Disqus - Latest Comments for bmelendez

Re: Lighting Science demos Android @ Home bulbs, promises dead-simple home automation (hands-on)

bmelendez — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 21:18:02 -0000

daaper: Sounds like you are sooooolllldddd on this. Great. Speaking of imagination, how about complete wall AC receptacles that are smart phone controlled? Internet remote access? 900 MHZ, ZigBee or WiFi based? How about knowing the status of any appliance in one's home? www.linkedin.com/in/billmel...

Re: Lighting Science demos Android @ Home bulbs, promises dead-simple home automation (hands-on)

bmelendez — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 21:09:15 -0000

Tigor: The radio chip has a frequency of 433/868/915 MHZ . 868MHZ is the standard frequency used by utilities and AMR systems in Europe. www.linkedin.com/in/billmel...

Re: Zpryme Smart Appliance Report Indicates Paradigm Shift

bmelendez — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:24:43 -0000

Zpryme's report is based on current and projected appliance sales not smart appliance sales since they don't actually exist as of yet. When considering that appliance lifecycle is about 10 years, then the report is less sensational. We all wish that everything reports say is factual, but the truth is that we don't know what the public is going to do and if the other reports on consumer attitudes and lack of understanding of smart grid is any indication, smart appliances may also experience a swim upstream.

Re: Cambridge Consultants develop universal interface for smart meters

bmelendez — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 09:24:45 -0000

I thought smart meters that adhere to the ANSI C12,22 spec do have a common protocol interface. Oh I forget -- not much money in that protocol layer approach! Better to add yet another hardware connector and fight for dominance by bringing on board meter manufacturers. While the ANSI C12.22 doesn’t specify hardware connectivity, my experience shows that interfacing processors is not rocket scientist stuff. Interfaces such as the SPI connector/protocol in U-Snap or any other creates hardware add-ons for latency systems and increase component count in BOMs for new products. Of course if ALL the products out there use the same connectors/protocols, then it is would be a mute point.

Re: It's Better to Sleep with Strangers

bmelendez — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:49:02 -0000

Eric has lightly touched upon a sensitive issue of partnerships. The Push Me Pull You approach to management leads to confusion and a lack of direction. In startups, one head is in fact better than two heads. That is assuming that the one head has the vision and leadership that allows for all others to follow. Friends can work together -- look at HP founders, as long as they compliment each others strengths and weaknesses. Nevertheless friends need to determine early what role they will have in the startup and ensure that proper legal documentation exists delineating those roles and authority. Protecting the new venture is a fiduciary responsibility of the founders and not to be taken lightly.

Re: Regulating Electricity Consumption and Attitude With HEMS Tech

bmelendez — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 15:47:05 -0000

Thanks Miles:

I looked at their website. Good idea. Something to consider when designing our SaaS site. The cost though is designed for established companies with revenue generation or well funded ones. It is like a lot of other sites which we will, as a company, join as members and developers once our funding is in place and our revenue engine is creating cash flow.

By the way, Chikodi did a great job covering us and our vision for reducing global warming/carbon footprint. Sometimes it is best to solve a problem a bit at a time at the grass roots level -- something our product does.