and Steps Involved

Figure 2: Activities of the application

On the other hand, java and python as programming languages are selected for the project for having several advantages. Java is a set of various software products as well as specifications from Oracle Corporation, which provides the system in order to develop application. In addition, cross platform of computing environments is helpful for developing the application.  Java is utilized in wide variety of the platforms from the embedded devices as well as mobile phones on low end to the organization. The enterprise platforms from the embedded devices as well as mobile phones on low end are connected with the enterprise servers as well as super computers on high end. Python as a programming language would be helpful to be interpreter, interactive as well as object oriented programming language. The system incorporates with the modules and exception as well as dynamic typing. There are high level dynamic data types as well as classes. It helps to develop the software effectively.  In addition, remarkable power with clear syntax is combined with the system.  There are interfaces for system calls as well as libraries along with several window systems. The set of program is also extensible in C or C++.  There is usable extension language for the applications, which requires programmable interface. The purpose of this programming language can be applied to several classes of the issues.

The android devices with lower API version compared to 16 needs access of internet in order to convert speech data to the string data. The application is developed for android smart phones as well as tablets. The OS platform does not provide support the application.  Hence, during the voice mode, external noises may affect to the output.  However, the speech instruction can be commanded in the voice mode. It may not provide exact and expected output. In addition, looking at present situation is developing cross platform system that can be useful on several platforms such as iOS and Windows.  Along with these, limitation to the control system on several devices can be removed through extending the process of automation of home appliances.  Furthermore, network is connected to the internet as well as security cameras that are controlled from remote places. Hence, it is allowing the users in order to the activity around their house. In addition, security systems include motion sensors, which can identify any types of unauthorized movement as well as work as notifying the user. There are scopes of this project expanded to several areas that is not restricting to the home.

Conclusion

From the above discussion, it can be concluded that the proposed project has aims to control smart home appliances remotely. The switch mode as well as voice mode are utilized to control home appliances. The feedback of video can be received in android app that has ability to live-streaming of video through IP camera. The project is based on Raspberry pi and using android platform with java and python as programming languages. The platform is free and open sourced. As a result, overall implementation cost of the project is low as well as easily and it will be easily configured. In addition, user can interact with android mobile as well as tablet. Therefore, users can send commands through switch mode along with speech mode using smart phones and tablets.