SAN FRANCISCO—Each time 81-year-old Bill Dworsky or his 80-year-old wife Dorothy opens the refrigerator, closes the bathroom door or lifts the lid on a pill container, tiny sensors in their San Francisco home make notes on a digital logbook.
The couple’s 53-year-old son, Phil, checks it daily on his smartphone. If there’s no activity during a designated time, the younger Dworsky gets an automated email, so he can decide whether to call or stop by. “This is peace of mind, really,” he says of the system he installed last year.
The Silicon Valley tech executive lives just across town, but the sensors help him keep an eye on his aging parents while also raising a teenage daughter and frequently traveling for work. While his parents don’t need a lot of assistance, they have stopped driving and his father uses a cane.
“I want to be in the position where I will know when I need to step in,” he says.
‘Smart Homes’ Offer Independence
Advances in low-cost sensors and wireless networks are fueling a boom in the so-called “smart” home. And companies are looking beyond home security and temperature control to creating products for Baby Boomers trying to balance caring for aging parents and respecting their independence. It’s a new twist on the notion of personal alarms, such as the Life Alert system that gained popularity with “Help, I’ve fallen and can’t get up” advertisements.
