Home automation and people with disabilities

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Here’s the medical smart home topic. It might give you some ideas no matter what technology you choose:

In my house, this is what we use:

  1. Smart lights everywhere, mostly $15 Hue White bulbs. These are great. They can be turned on or off in groups, dimmed, controlled by voice or tablet or wall switch. There’s a nice 3 toggle battery operated switch that is really easy to press (my service dog can do it, as can I with the heel of my hand) that costs $50 from SmartenIT and works with any system that uses zigbee HA 1.2. Or you can get the $25 Dimmer switch from Hue, although it doesn’t work with SmartThings. Either of those case be placed lower on the wall also. Anyway, smart lights.

One of the best things is being able to set up a “pathway” through several rooms. As someone in a wheelchair, I can’t just feel my way over to a switch, even if I can use a switch when I get there which I can’t always. So being able to turn on lights on the path from the living room to the bedroom, then turn them off again once I’m in bed, is great.

  1. the front door. I have a combination smart lock for the deadbolt, lever handle. Self locking deadbolt. So everyone else uses a combination. I have a touchless switch or a widget on my phone that unlocks it for me. Love this. I also have a proximity option that I’ve worked on a lot to get it to know me and only me when I’m about 15 feet from the door and unlock it. SmartThings implies they have this standard, but a lot of people, including me, found it didn’t work reliably. (Much discussion in the forums on presence sensors.) Anyway, mine works well now as long as ST doesn’t muck something up on the server side. I don’t need an automatic door opener because my dog does it.

  2. Things that aren’t networked: touchless soap dispenser, trashcan that opens, outdoor path lights set for wheelchair motion detection. All very helpful.

  3. Fancy TV remotes. The main goal is to reduce the number of button presses required, whether it’s on the physical device or the tablet. I really like the Harmony Home remote, but there are other options. Roomie Remote is worth looking at. It’s a totally tablet based system, has official SmartThings integration but also works with a lot of other systems. Costs some money, but if you find tablets usable, lots of options. I’m using voice with Harmony, but Switch Control with Roomie Remote might work well, I’m not sure. Worth looking into.

  4. Security systems. My personal requirements are that the system work even if power and internet are down, that it be professionally monitored, and that it communicate by cellular (not internet) to the monitoring center. All 3 let out SmartThings. I use a separate system that I pay a monthly fee for. I also have a GreatCall splash which has a one button push to have two way voice for their help center. I use this instead of a cell phone for emergencies. But it also has a monthly fee of about $15.

  5. Lifts, etc. I have these, but for technical reasons I wouldn’t hook up any of them to SmartThings even if it was reliable, because ST relies on mesh systems. Stick with hardwire controls. You’ll see all the zwave devices have a warning label: “do not use for medical equipment.” I count lifts in that.

  6. Thermostats. I don’t use a fancy one, but you can find lots of discussion in the forums.

  7. Contact sensors. I have an outer gate, so I use one as a doorbell to give me time to start transferring from the sofa to my wheelchair. I also use them on windows or cabinets in rooms that are hard to get into, so I don’t have to go in just to see if my roommate left the window open. The cleaning service tends to leave the supply cupboard open and I don’t want my dog to get in there, so that has another sensor.

  8. Motion sensors. I use these as touchless switches to turn things on. I don’t have inactivity on a motion sensor turn things off again, though–too often someone is left there in the dark. I’ll set up a second sensor you have to trigger intentionally to turn things off. But that’s just my preference, lots of people are doing fancy things with motion sensors. They’re great for foot switches, btw.

  9. Pressure mats. I don’t have these in this house, but I’ve used them before and you’ll find some forum discussion on them. For example you could have a mat at the bottom of a ramp so that when you roll over it it makes the porch light at the top of the ramp come on. Assuming, again, reliability. But they’re worth keeping in mind.

  10. Video cameras I have one for each yard on my security system, but there are no cameras that integrate well with SmartThings yet. Again, lots of forum discussion on cameras. I find these useful, including to check on the dog when he goes out. If you’re going to use a garage door closer in unattended mode, I highly recommend a camera to view the area before you or anyone else close the door remotely.

  11. video doorbell/intercom I ended up getting the $199 Kuna porch light which had a motion-activated camera, two way audio intercom, and siren. Doesn’t integrate with anything else, but I still really like it. This lets me see who’s at the door and tell them it’s OK to come in if it’s someone with the code.

Well, just some examples. :slight_smile:

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