Friday, July 26, 2013
Abstract
Once connected, consumers find innumerable uses for their
home networks. Sharing in-home appliances to provide faster Internet access has
proven to be the main motivator for consumers installing a new home network.
Knowledge workers, students, and families are some of the groups of people that
are at the forefront of the home networking revolution.
The ultimate goal of a home network is to provide access to
information, such as voice, audio, data, and entertainment between different
digital devices around the house. Home networking allows users to communicate
and interact anywhere at anytime. This new and emerging technology will bring
the Internet to the hands of the consumers, to every appliance in the house,
and help interconnect people across the globe. It allows access to homes via
the Internet when one is away, enabling security and energy management. Home
networking is really a three part equation offering entertainment, information,
and automation services that are distributed between appliances in the home.
Introduction
The integration of computer and smarter chips into next
generation, everyday consumer devices is one of the major factors that is
driving the home networking market. The home network enables the distribution
of data, voice, and video between different consumer devices. Our cars have had
intelligent consumer devices for years—now children's toys, our kitchen
appliances, and our living room entertainment systems have computing power that
rivals previous generation desktop computers. This paper provides a brief
overview of how convergence of technologies and digitization of appliances are
fueling the demand for home networks. It also provides a brief overview of the
motivating factors to network a household and also gives the architecture of home
networking systems.
Topic Details
Convergence and Digitization
We are transitioning from an industrial-based analog economy
to an information-based digital economy. The momentum for this transition is
been fueled by a number of converging factors.
• Converging media: Digitization of data, voice,
video, and communications is driving consumer product convergence. Convergence
is happening in everyone’s backyard with incredible computing power being
embedded within everyday consumer appliances. The digital revolution, be it
from vinyl players changing to MP3 players or from analog TV to digital TV, is
occurring very rapidly. Data, video, and voice can now be transmitted over the
same backbone due to the digital revolution.
• Internet based lifestyles: As quickly as the
Internet came into our lives it has become omnipresent. Families are becoming
more aware of how the Internet can be used in their homes, and companies are
also increasingly using it as a commercial channel. The Internet serves as the
technology platform that enables an entirely new generation of consumer
applications, including voice and video communications, e-commerce solutions,
personalized news services, home security and automation, utilities resource
management, and entertainment title distribution. The availability of such a
wide variety of applications is changing the way people relate to the Internet
itself.
“Internet Lifestyles”
is a new way of thinking that has resulted in the formation of an organization
called the Internet Home Alliance. The principle behind this new organization
is that consumers want to enjoy the benefits of the Internet lifestyle without
worrying about the technology that enables it to work. The Alliance is bringing
new levels of comfort, convenience, and security by creating the necessary
infrastructure. Installation and support from various companies provide
integrated services, eliminating the need for multiple points of consumer
contact.
• Deregulation: There is a heavy deregulation of
global infrastructure industries such as telecommunications, utilities, and
cable. These companies are developing new ways of improving their business by
using the Internet and increasing revenues through additional services to the
home.
• Digitization of consumer products: For some time
now, there has been a trend towards the digitization of consumer products. A
product that is digital is one which is synonymous with higher quality, greater
accuracy, higher reliability, faster speed, lower power, and lower cost. Simply
stated, anything that is digital is better. The digitization of consumer
products has not only led to the improvement of existing products, but it has
also lead to the creation of a whole new class of products that never before
existed. PVRs (Personal Video Recorders) are revolutionizing the way we watch
TV, satellite modems are bringing faster Internet access to the home, and MP3
players have revolutionized portable digital music.
What is Home Networking?
From a purely technical perspective, a home network connects
a number of devices or appliances within a small geographical area (home,
SOHO). A home network improves communication and allows the sharing of
expensive resources among members of a family. A home network consists of a
number of components, which may be divided into two basic categories: hardware
and software. It has evolved from its roots in automation and security and has
come to include the distribution of audio, video, and data content around the
home. Home networking is also the interconnection and interoperation of
different home electronic appliances, entertainment devices, PC hardware, and
telecommunication devices. In general, home networking is all about the
convergence of voice, video, and data, and their associated appliances in the
home.
Motivations to Network a Household
For the vast majority of people, the prestige of being up to
date with their nearest neighbor is not enough to motivate the installation of
new home networking technologies. The motivating factors that encourage people
to network different classes of household appliances and computers together
are:
• Leverage existing investments: First and foremost, people want to leverage their investments in
expensive appliances such as computers, set-top boxes, personal video
recorders, digital cameras, and cable modems. Hence, sharing hardware resources
is the number one motivating factor for consumers investing in new home
networking interconnection technologies.
• Shared Internet access: The second most popular motivating factor fueling the deployment
of home networks is shared Internet access. Home networks, in conjunction with
devices called media gateways, allow different members of a family to
simultaneously use a single, fast Internet access, thus saving money.
