Smart wireless power outlets

Soon there will be no need for special timers to switch lighting on and off or operate household appliances when the homeowner is absent. In future, all this could be done by means of a smart phone or PC thanks to internet-enabled wireless power outlets that support the new IPv6 internet protocol.

The table lamp can be switched on and off by means of a smartphone app – thanks to the HexaBus wireless power outlet. © Fraunhofer ESK

The smart socket was developed by researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Communication Systems ESK in Munich in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics (ITWM) in Kaiserslautern and the industrial partner Embedded Brains GmbH.

''We have been able to connect the power outlets wirelessly using the IPv6 protocol,'' says ESK research engineer Günter Hildebrandt. ''All household appliances plugged in one of the sockets can be switched on and off remotely using an IPv6-compatible device such as a smart phone or laptop PC – from anywhere.''

The wireless power outlets are a component of the HexaBus home automation system that was developed by the ITWM as part of the mySmartGrid project (www.mysmartgrid.de).

''The HexaBus components make the smart home of the future a reality. They enable household appliances to be controlled intelligently, thus optimising or reducing electricity consumption. For example, the householder can start the washing machine during cheap-rate off-peak hours, or run the dishwasher when the photovoltaic panels on the roof are generating sufficient power,'' says industrial engineer Mathias Dalheimer of the ITWM, who leads the SmartGrid project and is its chief programmer.

Intelligent control and of power use