Recently I saw a presentation about the future of technologies, and what really caught my interest was how technologies will be incorporated into our homes over the next few years. These technologically-applied homes are also known as smart homes, because many of the appliances use artificial intelligence. Not only can our daily lives be made easier by these smart appliances, but also our health and personal hygiene could be improved.

When I think about the future, I immediately imagine advanced robots. Even though we’re still a long way from full-featured, humanoid-like robots that help around the house, some robotic devices are used frequently nowadays, such as iRobot’s Roomba and Neato, which are autonomous floor cleaners. A one-armed and three-fingered prototype robot was made by scientists in Germany, and this device can pick-up items, tidy up, operate various machines and even serve drinks to guests. It can be controlled through an embedded touchscreen or commanded by voice.

Most people think that smart toilets are only made for the purpose of comfort, but they can also keep track of your health. The smart toilets can perform a urinalysis and inform people if they have or are at risk of diabetes. In the near future these appliances could be able to tell women they are pregnant by analyzing urine, or even that someone has colon cancer by analyzing their stool. In addition to this, a person’s diet can be analysed and evaluated as well. “We’re already at a point where many of us are measuring and recording a number of our health variables,” says technology futurologist Dr. Peter Cochrane. “Eventually everything that goes into our bodies will be analysed for its nutritional content and calorific value. How we expend those calories will also be tracked and, naturally, what comes out will also be analysed.”

Brushing teeth can be annoying or difficult for some people, especially children, so new smart toothbrushes are being developed. One of the most recent advancements in this area is Sonicare for Kids by Philips, a toothbrush using new cutting-edge technology in conjunction with a connected app to motivate children. The future of dental care could include instantaneous communication with dentists and experts.

Smart refrigerators have been around for a few years now. They can keep track of what products are stored in them, and some can even place orders when food is running low, but they could do even more in the future. “In the future they should be able to send you alerts to let you know when food is going off, suggest a nutritionally balanced meal based on what’s inside, and even one that will sync perfectly with your levels of activity and weight-loss goals,” says Mr. McFarlane.

There are many more advanced technologies that could be used in future homes, such as lighting controls, energy efficient tech, smart scales and health-tracking baby monitors, but I’d like to hear what appliances you’d like to use and are excited about, so please leave a comment on the blog so I can see your ideas.

Written by: Meta Milda Runge from Riga, Latvia