Local architect Nick Jones recently attended a continuing education seminar for architects, engineers and contractors. He brought back to the community a descriptive Internet of Things (IOT) which are on the market or coming soon.
As with any newly developed technology, costs are beyond reach for much of the following INTERNET OF THINGS. However, patience will be rewarded.
- Home Mirrors are being made that tell you your skin condition, can show pending lesions hidden from view, show multiple make-up options; offer multiple views; Dept store mirrors will be offering virtual multiple colors, mix and match clothing with images that can be saved to smartphones. Retail is using all it’s creative imagination to compete with Amazon.
- 3D food printers are being made that can print out bread or nearly any kind of processed food into any shape of your choice. Animal figures to entice children expected to be a favorite. You can devour your enemies just by having some sharp photos of them. Right around the corner – bulk processed food fuel cubes for food printers will be offered in a variety of packages, beef, pork, eggs, flower, etc., with combinations that will be continually added, updated and perfected. The space program is setting the stage for this technology.
- Kitchens without any stoves – all the pots, pans, dishes are programmable for future settings. Cooktops are being made that look and feel like oak or marble. You get the counter material of your choice as a computer screen. Ion filters are being made that automatically neutralize smoke and unwanted odors – no outside vent required.
- Plumbing fixtures are being made that can monitor occupant’s health factors that can be stored on the cloud for Doctor analysis.
- Refrigerators are beginning to have online capabilities having interior cameras that can be accessed from the grocery on smartphones to see what you are missing or low on supply.
- Morph art is growing – pictures on the wall that slowly change to adapt to mood, weather, blending video with art graphics, (one showed dripping digital paint into the bottom of the frame).
- Fully transformable furniture adjustable to what functions are needed will be a boon to college students. Surfaces will be programmed for various colors and textures. There are fabric screen TVs that can be hung on the wall with magnets that can double as window screens.
- The EDGE office building in Amsterdam (Google it) with 2,500 employees has no desks; 98.4% GREEN rating highest in world; all employees work in workspaces that offer the highest productivity features of their choice; all aspects of the building are constantly monitored so that any function that fails is automatically identified, and fixed instantly. The building’s Ethernet-powered LED lighting system is integrated with 30,000 sensors, each with its own IPS address to continuously measure occupancy, movement, lighting levels, humidity, and temperature, allowing it to automatically adjust energy use. WIFI is already far too inefficient and expected to become obsolete sooner than you think.
- Digital smart shelves can tell the store manager what compartments are getting low or empty. Even better, customers would not lose time finding merchandise – just check the smart phone. Inventory would be continuous without interruption – imagine the savings in material storage and shipping. Will this be customer service to match Amazon? Cash registers are already becoming obsolete – Japan has a department store that requires an AP that ties to one’s credit card. What you pick up and carry out is automatically charged to your account – no wait, no lines.
- First time in history more food was purchased in restaurants and take-outs than from food stores. (Advent of food trucks); Cafe X in San Francisco considered the first fully automated fast food restaurant in the United States. First fully automated bars are being installed on cruise ships.
- Double-sided television screens
- Museums are beginning to produce 3D printed artifacts allowing tactile experience so the originals can be kept intact in the display case.
- In the United Kingdom, CPI is building a windowless aircraft with fully digital windows creating the effect of the entire side walls being glass utilizing exterior cameras.
- Hotels are installing wall pictures where guests can post their own art or favorite photos. Multiple screen TVs are becoming popular; The Renaissance Hotel in midtown NY has a living wall floor to ceiling corridor with video screens showing guests traversing one end to the other.
Before the decade is over, it is estimated that 99% of all businesses in the industrial world will be tied to the internet in some capacity.
Lynn Wilkinson, a presenter at the seminar, said she had a wish list and one item worth noting: luggage that doubles as an electric cart that can carry airline passengers to any gate. Impossible? I think not.
As Nick Jones states, “It’s an exciting time to be alive!” and I agree.
