The National Science Day is being celebrated all over India with great enthusiasm on February 28 to commemorate the invention of the Raman Effect in India by Indian physicist Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman on the same day in the year 1928.
For his great success in the field of science in India, CV Raman was awarded and honoured with the Nobel Prize in Physics in the year 1930. The main objective of the day is to bring science in the forefront through celebration of the day, inculcate scientific temper and take pride in the scientific achievements of the country. The theme of the day for this year is “Make in India: S and T driven innovations.”
Smart Architecture consists mainly of examples of new ideas on planning, building and construction and the application of intelligent systems. It offers an integral solution to a variety of design challenges: the environmental problem, the optimal use of space and other resources, a functional utilisation of materials and technology. Four key aspects characterising a Smart Architecture are, a communication network through which different devices talk to each other, intelligent controls to manage the system, sensors that collect information and smart features, which respond to information from sensors or user instructions as well as to the system provider or remote control appliances.
A Smart Building is designed to optimise usage of energy and water, and to minimize environmental impact. Automation systems in such buildings provide visibility and control of their energy usage, safety and security. In addition, these buildings interact intelligently with a Smart City infrastructure such as the city transportation, smart grid, water and waste management systems, telecom infrastructure and other ICT enhanced services. Building Automation systems shall not only help in conserving energy but also help in reducing man power requirements for operation and maintenance without compromising on quality of services.
The smart building involves the use of integrated technological building systems, communications and controls to create a building and its infrastructure which provides the owner, operator and occupant with an environment which is flexible, effective, comfortable and secure. A smart building is equipped with a communications network, linking sensors, domestic appliances, and other electronic and electric devices, that can be remotely monitored, accessed or controlled and which provide services that respond to the needs of its inhabitants.
Smart features as Building Automation Systems like, smart heating systems that adjust automatically to external temperature, which respond to information from sensors or user instructions as well as to the system provider such as remote control of appliances. This also includes security (surveillance and access control), and Fire/life/Safety (FlS) systems. leading building automation providers already have state of the art computer based software controlled systems for building management.
Most manufacturers of major building automation systems offer computer based, software driven systems, based on distributed processing architectures. These systems are required to interface with other building automation systems and devices, and also to interface with, data, lAN and video systems located within a building or campus. The buildings power systems can be brought down considerably by the integration of smart technology in building design.
In cities, street lighting equals 40 per cent of the electricity bill of municipalities. A smart lighting approach helps cities to reduce energy and maintenance costs through a common network infrastructure. The technology includes energy efficient lights (lED or equivalent) with wireless controllers, remotely manageable streetlights and network for connectivity, light management systems, and maintenance system to view the operational status of lights.
Water can often be one of the city’s most stressed resources, where access to clean water affects economic activity, development and business. Challenges include better management of supply and distribution. Intelligent water management solutions use instrumentation such as metering systems and analytics to better manage the demand and supply. For example, they can anticipate potential delivery disruption, better forecast long-term demand, and coordinate resources to protect water supply. Furthermore, intelligent water management solutions provide insights into the utility’s infrastructure, assets and operations - detecting patterns and anomalies and then acting on them. Such capabilities include pressure and leak management, flood management, sewer overflow mitigation, quality management, and work scheduling.
Traffic congestion affects commerce, safety and the environment. Intelligent transportation solutions are designed with the purpose of reducing traffic congestion, improving incident response, optimising traffic flow and proactively manage traffic conditions. They achieve this through live traffic monitoring, analysis and prediction capabilities, by leveraging data from disparate sources, such as IP cameras, radar and under-road loop detectors on a common city network infrastructure.
Smart parking approach to city parking takes full advantage of the common network infrastructure. The technology combines IP cameras, sensors, smart phone apps, and the citywide network infrastructure to provide parking availability to citizens in real time. The system also provides greater visibility into parking analytics, such as usage and vacancy periods, so cities can make better informed decisions and long-term plans.
The city of Bhubaneswar, as the administrative, economic and cultural capital for the State of Odisha, demands transformation of temple city to Smart City. In the Smart City Stage 1 competition, Bhubaneswar obtained 75 score and shortlisted and qualified for stage 2 challenge. Bhubaneswar participated in the stage 2, the challenge round for selection. In the winning city proposal Bhubaneswar got the score of 78.83 points and topped the list. After selection of the cities in stage II of the challenge, the process of implementation will start with the setting up of the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) created for the purpose.
The Smart Cities depend on Smart Architecture and Smart City planning. By using resources in a sustainable manner, assisted by smart technologies, cities can minimise impacts on the environment and be responsive to the needs of the poor and vulnerable. It is critical to provide policies, plans, norms and rules that respond to the current needs of municipalities to cope up with the rapid urban growth that cities are experiencing. To fulfil the goal, there is a requirement of involvement of citizens in decision-making processes. New ways of reengineering cities to make them smart, responsive, competitive and equitable would require new forms of governance. Public private partnerships and citizen participation is highly needed for application of Smart Architecture and smart technology in city planning. Besides participation would be meaningful only if everyone has access to knowledge and information.
Smart Architecture must be timely prepared and effectively implemented in the public interest. People centric technological applications will fulfil the aspirations of every individual to fulfil the
dream of a Smart City, Bhubaneswar in future. This will facilitate smart living and improve quality of life of the people and bring environmental benefits.
(Dr Praharaj teaches at the Department of Architecture, College of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar)