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Home automation heats up--will energy services follow?

AT&T has acquired home automation company Xanboo, part of a spate of activity which could lead to energy management services from broadband providers.

Xanboo provides homeowners with a system for managing connected devices, such as security cameras and controllers, from a smartphone, TV, or PC. CEPro reported the acquisition yesterday (hat tip to Earth2Tech).

The deal follows Motorola's announcement last week that it has bought home automation company 4Home, in which Verizon also had invested. Earlier this year, iControl and uControl merged their product offerings, which are expected to be used as part of Comcast's Xfinity home security service.

Internet broadband providers are pushing into home automation to expand their product offerings as a way to retain customers. They expect that consumers will be willing to pay for security services, where people can access cameras and door alarms from a PC, TV, or smartphone.

One of the services broadband providers have explored with home automation is energy management, which would give consumers a way to monitor electricity use and control electronics from a Web-enabled device or TV.

Verizon, for example, has talked about offering a combined energy and security service, although it has yet to roll it out. The idea would be that a person could use a device, such as touch-screen display, to change home settings. For example, when leaving, a person can turn on the security and adjust the thermostat and lighting. … Read more

Texas project to put green products to the test

"Green" manufacturers and technology companies are stampeding to find a home in a proposed Texas development that will put the water- and energy-saving devices of tomorrow to the test in a real-world urban setting.

Texas A&M University System and a Dallas-area developer are creating a $127 million commercial and residential "incubator" where cutting-edge sensors will monitor data on everything from light bulbs to appliances and toilets.

Companies like General Electric, Philips Electronics, Owens Corning, LG Electronics and Kimberly-Clark are lining up to test their products in the proposed Urban Living Laboratory.

The 73-acre site, … Read more

Hertz adds more EV options

Starting in 2011, Hertz will offer a total of 100 Coda EV sedans to its California rental fleet, the company announced Tuesday.

Coda's four-door sedan gets between 90 and 120 miles on a single charge, and can be plugged in to a standard household outlet as well as a fast-charging EV station.

The deal is part of the Hertz Global EV program, in which the company plans over a period of time to add all-electric vehicle options, EV charging stations, and a car-sharing program to its existing rental car business.

In February, Hertz announced it was partnering with … Read more

Walgreens to host EV charging stations

The Walgreens pharmacy chain will offer rapid-charging EV stations at 18 Houston-area stores next year, through a partnership with power utility NRG Energy.

NRG's eVgo Network(pronounced ee-vee-go), one of the first commercial electric-vehicle-charging networks to launch in the U.S., will initially consist of over 100 charging stations and cost NRG about $10 million in infrastructure investment.

The eVgo Network will be rolled out in early 2011 throughout Houston and Harris County, Texas, and include two types of facilities, as well as two types of EV charging stations.

The eVgo network will be an integration of both Level … Read more

Think City introductory price: $34,000

Automaker Think plans to introduce its all-electric Think City car in mid-2011 at a price of $34,000 before incentives, the company's chief marketing officer announced via a Monday interview with blog PluginCars.com.

Think CMO Michael Lock said he is under no illusions about the company's place in the U.S. car market. He said Think's management does not expect the average American family to replace its combustion engine car with a small electric vehicle. It does believe, however, that the urban family will consider buying the Think City as a second car, with which to … Read more

Prius tops in fuel efficiency for 2011 cars

The Toyota Prius has nabbed the top spot once again on the U.S. government's guide to fuel efficient cars.

Earning a rating of 51 miles per gallon for city driving and 48 mpg on the highway, the 2011 Toyota Prius was named the most fuel efficient vehicle by the Fuel Economy Guide 2011, which is produced jointly by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency.

The Ford Fusion Hybrid, the Mercury Milan Hybrid, and the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid tied for second place with all of them getting a fuel efficiency rating of 41 city mpg and 36 … Read more

U.S. gov't awards $2.4 billion for high-speed rail

The U.S. government awarded $2.4 billion in funding last week to 54 railroad projects across 23 states in the U.S.

This latest round of funding is in addition to the $8 billion that was awarded in January as part of the comprehensive public works project to construct the "first nationwide program of high-speed intercity passenger rail service."

The funds are going toward new railroad lines and stations, as well as efforts to update and refurbish existing ones to coalesce with the high-speed plan announced in January as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

In this round of funding, Florida received $800 million to build a high-speed railroad connecting Tampa and Orlando with train speeds reaching up to 168 mph at some points along the route, making the trip under an hour compared with 90 minutes by car. The state's ultimate plan is to extend the line from Orland down to Miami, according to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA).

Iowa received $230 million to hook into a new intercity passenger service that would connect Iowa City to Chicago and points in between.

California, known for its heavy traffic congestion, received $901 million, of which $715 million will be spent on a new high-speed railroad across its Central Valley. The state's ultimate goal is to have a high-speed passenger service reaching speeds of 220 mph at some points between San Francisco and Los Angeles that would run 2 hours 40 minutes compared with 6 hours by car, according to FRA statistics.… Read more

Chicken manure to help power U.K. homes

The picturesque Cotswolds of England will soon be using those lovely animals dotting its hillsides to provide power to some of its homes.

A turnkey biogas station made by Alfagy plans to convert agricultural waste, including both feedstock and manure, into electricity.

The plant, which is scheduled to open November 1, is located on the southern outskirts of Cirencester, an ancient Cotswolds town famous for being a thriving mercantile city during the Roman Empire. But Alfagy says the station could reduce at least two of the area's current imports by using what its people have on hand.

While there … Read more

Voters: Tax and spend OK when it comes to water

An average of one water main breaks somewhere in the U.S. every two minutes, according to the latest U.S. Geological Survey.

It's no wonder then that 85 percent of American voters agreed the government should invest money to overhaul the nation's water infrastructure, according to a report released Wednesday by water systems manufacturer ITT Corporation.

Voters are also willing to pay for the upgrade.

When asked if they were willing to pay 11 percent more on their monthly water bill "to help ensure continued access to a reliable and consistent supply of clean water," … Read more

GE: Hybrid light bulb solves CFL issues

General Electric today unveiled a halogen compact fluorescent light bulb that promises the efficiency of a CFL without the annoying warm-up period.

Unlike typical compact fluorescents (CFLs), the new GE Reveal and GE Energy Smart Soft White hybrid light bulbs will not take time to heat up in order to reach full luminescence.

The bulb is actually two bulbs in one. A halogen light nestled within the bulb turns on almost instantly (half a second), then shuts off once the CFL has reached its full brightness, according to GE.

GE says its new hybrid bulb only contains 1 milligram of … Read more