• Interconnecting subsystems: Other motivating factors include the ability of a home
networking infrastructure to interconnect different types of subsystems
together. For example, home security systems are also defined as a network, but
instead of interconnecting devices like printers and PCs, in-home security
networks connect different types of sensors to a central controller.
Integrating this type of network with an existing PC-based home network helps
people expand the functionality of their security system and better manage
different subsystems.
• Rise of multi-PC households: The rapid growth of multi-PC homes indicates that the number of
nodes in a PC network will continue to skyrocket as home networking appliances
are introduced. Also, sharing PC peripherals (such as printers and scanners)
between multiple PCs provides cost savings.
• Evolving in-home applications: File sizes of typical
personal computer applications are growing rapidly with each generation of
standard software applications. For example, the file size of a PowerPoint
demonstration with the same content has doubled over the last few years.
Graphics and digital photography over e-mail are now commonplace. Also,
distributing video, MP3 files, and other digital content between information
appliances is gaining importance.
Architecture of Home Networking
Systems
Home networking is in fact a four-part equation defined by
broadband access, residential gateways, home networking technologies, and
information appliances. The middleware software is also a key component of the
home networking market.
Broadband Access
Digital broadband access to the home has revolutionized
communication by providing a very fast, two-way communication channel. Internet
access and the ability to transmit real-time audio and video anywhere at
anytime is a revolutionary concept helping drive broadband access to the home.
Rapid technological advances have immensely extended the list of possible
broadband platforms that consumers can use to access the Internet. Solutions
available include xDSL, cable, powerline, satellite, and wireless platforms.
Media Gateways
(Residential Gateways)
The media gateway (MG), also known as a residential gateway,
is the interface device that connects the broadband access technologies to the
in-home network, effectively bringing a bidirectional communications channel to
every networked device in the home. Since it serves as the centralized access
point between the home and the outside world, the media gateway represents an
important strategic technology. Additionally, the MG serves as the convergence
point that bridges the different broadband and LAN technologies. Another
important function of the MG is to serve as an access platform through which
service providers can remotely deploy services to the home via the Internet.
Home Networking
Technologies (Information Appliance Network)
The Information Appliance Network (IAN) consists of
high-speed in-home data networking technologies that distribute Internet access
to ubiquitous access points and appliances. The IAN provides interconnectivity
for all home appliances. A wide variety of technologies exist for interconnecting
devices within the home, but no single technology meets all of the requirements
for the diversity of applications that will be created. While traditional
Ethernet systems offer a robust and proven solution, most consumers do not have
the time, interest, or knowledge to rewire their homes. Fortunately, the
emergence of “no new wiring” technologies offers possibilities for solving the
mass-market home networking issue. New technologies include wireless,
phoneline, and powerline solutions. Since each solution presents distinct
benefits and drawbacks, many organizations are beginning to suggest that all of
these technologies will co-exist in a multi-layered home network architecture.
Types of home networking technologies are:
• New Wires: Ethernet, optic fiber, USB/USB 2.0, IEEE
1394
• No New Wires: Phonelines, powerlines
• Wireless: HomeRF, Bluetooth, wireless LANs (IEEE
802.11, HiperLAN2)
New Wires
Ethernet solutions provide the highest data rates and are
reasonably priced, but require the installation of special wiring, which can be
expensive and inconvenient to install, if even possible or allowed (rentals may
not allow this). Additionally, future changes to room layouts or use can
require additional rewiring and cost.
Options for new wiring include Ethernet based Category 5
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP), Coaxial cable, fiber, or structured wiring that
includes a combination of these cable types. To help solve the problems
associated with installing new wires in homes, such integrated cabling systems
can now be installed when constructing new homes if requested by the homebuyer.
These systems can handle various telephony, data, video, and home control
technologies.
Twisted
Copper-Pair or Coaxial-Based Transport Systems (Ethernet)
The typical topology of these systems is demonstrated in Figure.
Typical
Ethernet System
This technology
is based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) 802.3
standard, which has undergone many revisions since its conception to enable
interoperability between many manufacturers. Copper-pair or coaxial-based
transport systems are bidirectional, typically have a high degree of reliability,
and are thus widespread among businesses as the standard choice for networking
office PCs and printers. They require the use of bulky Category 5 (CAT5)
cabling, and are typically expensive to install. Some home networks have
Ethernet, but because of its expense and difficulty to install, few have chosen
to use it.
No New Wires
Solutions that use a home’s existing wires, whether phone
lines or power lines, provide more convenient and affordable alternatives for
home users.
Twisted
Copper-Pair-Based Systems (Phone Line)
Based on a specification developed by the HomePNA (Home
Phone-line Networking Association), phone-line networking uses the same basic
transmission technology as traditional Ethernet. A recent increase in speed
from 1 Mbps to 10 Mbps has created additional momentum for this technology. A
drawback of using phone lines is that users are restricted to the locations of
the phone jacks.
The typical topology of these systems is demonstrated in Figure.
