This article was taken from the June 2015 issue of WIRED magazine. Be the first to read WIRED's articles in print before they're posted online, and get your hands on loads of additional content by subscribing online.
While Samsung and LG trade blows on the smart-device battlefield, Panasonic has taken connected living to a whole new level and built an entire smart town. Sited on an old Panasonic factory 50km west of Tokyo, Fujisawa Sustainable Smart Town (SST) will be home to 3,000 people in 600 houses and 400 apartments, at a cost of ¥60bn (£328m).
One hundred Japanese families have already moved in -- phase one opened on November 27, 2014.
The town's infrastructure pivots around a smart grid connecting every building to a central real-time energy network -- essential when juggling the variables of renewable technology and real-world demands.
Feeding into this smart grid, every house is fitted with solar panels for electricity generation, a Panasonic ECO-CUTE heat-pump-driven hot-water system, and the world's first domestic-sized ENE-FARM household fuel-cell generator. These then feed into the self-distributing SMARTHEMS (Home Energy Management System) that redistributes the energy around the house.
Panasonic's ENE-FARM generates hot water as well as electricity. Hydrogen is extracted from the local gas supply. Reacted with oxygen via a fuel processor, the result is heat that can be used to power a generator capable of outputting 250W to 700W. Panasonic claims this is a 37 per cent reduction on typical energy use.
This dent in energy consumption is key to the success of Fujisawa. Engineers anticipate a 70 per cent reduction in C02, a 30 per cent drop in water consumption and a predicted 30 per cent of energy used coming from on-site renewable resources.
The houses -- designed and built by Panasonic's PanaHome division -- have been tested to 1.8 times the recent Great East Japan Earthquake.
Natural-disaster planning is of paramount importance in Japan, which is why Fujisawa's connected energy system has been designed to generate and store enough power for three days of off-grid operation. To top up the community energy needs, a large solar farm was constructed in the south, plus another 400m of solar cells along the highway.
The leaf-inspired road layout -- aside from its ability to channel the breeze down every street, so reducing the need for air conditioning -- places the SQUARE at the centre of the town, which is essentially a large town hall/community centre where the energy and security management of Fujisawa is housed.
The town's management company, although conjuring Huxleyesque visions, provides energy, security, mobility, healthcare and community services for the residents. This includes a "gateless security system" with blanket 24-7 CCTV coverage to enable children to play safely and eliminate antisocial behaviour, smart sensor control of the LED street lighting, and cheap access to electric cars and bikes.
Panasonic has attempted to create a showcase for smart energy, town planning and connected living, but far from being the Jetsons-inspired sci-fi solution to modern living, Fujisawa is a moderate test-bed of ideas designed to meet changing energy needs. It might not be bursting with internet of things wizardry and AI robots, but in reality, that vision of "smart" living means nothing without a sustainable supply of affordable green energy.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
