International Symposium on Electrical and Electronics Engineering – ISEEE-2016, Galati, Romania
Intelligent House with PLC
Holovatec Cristi Florin
Abstract – With the development of new electronic
technologies a dwelling it can be transformed in a smart
house easily by using a PLC. By interconnecting and
automation of all electric devices from a dwelling, it leads to
easier control and monitoring of them and increase quality
of life for persons.
Index Terms – home automation, domotics, intelligent
house, smart house, PLC, user, lighting control, security
control and air conditioning unit.
I.INTRODUCTION
First Project for a Smart House was initiated in the
early 1980’s as a project of the National Association of
Home Builders with the cooperation of a collection of
major industrial partners. The "smart house" technology
is one realization of home automation ideals using a
specific set of technologies that responds to the dweller’s
needs and desires as adjusting lighting, temperature,
starting of appliances at a certain time, even ambient
music.
The basic idea of home automation is to employ
sensors and control systems to monitor a dwelling, and
accordingly adjust the various mechanisms that provide
heat, ventilation, lighting, and other services. By more
closely tuning the dwelling’s mechanical systems to the
dweller’s needs, the automated "intelligent" home can
provide a safer, more comfortable, and more economical
dwelling. For example, the electronic controller of an
automated home can determine when the dwellers have
gone to bed and turn off the lights and lower the
thermostat; it can monitor burglar and fire alarms; it can
anticipate hot water usage and optimize the operation of
the water heater.
Home automation (also called domotics) is the
residential extension of "building automation". It is
automation of the home, housework or household
activity. Home automation may include centralized
control of lighting, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air
conditioning), appliances, and other systems, to provide
improved convenience, comfort, energy efficiency and
security. Home automation for the elderly and disabled
can provide increased quality of life for persons who
might otherwise require caregivers or institutional care.
A home automation system integrates electrical
devices in a house with each other. The techniques
employed in home automation include those in building
automation as well as the control of domestic activities
and the use of domestic robots.
Typically, a new home is outfitted for home
automation during construction, due to the accessibility
of the walls, outlets, and storage rooms, and the ability to
make design changes specifically to accommodate certain
technologies.
Although automated homes of the future have been
exhibited for World's Fairs and have popular
backgrounds in science fiction, the complexity, the
competition between vendors, the multiple incompatible
standards and the resulting expenses have limited the
penetration of home automation to homes of the wealthy
or ambitious hobbyists.
II. The Birth of PLC
The early history of the PLC goes back to the 1960’s
when control systems were still handled using relay
control. During this time the control rooms consisted of
several walls containing many relays, terminal blocks and
mass of wires.
Back then the problems that the technicians and
control engineers faced continuously wre:
- the lackof flexibility to expand the process, as well
as the inordinate amount of time needed to adjust the
process when changes were needed.
- troubleshooting which covered from dirty contacts,
loose wires, outdated prints on the terminal blocks with
informal nomenclature, to cryptic connection
documentation. In 1968 Bill Stone, who was part of a
group of engineers at the Hydramatic Division of General
Motors Corporation presented a design criteria developed
by the GM engineers for a “standard machine controller”.
According to the criteria developed, the early model
of this machine not only had to eliminate costly
scrapping of assembly-line relays during model
changeovers and replace unreliable electromechanical
relays, but also:
- Extend the advantages of static circuits to 90% of the
machines in the plant.
- Reduce machine downtime related to controls
problems, easily maintained and programmed in line with
already accepted relay ladder logic.
- Provide for future expansion, it had to be modular to
allow for easy ex-change of components and
expandability.
- It had to work in an industrial environment with all
it’s dirt, moisture, electromagnetism and vibration.
- Include full logic capabilities, except for data
reduction functions.
 International Symposium on Electrical and Electronics Engineering – ISEEE-2016, Galati, Romania

