The huge clock in the large living room chimed like a church bell six times; a sombre voice announcing the time. The curtains and the Venetian blinds cleared by themselves letting the first rays of the sun into the Gothic-styled room. The lights from the chandeliers and the muted stained glass shades turned themselves off. So it was daybreak, yet another morning had dawned. All of a sudden, the music system placed next to William's bed turned itself on. So did the coffee-maker in the cosy kitchenette. And the toaster, after the automated bread box moved nearer to dole out bread slices. William stretched himself lazily, reluctant to step out of his cosy warm world. "Do I have to actually step out for coffee?" he asked, even as a voice-perceptive robot took the cue and walked towards him with the cup that cheers.

This is a not a scene out of a sci-fi Asimov novel nor a futuristic movie flick. It's a sign of things to come. In fact, a technology which has already come ...home. Well almost. Smarthome. That's what the people at Control Solutions, a Bangalore-based software firm, calls the technology that makes this possible. Control Solutions, which has expertise in Intelligent Building management System (IBMS) solutions for the frameworks of construction projects, now offers simple, "connected home" solutions for homebuilders and new homebuyers.

On offer is an Internet-ready, connected home, a home that thinks! If you think that's a bit too much, think about this. Whether you are at office miles apart from home, or on a family holiday abroad, you can switch on and off the lights, water the garden and keep a check on the inside, and give it a lived-in look, right from your laptop or a PC with internet access! It is as simple as that.

In fact, Sathyanarayanan, President, Control Solutions, protests mildly when you call his product futuristic. "Certainly not. Imagine you are in one of those parties you have got to attend a dozen times a month. You would prefer a home-cooked meal to all those junk food piled on to the dishes. Just log on to your laptop and switch on your ricecooker and perhaps even the geyser for a hot bath just after you arrive home. Saves you the hassle of waiting for the food to get cooked or water to get warm after you step in. Doesn't this sound a real scenario?"

Real is what Sathyanarayanan is stressing on. With the increasing internet access, higher bandwidth, intelligent homes are definitely happening now. And what's more, it's a technology that is simple and easy to install. As Sathya says, "The process of converting a dumb house into a smart home is very simple. All that you would need is a PC with a cable modem connection and a microprocessor-based control panel. This is, in turn, linked to the electrical points in the house." Smarthome basically has a blackbox (akin to the one on flights) which connects all the appliances and records the necessary parameters. This can be done by setting an address on a module which is then linked to the appliance.

Once installed, the smart home will have an IP (internet protocol) address and graphical software, which can be accessed from anywhere in the world. Wherever you are, you can turn on the internet, go to the IP address, enter your password (mastercode given to you) and actually see your house on the screen through the various appliances you have linked up. In fact, if you have a web camera placed in strategic locations, you can watch inside your home: whether the new baby-sitter that you brought in is looking after your kid well, if your aged mother is doing fine, if your home is safe from the prying eyes of dreaded burglars...even as you sit at your tour site miles away. The possibilities are just immense.

"In fact, we have looked at the twin aspects of safety and comfort, while devising this technology," says Sathya. The technology entails passing on information on the powerline carrier communication used by the regional electricity board. All the info is stored in the computer interface. To sum up, it makes for an intelligent and automated home at a low cost, easy-to-instal and easy-to-use mode. It combines easily installable CD software and hardware and works with the computer to run customised appliances.

Sathyanarayanan, President, Control Solutions

What you can do with a SmartHome:

• Control appliances: You can turn on/off electrical appliances connected to SmartHome via your PC/laptop, such as the television, fan, VCR, AC, video games, electric drapes, music system, electric cooker etc. So no more feeling helpless whether you forgot to switch off the iron box or geyser. It can even control your garage door, pumps, battery recharger etc.
• Set lighting: You can program room lights to switch on/off when the doors are opened/closed, or outdoor lights as soon as dusk sets in, so that the house doesn't look dark even when you are not in, sparking ideas in a burglar's mind. One can even connect driveway lights to sense approaching cars/bikes and turn on!
• Make your home secure: No matter where you are, you can be alerted of fire intrusions, gas leaks, a house break-in etc. You can even program your light and sound equipment to make an empty house seem occupied. In fact, in the case of an eventuality, your system can contact you over phone, with full speech messaging (two-way communication), on up to eight different phone numbers.
• Access phone: You can also call your phone and check on the status of your house through the PC and accordingly, control lighting, room temperature etc.
• Have help at hand: A useful device activated by Smarthome is the 'panic switch' which can be placed next to your bed. In case of any emergency, medical or otherwise, when this is pressed, an auto-dialer calls up pre-programmed numbers and informs friends/relatives of the crisis back home. The message can even be repeated to four different locations. This facility can be reassuring for those who leave behind aged parents/relatives back home.

These factors apart, with such a modern house, one can also make a lifestyle statement! Thus, SmartHome networks the entire range of utility services like water, electricity, security and appliances on a computerised panel, which has features like modem-interface, voice dial-up, PC-connectivity and a voice-assisted menu (though it has an American accent, exclaims Sathya!) It's almost like dialling 131 for your railway reservation menu, he says. The entire applications software is Windows-enabled and based on the x10 technology.

How much would all this cost, you ask Sathya. "Anywhere between Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 7.5 lakh, depending on the number of electrical points you want to be linked to the internet," he answers. "However, we are scouting for tie-ups with financial institutions to work out a package that will make the concept affordable for the Indian market," he adds. "In fact, to make a `dumb' home `smart', we even volunteer to take care of covering all the points that have been broken to accommodate the module wires etc. We will cover it up and clean up all the mess. You have to do nothing but open your purse!"

Chips in his friend Shripadh Seshadri, "One can apply this technology to office buildings too. For instance, you can control the entire lighting and security system of a 16-floor building with your PC. Imagine condensing the entire intelligence of a building in a CPU and controlling it with a click!" In fact, one can even have an unmanned RFM (Remote Facility Management), but Sathya clarifies, "Nowhere are we trying to remove the human interface."

So who are their target markets? "Top-end market like CEOs, IT professionals and the upper middle classes. And since Bangalore is the hub of MNC firms that are already aware of the IBMS concept, consequently spawning more software crowds, we realised that there is a market here for intelligent homes." Sure, talk of homes with IQ.