Typical
Phone Line System
Alternating
Current Powerline-Based Transport Element
Equipment that
uses AC power lines to network PCs offers more flexibility, since power outlets
are found in almost every room of the house. While the data transmission using
power lines has traditionally been slow and unreliable, industry standards are
being created to solve these problems. As a result, power line networking may
become a more attractive approach to networking the home. They are used as
transport facilities to send and receive discrete frequency-based control,
monitoring, and communications messages to smart devices that manage lighting
and environmental systems ("turn off," "turn on," and
"dim"). They also are used as voice-communication elements for
telephone extensions, computer-modem access, and intercom devices through
standard electrical outlets.
The typical topology of these elements is demonstrated in Figure.
AC
Powerline-Based Transport Element
No Wires (Wireless)
While existing wire-based networks offer no-new-wires
installation, wireless takes this one step further to enable “no wires”
mobility and convenience. A wireless home network uses radio frequency (RF)
instead of wires or cables to transmit information. A network unrestricted by
wires is the most suitable solution for the home. Most homeowners do not want
to incur the expense and inconvenience of running special cables throughout
their homes, nor do they have a dedicated IT staff to assist with network
installation. Wireless helps simplify home networking.
Of the home networks available, wireless networks offer the
most flexibility. They allow users to share peripherals and Internet access
while also giving them mobility. For example, a wireless home network allows a
laptop user to download a file from the World Wide Web and print it on a
printer connected to a networked PC in the family room – all from the comfort
of his sofa, kitchen table or back patio. The most useful wireless home
networks support the household’s needs for voice and entertainment as well as
data. These networks allow users to talk, surf, compute and communicate from
anywhere in or around the home without being tied to telephone jacks or power
outlets.
Solutions are being developed that will enable multiple
network environments to work together easily. For example, wireless networks
can be made to communicate seamlessly with phone line or Ethernet networks.
This will soon enable wireless home networks to serve as a backbone for
interconnecting PCs, information appliances, home security systems, and digital
entertainment centers.
The
Controller-Based Data and Voice Home Network
Figure demonstrates
the use of one integrated home-network system available on the market today.
Voice and Data Wireless Home Networking System
In this scenario, the microprocessor-based digital switch
acts as the communications server, addressing and routing voice data traffic
throughout the home. The controller supplies a robust home network for voice
and data with high bandwidth capacity. It is the bridge between the transport
network element serving the home from the customer-selected service provider
and the wireless home network. Networked devices require no wires or fixed
wired jacks. This system also offers several hundred feet of accessibility
within and outside the home. There are no relocation restrictions. Data and
voice services, including internal device-to-device communications, are
commonplace.
Information Appliances
These intelligent devices have the ability to communicate and
interoperate using the IAN. In cases where the IAN is connected to a broadband
access, these devices will be able to connect to the Internet. Networking these
digital appliances will bring improved convenience and flexibility for the
consumer. The functional requirements of digital appliances are:
• Ubiquity: Prevalence of network access points
• Reliability:
Operational consistency in the face of environmental fluctuation such
as noise
interference
• Cost: Affordable for mass market
• Speed: Support high-speed distribution of media rich
content
• Quality
of Service (QoS): Must support scalable QoS levels for application
requirements of individual devices
• Security: User authentication, encryption, and
remote access protection
• Remote
management: Ability for external network management (queries,
configuration, upgrades)
• Ease-of-use: Operational complexity must be similar
to existing technologies, such as
TVs and telephones.
These information appliances include: PCs, printers,
scanners, Web pads, MP3 players, kitchen pads, digital VCR, gaming consoles,
set-top boxes, DVD players, digital TVs, IP phones, utility meters, security
cameras, etc.
Middleware
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP), Home Audio Video
Interoperability (HAVi), Jini, and Video Electronics Standards Association
(VESA) are competitors in what is called the middleware market. Middleware
operates between the operating system and a home networking application. It
allows home networking users to run applications that are independent of the
underlying hardware platform.
Conclusion
In
the near future, by virtue of Home Networking every home may become a center of
a convergence of competing technologies, architectures, and suppliers, each
with a unique set of advantages and solutions. Systems are being researched,
developed, and deployed to manage, monitor, and control the following list of
functions:
- data and voice communication needs internal and
external to the home
- electronic entertainment devices
- service appliances that prepare food
- systems and devices that maintain the in-home
environment
- devices that keep the home secure from intrusion
or damage from internal and external man-made or natural events
Successful
home-network system providers must develop capabilities that are upward
compatible. A central controller (the brain, microprocessor, switcher, or data
storage device) to capture home-network events and react in conditioned or
learned responses is essential to future product innovation.
The
home-network transport medium of the future will be wireless, as is dictated by
the homeowner's need for flexibility, the moving continuum of product
development, and the high cost and sheer inconvenience of wire-based
installations.
In addition, consumers will require a system that manages
everything within the home, including voice, data, and appliances. Wireless
technology will provide necessary convenience, simplicity, and long-term cost
savings.