III. THE SYSTEM A application for smart home with PLC can be
controlled by using computer, mobile diveces and
The elements of a domotics system are: operator panels via the Internet. Apllication is composed
- Sensors. Is a device that measures a physical
of two parts, software and hardware.
quantity and converts it into a signal which can be read
by an observer or by an instrument. It can be used to get
informations about temperature, umidity, noise, face
recognition, someone present.
- Actuators. is a mechanical device for moving or
controlling a mechanism or system. It is operated by a
source of energy, usually in the form of an electric
current, hydraulic fluid pressure or pneumatic pressure,
and converts that energy into some kind of motion.
- PLC. A Programmable Logic Controller is an
industrial computer control system that continuously
monitors the state of input devices and makes decisions
based upon a custom program to control the state of
output deveces.
Almost any process can be greatly enhanced using this
type of control system. However, the biggest benefit in
using a PLC is the ability to change and replicate the
operation or process while collecting and communicating
vital information.
Another advantage of a PLC system is that it is
modular, you can mix and match the types of Input and
Output devices to best suit your application.
There are four basic steps in the operation of all PLC:
Input Scan, Program Scan, Output Scan and
Housekeeping. These steps continually take place in a
repeating loop.
The four steps in the PLC operations:
1. Input Scan: detects the state of all input devices that
are connected to the PLC.
2. Program Scan: execute the user created program logic.
3. Output Scan: energizes or de-energize all output
devices that are connected to the PLC.
4. Housekeeping: this step includes communications with
programming terminals, internal diagnostics, etc.

Fig.2. The block diagram of smar home system.

In the following we will se an application with PLC

Fig.1. The basic steps of a process.
for a smart house, infrastructure of this application of
smart home hardware consist of Delta DVP28SV modul
PLC, DVPEN01-SL Ethernet module, DOP-AS35THTD
touch operator panel, sensors, actuators and electronic
circuits. For the application, 7 out of 16 digital inputs of
the PLC and 11 out of 12 digital outputs are used. Block
 International Symposium on Electrical and Electronics Engineering – ISEEE-2016, Galati, Romania

