We try to do our best to stay young and millions of baby boomers who are nearing the age of retirement have done a better job of it than any other generation before them. Yet, age is going to slow us down no matter what we do, eventually, we will succumb to it.
In the meanwhile we can do so much to avoid the debilitating effects of aging and do what we can to maintain independence. A company called Blueroof technologies in a joint venture with the local housing authority of McKeesport, PA. has designed and engineered a home it hopes will make life simpler and more convenient for seniors.
A first look at this humble abode and you see a quaint, clean, vinyl clad home on a street in any city. Then you begin to notice some strange apparatuses about. Like the tripod on the roof with devices attached like something from a sci-fi movie. There is a modest front porch and you enter into an open, spacious floor plan. There are two bedrooms and copious numbers of windows that let the sunlight pour in.
Welcome to the experiment. This house is also a laboratory of sorts where numerous tests and experiments are conducted. The participants in the study are also tenants and even more interesting, they are seniors who are chosen specifically by the builder.
The home costs approximately $130,000 construct and it is the number two research home built on the site. It will be the first to actually have people living in it. The house has numerous sensors throughout, motion detectors that are able to track the occupants daily living behavior.
The observers will know when something is accessed, when they turn on the water and when a toilet is flushed. Sensors also monitor the temperature inside and out of the house as well as CO² numbers. Ll things monitored and observed have an interest to the one of the researchers.
The house will also be a testing ground for companies to test various products, like the Bosch Group. It is a proving ground of sorts for various products and technology improvements that will, in the end, make it easier for seniors to enjoy an independent lifestyle, rather than wind up in a nursing home scenario. In concert with Mellon University, technology is being tested that can detect when a resident falls or when they must take medication.
The house has a number of these interesting features already. Baseboards that are illuminated when sensors detect movement nearby, handy when occupants are up during the night. The bathroom is equipped with a non slip floor that can decrease the risk of falls. Sensors on doors and windows add security measures. The house was built so it would not need any form of maintenance for at least ten years. Construction materials outdoors – like for the deck – do not need to be stained or maintained at all and the siding only requires a hosing down occasionally.
The house comes with numerous “green’ amenities. It is well insulated and sealed from the outside air. A specific type of concrete for the foundation absorbs less heat so controlling the homes temperature is more efficient. The home has double paned windows which do a good job of keeping the cold and heat at bay. There are three geo-thermal heat pumps installed to heat and cool the home.
The plan is to build fourteen more homes like this one in what is loosely called the McKeesport Independence Zone. There is a larger, more altruistic goal in mind for these homes other than advancing technology for independent living. The group wants to have nice homes available for some low income senior citizens while improving the neighborhood.
Wed, Nov 18, 2009
Gerontology, Lifestyle, Longevity