Whether you’re developing a smart-home appliance or a system to control control a commercial building, you need a solid understanding of the associated standards, security aspects and data models. Explore our resources for home and building technology trends and technical expertise.

Integration of Multiple Technologies Heralds a New Era in Smart Healthcare

Portable hydrogen HVAC enables off-grid cooling

2026/05/01

Using hydrogen to power heating and cooling is not just a technological upgrade—it represents a fundamental rethinking of energy logic.

Turning control into clarity: our latest encoder with TFT

By Stefano Rosato - 2025/10/15

Technologies tend to come full circle, but in this case we mean literally – combining an advanced rotary encoder (and encoder shell) with a 1.28-inch circular TFT display for a single, compact control solution.

Integrating renewable energy into building HVAC systems

By Avnet Staff - 2025/08/13

An overview of technical advances in and real-world applications for energy harvesting used to power HVAC in domestic and commercial buildings.

The invisible force improving the way we work and live

2025/04/15

Having foreseen the growth potential of ambient invisible intelligence, Avnet provides a full range of innovative products and solutions to meet evolving market needs in this dynamically expanding field.

Turning indoor tracking technology into smart solutions

By Philip Ling - 2025/02/19

/IOTCONNECT is enabling indoor asset tracking technology company, IOSEA, to deliver total solutions for smart warehousing, industrial automation and the connected worker.

AI voice recognition technology in your ‘Home Smart Home’

2024/09/16

Voice recognition technology dates back to the 1940s and 1950s, when it was first used in telephone systems, and has developed rapidly in the 21st century

person holding smartphone with home in background

How will Matter help us meet the smart home promise?

By Walter Puhl - 2024/08/06

The fragmentation in smart home ecosystems is still the industry’s main challenge. By adopting Matter, a high-level API into the underlying protocols, the focus moves toward a harmonious smart home.

Optimized power switching revs up for next-generation automotive applications

By Philip Ling - 2024/07/22

The move to zonal architectures is redefining the power distribution architecture. Automotive OEMs developing advanced features require optimized and intelligent power switches.

The wonders of dedicated 5g networks

2023/09/15

Energy storage is the most critical and challenging factor in the energy production and utilization chain. As it has a critical impact on energy efficiency, it is the focus of intensive research and development.

AI takes on growing role in HVAC system efficiencies

By Avnet Staff - 2023/07/06

In most countries, buildings account for about 40% of the total energy consumed. HVAC and lighting consume around half that amount. Fortunately, AI is already delivering improved energy efficiency in these systems.

Avnet and supplier partners put HVAC control in the cloud to turn data into insights

By Philip Ling - 2023/03/03

Efficiency in the way we create, distribute and consume energy is becoming a priority in nearly every vertical market application. The IoT is here to help, as shown with this HVAC system control demonstration.

New technologies could make building management, HVAC systems even smarter

By Philip Ling - 2022/05/12

The IoT has connected buildings in new and enabling ways. The next stage, already started, is to use AI to make buildings even smarter. AI relies on data, and data comes from sensors essential to these systems.

How to use structured light and image sensors for range detection and identification

By Philip Ling - 2022/04/25

Today’s most popular 3D imaging technologies are Time of Flight (ToF), stereo vision and structured light. This article overviews the basic operating principles and the relative strengths, weaknesses and trade-offs associated with each option.

Are microLEDs the next big (small) thing?

By Philip Ling - 2022/03/31

MicroLED is an exciting display technology, one that has attracted billions of R&D dollars in recent years. The technology is not ready for mass adoption yet, as the industry has to solve many challenges.

Putting the smarts into building automation

2022/03/21

Smart building automation can augment the capabilities of today’s building management systems and create new data flows that reveal insights about how a building is functioning and used. It can also enable new revenue streams for building managers.

Six cool new autonomous technologies

By Cameron Coward - 2022/01/31

From planes, trains, and automobiles to farm equipment and Martian rovers, engineers are extending the capabilities of autonomous technologies to achieve simple productivity improvements and a better understanding of big issues like global warming.

A group of colleagues working in a computer security room having a discussion

Seeing doesn’t mean understanding – security must also be "smart"!

2021/12/01

Since we now live in a society that wants every single device to be smart, security needs to learn from its past mistakes and institute its own smart upgrades.

The growing role of sensors in modern building management systems

By Alessandro Mastellari - 2021/04/17

The key enabler of intelligent buildings is sensing technology that provides the raw data upon which these services rely. The relatively low cost of deploying many sensor types is also encouraging developers to deploy them.

The undeniable advantages of SiC technology over Si

By Milan Ivkovic - 2021/04/16

Silicon carbide (SiC) technology has reached the tipping point, the state when undeniable advantages push a technology into rapid adoption.

The undeniable advantages of SiC technology over Si

By Milan Ivkovic - 2021/04/16

Silicon carbide (SiC) technology has reached the tipping point, the state when undeniable advantages push a technology into rapid adoption.

Where is the promised "Smart" home?

2020/01/01

The global smart home market is expected to increase from US$103 billion in 2019 to US$157 billion in 2023 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 11%. In truth, this rate of growth is not remarkable.

Woman controlling thermostate temperature via mobile device

4 energy applications for smart home technologies

2018/04/04

Many engineers struggle to find the right application to integrate into the overall connected home. But here are four energy and utilities applications that can transform a one-off technology into an integral part of the home of the future.

Person controlling building security via mobile device

Security and surveillance: two sides of the coin in smart homes

2018/04/04

The new era of home security won’t just be an alarm that rings when a lock was picked or a window broken. With the rise of new technology comes the added need to protect a home’s hardware and its software.