diagram of PLC module is shown in Figure 3, while the Units controlled in the smart home system are divide
inputs/outputs of the PLC used are shown in Table 1. into 3 as lighting control, security control and air
conditioning unit. Controls of these units are carried out
by the operator panel connected to mobile devices and
the PLC via the Ethernet module connected to the PLC.
Through the lighting unit are controlled living room,
bedroom, kitchen and hall lights. When the system is
turned on, lighting data of rooms are read and written to
the database, and then transferred to the user interface so
that the user can observe the current situation of rooms
and changes in the state of the lights. In the energy-
saving mode, thanks to the sensors, lights in unused
rooms are automatically turned off.
In safety unit, when a signal is detected by gas and
smoke sensors placed in the smart home, they run the
alarm circuitry and information for the user is provided
on the user interface. When a intruder is detected by the
motion sensor placed in the hallway, pictures are taken
by the camera and sent into e-mail of the user or another
predefined address, and information is given in the user
interface. With the sensor placed to the gate of the house,
intrusions from the entrance door are detected and the
alarm circuitry is activated.
Air-conditioning unit is a control method carried out
in order to ensure the comfort of home residents. With
the temperature sensor capable of measuring temperature
between -55°C and +150°C placed on the smart house,
Fig.3. PLC module block diagram. the temperature of the house is measured in real time and
transferred to the user interface. The user can set home
Table 1 PLC Outputs and Inputs temperature to any value. The coolant is activated when
Inputs Tasks Outputs Tasks the home temperature is above the value set, and the
X0 Living Room Y0 Living Room heater is activated when it falls below it.
(Lighting Control) (Lighting Control) In order to perfom controls mentioned above,
X1 Bedroom Y1 Bedroom active/passive setting on PLC inputs and outputs must be
(Lighting Control) (Lighting Control) made.
X2 Kitchen Y2 Kitchen
(Lighting Control) (Lighting Control)
X3 Hall Y3 Kitchen
(Lighting Control) (Lighting Control)
X4 Entrance Door Y4 Saving Mode
(Security Control) (Lighting Control)
X5 Gas and Smoke Y5 Alarm
(Security Control) (Security Control)
X6 Motion Sensor Y6 Heater
(Security Control) (Ventilation
Control)
X7 Temperature Y7 Cooler
(Ventilation (Ventilation
Control) Control)
X9 - Y11 Motion Sensor
(Security Control)
X10 - Y12 Gas and Smoke Fig.4. A general view of smart home system.
(Security Control)
X11 - Y13 Entrance Door 1. PC
(Security Control) 2. Web Camera
 International Symposium on Electrical and Electronics Engineering – ISEEE-2016, Galati, Romania
3. Electronic circuits control cards
4. Relays
5. Supply of electronic circuits cards
6. PLC power supply
7. DVPEN01-SL Ethernet module
8. DVP28SV model PLC
9. DVP04AD-S analog module
10. Smart home prototype
11. Modem
12. DOP-AS35THTD operator board
IV. OVERVIEW AND BENEFITS
A principal benefit claimed for the Smart House
technology is safety. With current technology, electric
power is provided to all appliances that are plugged into a
wall outlet. Cutting a wire, inserting a screwdriver into a
wall outlet, or a fault inside the appliance can result in a
severe electric shock. The Smart House, in contrast,
provides power only to outlets that have appliances
plugged in and turned on, and the smart house controllers
monitor the circuit, disconnecting power at the first
indication of a short circuit or other failure. In addition,
when sensors detect gas and water leaks, smoke, and
other abnormal conditions the electronic controllers can
shut down the appropriate devices and trigger the alarm.
A second benefit is convenience. Smart House
technology can automatically control the temperature,
humidity, and lighting in the dwelling, on a room by
room basis.
A third benefit is economy. The Smart House
technology would adjust the power supplied to each
appliance according to need. In the traditional scheme,
each appliance is provided with sufficient power to
provide for its peak use. In addition, the Smart House
controllers could schedule the operation of heavy power
consuming appliances (such as dishwashers, electric
water heaters, and air conditioners) to take maximum
advantage of off-peak electric rates. These adjustments
could result in lower utility costs.
A great deal of groundwork has been done to
coordinate the building industry infrastructure in
preparation for bringing Smart House technology to
market. Whether Smart House and other home
automation technologies succeed at changing standard
residential construction, or not, it is clear that at least
some of the innovations are already entering the
marketplace, even in fragmentary forms. For example,
ground fault interrupted circuits, which detect an electric
shock incident (a "ground fault") and shuts down
immediately, are now commonly used in bathrooms,
kitchens, and in outside outlets. Likewise, telephone,
television, and other communication services are
undergoing tremendous changes and this will no doubt
affect the way these services are delivered inside the
dwelling. In some instances, third-party vendors sell the
sensors and controller units to connect the security
system, lights, telephone, and other devices to a personal
computer. For example, these devices allow the
homeowner to call home and instruct the computer to
"turn on the oven at 4 PM and heat up the hot tub."
With the invention of the microcontroller, the cost of
electronic control fell rapidly. Remote and intelligent
control technologies were adopted by the building
services industry and appliance manufacturers
worldwide, as they offer the end user easily accessible
and/or greater control of their products.
As the number of controllable appliances in the home
rises, the ability of these devices to interconnect and
communicate with each other digitally, becomes a useful
and desirable feature. The consolidation of control or
monitoring signals from appliances, fittings or basic
services is an aim of home automation.
In simple installations this may be as straightforward
as turning on the lights when a person enters the room. In
advanced installations, rooms can sense not only the
presence of a person inside but know who that person is
and perhaps set appropriate lighting, temperature, music
levels or television channels, taking into account the day
of the week, the time of day, and other factors.
Other automated tasks may include setting the air
conditioning to an energy saving setting when the house
is unoccupied, and restoring the normal setting when an
occupant is about to return. More sophisticated systems
can maintain an inventory of products, recording their
usage through bar codes, or an radio-frequency
identification (RFID) tag, and prepare a shopping list or
even automatically order replacements.
Home automation can also provide a remote interface
to home appliances or the automation system itself, via
telephone line, wireless transmission or the internet, to
provide control and monitoring via a smart phone or web
browser.
References
[1] http://www.smartcomputing.com/editorial/article.asp?article=arti
cles%2F1995%2Fmar95%2Fpcn0323%2Fpcn0323.asp
[2] "About Us". http://www.insteonsmartgrid.com/About-Us.html.
[3] Allen, Edward, Ed. (1974). The Responsive House. Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press, 1975
[4] Negroponte, Nicholas. Soft Architecture Machines. Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press, 1975
[5] Smith, Ralph L. Smart House: the Coming Revolution in
Housing. Columbia, MD: GP Publishing, 1988
[6] http://en.wikipedia.org
[7]http://www.control.lth.se/media/Education/DoctorateProgram/2012/
HistoryOfControl/Vanessa_Alfred_report.pdf
[8] http://www.amci.com/tutorials/tutorials-what-is-programmable-
logic-controller.asp
[9]http://www.uniobuda.hu/journal/Bingol_Tasdelen_Keskin_Kocaturk
_49.pdf
[10] http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=270514
[11] http://www.amci.com/tutorials/tutorials-what-is-programmable-
logic-controller.asp
[12]http://www.control.lth.se/media/Education/DoctorateProgram/2012
/HistoryOfControl/Vanessa_Alfred_report.pdf