Design and Implementation of Controller Boards to Monitor and Control Home Appliances for Future Smart Homes

Internet of Things (IoT) applications have become popular and are used in innovative device applications. Although radio frequency communication methods, including Bluetooth, zonal intercommunication global standards such as ZigBee, and wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) and wired communication such as RS485/Modbus, can be used in IoT networks, Wi-Fi is preferred by users due to its ability to connect to the internet and allow users to control devices from anywhere in the world. In addition, numerous do-it-yourself and low-cost solutions have been presented for intelligent home applications in recent decades. However, many solutions use proprietary communication protocols that are not standards-based, so integrating a standardized local home automation server is difficult. We proposed a design based on low-cost Wi-Fi-based IoT-capable control boards that communicate with an IoT network of standard home automation servers and commercial intelligent home devices. The primary focus of the proposed system is to implement control boards for IoT applications by using Espressif systems series microcontrollers that can run in any IoT network used for home automation. Converting traditional houses into smart homes will support demand-side energy management applications in future smart grids and allow customers to use low-cost energy.

I. Introduction

Internet of Things (IoT) can be defined as devices that can be managed or controlled over the Internet [1]. The main objective of IoT devices and networks is to combine separate devices and control them via the Internet [2]. Bringing all devices within a network, allowing equipment to communicate with each other, and sending helpful information to the user creates smart homes [1], [3].