Convenience Comes to Life on The Continent

A Baguette, Some Wine, and a Safe, Controlled Living Environment
Life in France gets better every day, more and more "smart" apartment buildings are opening their doors. These state-of-the-art complexes provide the convenience and safety needed by modern day multi-tenant building dwellers, plus the control infrastructure so necessary to building management and service suppliers.

SILD, a joint venture of Schlumberger Industries and Lyonnaise des Eaux-Dumez, began automating such buildings in 1992. Meeting requirements for automated comfort control, energy management, indoor and outdoor communications, remote meter reading, plus access control and other security features, demanded a flexible, yet low-cost technology. And SILD had less than a year to develop and deploy systems, in order to fend off competition from two government-subsidized contenders.

The (Contemporary) French Connection

Bernard Jeantet, SILD's President and CEO, chose carefully and wisely. After a detailed analysis of no less than seven competing methodologies, he selected LonWorks technology as the basis for his building control solution, dubbed "TIPI." The TIPI product line today consists of four different LonWorks based control modules: a Building Module, governing the whole building; a Technical Module, providing remote access to equipment; a Doorway Module, for access security; and a Housing Module, to control individual apartment environments. And the key element in each and every module is a Neuron Chip, integrating three microprocessors, memory, interface electronics, operating system, and a seven layer communication protocol, to help ensure interoperability among the TIPI building blocks.

"We are convinced that the cost of the Neuron Chip, its ease of use, and its flexibility will open a broad market for automation products in homes and buildings everywhere in the world," notes Jeantet. "Combining security, communication, and comfort inside a home is now possible at an extremely attractive cost."

TIPI Life Never so Luxurious
It all begins with the TIPI Housing Module, an aesthetically pleasing and user-friendly device installed in individual apartments. This module offers a variety of services such as temperature management, voice messages, a simulated occupancy function, anti-intrusion alarm, distress calls, a hands-free intercom, and environmental fault detection, all from a single control point.

Outside each building entrance is a TIPI Doorway Module, a waterproof, fireproof, shockproof, tamperproof unit permitting direct communication with individual apartments. It incorporates a keypad for entering a personal entry code, issuing system commands, and searching residents' names to select and call specific parties. It also houses a CCD video camera for remote observation, and controls entrance hall lighting. Individual occupants can determine those persons allowed to enter, as well as selecting free access periods. Such functions - all operating parameters which are remotely accessible - contribute to improvements in both resident security and property protection for building owners.

The TIPI Building Module provides the overall system with a centralized data management service and monitoring site. Designed as a rugged, high availability component, it receives, stores, and sends voice messages for the residents; monitors the building's overall network operation; manages external communication; creates and updates logbooks for the manager, residents, and suppliers; and processes and transmits alarms.

The fourth component, the TIPI Technical Module, allows remote access to such building services as monitoring, network management, and maintenance of technical equipment, often a key to reducing costs and improving comfort and security. Service providers can tele-access heating systems, elevators, utility meters (water, gas, electricity), and the like. Due to the variety in both type and location of such hardware, the Technical Module is designed as a simple and rugged unit that can be installed close to the equipment yet still be connected to the network.

And all TIPI services are available from the moment a resident moves in.

Flexibility a Key to Success
The TIPI solution has succeeded in both the new construction and retro-fit markets, in traditional residential buildings and those designed for students or the elderly. Its use of LonWorks technology guarantees the flexibility necessary for fast customized designs. It also means being able to keep costs low, staying abreast of technological evolution, and taking advantage of a host of existing peripherals and software programs.

"LonWorks technology allowed us to develop our new system in less than one year, at a cost far below any alternative," recalls Jeantet. "SILD had their system installed in time - and well ahead of the competition." Clearly, today's several dozen buildings (some with hundreds of apartments) are only the beginning.

The Building Backbone

The network communication cable for the TIPI system consists of four twisted-pair wires. One of these supports LonWorks communication at 78 kbits/s, using Echelon's FTT and LPT transceivers. The second carries an audio channel, used for intercom and voice message transmissions. The remaining two are for special applications, such as the video camera option.

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