Techniques for distributed intelligence and Internet connectivity on home automation networks

Home Automation introduces a range of interesting problems in distributed intelligence. In a home network consumer appliances are interconnected in an arbitrary manner by the end user. Each appliance must be capable of establishing its own network connection, configuring itself without user intervention and of interacting with other unknown devices on the home network. Furthermore, if a home network is to be connected to an external wide-area-network, such as the Internet, then the collective group of intelligences which form the home network must be marshaled into a coherent entity. This can be most easily achieved through a three-tier software architecture for home gateways.