Answer

Smart Connected Homes

Smart home technology involves used of Internet connected and integrated systems, devices, appliances, networks, and perhaps necessary infrastructure. The purpose of this review is to discuss the market feasibility, benefits and challenges associated with smart homes. The global market of smart home technology keeps growing over time. If prospective users are made aware of the technology as well as potential benefits, risks, and challenges, it may help improve their perception about the technology. It may result in further expansion of the market. Smart home technology is associated with various benefits such as improved monitoring and control of energy consumption, improvement of quality of life through effortless living, and provision of essential care services as well as assistance services via the technology. Key challenges experienced by users of smart home technology include confidentiality, security, and privacy issues. Smart home technology and associated devices are not free of weaknesses and vulnerabilities leading to various security and privacy threats. It includes access to devices, data, and security system of the home. Unauthorized access can lead to stolen personal information including banking records, physical entry into the house, damage to devices, and privacy breach. Privacy breach may include real-time monitoring of the home resident’s behavior and activities. Other challenges include high-cost of installations and perhaps increased consumption of energy, location tracking, and sociotechnical concerns. Some of the sociotechnical concerns include increased dependence on technology and promotion of inactive             A connected home is a net-work enabled with interoperability and interconnection of multiple services, devices and apps, ranging from entertainment and communications to home automation and security. These apps and services are delivered over multiple integrated and interlinked sensors, devices, platforciency (Johnson & Davison, 2015). The aim of this study is to examine the market, benefits and challenges posed by smart homes. The purpose is to inform home owners on the potential benefits and challenges Research Questions

1. Is the use of smart home technology a welcomed idea?
2. What are the benefits that can be derived from using smart home technology?
3. What are the challenges associated with the use of smart home technology?

Hypotheses

1. Smart home technology is a welcomed idea in many homes and the market keep on expanding.
2. There are multiple benefits that can be derived from the use of smart home technology.
3. Cyber security uncertainties are the major challenges associated with the use of smart home technology.

Significance of the Study

            The study will evaluate acceptability of smart home technology among home owners and determine whether smart home market is going to grow in the near future or it will diminish in the foreseeable future. This perspective is important since it will inform stakeholders, entrepreneurs, and companies on whether they could invest or expand their investments in the smart home technology depending on the feasibility of the market and acceptability of the technology by the home owners/residents.

            In addition, it is important to inform home owners and home residents and other interested parties on the potential benefits that could be realized with the use of smart home technology. The perspective of prospective users should be informed clear and realistic benefits as well as risks to inform their decision making on whether to install smart home systems or not (Wilson, Hargreaves, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2017). Adoption of the IoT at home brings about a tradeoff between control, convenience, privacy, and security. Security and privacy issues should be treated with exceptionally high level of flexibility and as matters of high priority during implementation and maintenance of smart home technology (Ali & Awad, 2018).

            Prospective and current user ought to be aware of the potential challenges and risks associated with use of the smart home technology. Issues discussed in this paper include privacy issues, confidentiality, and safety of data collected by smart devices within a domestic environment. Home residents and users of smart home technology should be made aware of the cyber security concerns and potential risks that they may encounter or experience as they use smart home systems. Thus, the other scope of this paper is to discuss the challenges associated with smart home technology. 

Definitions of Terms

Smart home technology: is an integral or interconnected system that consists of monitors, sensors, appliances, interfaces, and devices that are networked together so as to facilitate localized or remote automation, control, and collection of data from a domestic environment (Wilson, Hargreaves, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2017).

Internet of Things: is an emerging paradigm that focuses on connection objects, devices, and things to the Internet, each other, and to the users (Ali & Awad, 2018).

Confidentiality: keeping data and information private, to ensure that authorized users, which may include machines and humans, can access the system or the data (Lin & Bergmann, 2016).

Authentication: Verification of the data or information presented by the claimed users such as username and password (Lin & Bergmann, 2016).

Access: allowing authorized users to use a system and to obtain, use, or gather data (Lin & Bergmann, 2016).

Research Design (Methodology)

            Review of literature was conducted to evaluate and discuss the state of knowledge related to use of the smart home technology. Key issues that were reviewed included the market, benefits and challenges associated with the technology. Various articles have been written that describes aspects of smart home technology such as the current market, potential benefits, risks, and/or challenges but does not discuss the three issues into a single paper. This review discusses the three issues into a single paper through review of literature. Articles were drawn from databases such as Google Scholar, Energy and Power Source, Computers and Applied Sciences Complete, and database of Applied Science and Technology. Search terms that were used include smart homes, smart home market, smart home technology AND associated risks, smart home technology AND benefits, and smart home AND challenges.  Key findings were summarized in Table 1 below, which informed the discussion below.

