Neural Networks In The Home?

Hougaard asks: "I'm investigating the use of neural networks in homes for a architectual project. Do you have a neural network that controls the light or the temperature in your home? Do you want one? What other features would you like to have in a real intelligent home? How should you learn and train the network? A remote with a 'Good' and 'Bad' buttons or something completly different? The only real life example I have found is the use of neural networks in elevators to predict elevator traffic. Yes I know that Cisco and others have the 'Internet House' - but that is just a home with a network - not really a revolution - and not very intelligent."

Comments

I don't think it would be a good idea

[Flavio]

Neural nets usually work well in areas where conventional binary logic fails. Text, image and speech recognition are examples.

A neural net in your home would, in my opinion, be too complex to bother with. Neural nets are self programmed through experience to perform choices that aren't easy to define in computer code.

For example, some time ago there was this slasdot post about a program which supposedly recognizes "innapropriate" images (i.e., porn). It can be used in web proxies, for example. The program didn't perform very well (in my opinion, it failed miserably, as the task is extremely difficult).

A very complex neural net could theoretically learn from experience to recognize the difference between a naked baby and two people having sex. You can't program such a net by hand because there are so many neurons involved and influencing other neurons in ways so complex you can't even imagine.

Now why would you want to use that to switch/dim lights in a house? The net could learn your behavior through experience at first, for example. It could have this "learn mode", much like smart network switches do. The net itself would be useless at this point, and it would record what you do at particular times of the day and perhaps make notes on your moods and act accordingly. After this learning period it would do things on itself and be corrected if the choice was incorrect. But hey, I really don't think you need the black magic that neurons give you to notice that.

The bottom line is that people are usually very predictable. Neural nets are great when nuances from an objective POV are fundamental (like position/density of beige colors in an image as an indicator of porn) and this doesn't seem to be the case.

Flavio

neural-network wants

[buss_error]

I want one that uses a pnumatic ram to toss salesmen off my property, after they ignore the 8"x11" NO SOLICITING THIS MEANS YOU sign.

One that can sense when I bring a visitor home and clean up real quick.

One that uses a deep booming voice to say "THAT SCUM IS SCAMMING YOU!" when the A/C repairman says my unit will colapse into dust in four seconds, posining my family and pets.

I want one that will project a hologram of Satan when Jehova's witnesses come around, or one of an avenging angel when satanist's come knocking.

One that will order booze when I'm low and send the bill to M$.

One with a radio control unit built in to mow the lawn.

Scans my e-mail and ZOT's spammers, then delete the e-mail.

Seriously, I don't know the relm of possibility with neural-networks. Haven't looked at 'em, don't know what's possible and what isn't. Guess I need to start looking around for info....