Findings

Table 1: Summary of Findings

Literature Review

Market and Future Prospects

            There is a growing demand for smart devices and interconnected homes. Rapid increases of aged population, especially with chronic conditions such as dementia, have increased the demand for personal care and reliance on technology. Informal care in homes that relies on technology is considered as cost effective resolution compared to care received in hospitals (Amiribesheli, Benmansour, & Bouchachia, 2015).  Smart home systems are increasingly on sale by professional installation companies as well as on the off-the-shelf arrangements. The global market for smart home technology and smart home appliances such as lighting systems, heating systems, fridges, tumble dryers, washing machines, ovens, dishwashers and others appliances was projected to have grown 650-fold from $40 million in 2012 to $26 billion in 2019. There is higher market for smart home technology (Wilson, Hargreaves, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2017).  The number of Internet of Things has increased rapidly over the recent years. In 2010, there were about 12.4 billion Internet-connected devices. It was predicted that the number of Internet-connected or Internet-connected devices would increase to 50 billion enabled devices by the 2020 (Ali & Awad, 2018).

            The market adoption of smart home technology depends on the perspective of potential users. Majority of potential consumers believe that smart home technology will have a positive impact on their lives and express a general interest in smart homes. It is important to note that regardless of positive public perception, the level of uptake of smart home technology remains low. Despite low level of adoption it has been noted that Internet-connected television sets dominates the smart home market (Wilson, Hargreaves, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2017).  Internet of Things technology as gained significant level of traction in the recent years since it has been observed that people continuously increase tend to increase adoption of non-traditions devices that are Internet enable or connected to a network (Lin & Bergmann, 2016). Smart technology continues to be adopted in domestic appliances, factory machinery, and/or medical devices. It is important to note than penetration of smart home technology continues to increase with time around the world (Lin & Bergmann, 2016)

            Smart devices at home can facilitate monitoring and controlling of electricity usage at home. Energy consumption particularly is one of the key most serious issues in households these days. The amount of electricity consumed at most homes is far more than necessarily. Overuse of electricity is due inconveniences such failure to switch-off devices or lights when not in use (Witthayawiroj & Nilaphruek, 2017).  Many homes do not have tools for minoring electricity consumption. Smart devices or integrated devices provide an opportunity for monitoring power consumption and for turning devices either on or off remotely through utilization of the Internet services. Current sensors can accurate measure electricity and can be used for predicting future usage of power (Witthayawiroj & Nilaphruek, 2017). Smart home technology has been applied in saving energy and reducing electricity costs at in homes (Amiribesheli, Benmansour, & Bouchachia, 2015).

            Individuals and communities are eager and motivated to manage their energy consumption due to the huge cost of energy. Smart home technology is considered as a strategic energy technology that can enable communities and individuals to monitor and control their energy usage. Smart homes are considered as the integral component of a future energy-efficient-system that can help alleviate supply constraints during peak load periods as well as help to reduce the overall demand of energy (Wilson, Hargreaves, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2017). Use of smart home systems can enhance energy management capabilities. Users can adopt the technology after learning about potential benefits with acceptable levels of risks (Wilson, Hargreaves, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2017).

Smart home technology has been cited as having enormous ability in optimization of management of energy consumption at home. The technology can led to energy savings up to 30% of the costs of energy without compromising on the comfort of the home residents (Hargreaves, Wilson, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2018). There is a developing trend of a specialized type of smart homes that can help household residents to reduce energy consumption through controlling and monitoring devices as well as for rescheduling machine operating time according to energy supply and demand (Darby, 2018). The smart home technology can facilitate interaction between the power grid enterprise and the user. Both the power grid enterprise and the users can obtain information on consumption of electricity. In addition, the user also set electricity consumption plan, receive electricity price, advocate for the family’s consciousness of energy saving, promote rational use of electricity, as well as champion environmental protection (Li et al., 2018). In addition, smart home system promote realization of the real-time meter readings, energy meter readings, security services of water meters as well as gas meters that provides more convenient condition for provision of high quality services. It can interact and monitor with home via mobile phones, telephones, and remote networks as well as help detect abnormal activities and promote timely processing of data (Li et al., 2018).

            Smart devices can improve comfort and quality of life. Ambient assisted-living-technologies are designed to assist residents in undertaking their activities of daily livin, 2015).  Smart devices or systems used at home are designed to be easy to use, reliable, easy to override, and controllable (Wilson, Hargreaves, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2017). Smart home technology can significantly enhance convenience, domestic comfort, leisure, and security (Hargreaves, Wilson, & Hauxwell-Baldwin, 2018).  In addition Li et al. (2018) state that smart home technology can enhance safety, comfort, interactivity, and convenience of home life and can optimize people’s life cycle.   

A smart home system is often equipped with a range of inter-related or interconnected hardware components and software to monitor a resident’s living space and understand his/her behavior. The system can inform the resident about risky situations and may intervene on behalf of the resident to his/her satisfaction (Amiribesheli, Benmansour, & Bouchachia, 2015). Many individuals tend in need of care tend to prefer less intrusive care that can be delivered at home in an inexpensive manner. This kind of care can be provided by smart devices such as robots. Smart home technology is purposed to support individuals so as to improve the quality of life as well as support the elderly population, who may be living alone, to live independently and comfortably (Amiribesheli, Benmansour, & Bouchachia, 2015).