TOKYO -- Ever get up in the morning and wonder, "What's my blood sugar?" Or find yourself in the dairy aisle, not sure if you're out of milk?
In Japan, homeowners will soon be able to answer those questions with a mere push of a button. Electronics companies are hard at work on wiring new homes with fiber optic cables that connect rooms to each other and to the vast world outside: the Internet, cable TV, hospitals and travel agents.The houses burst with little high-tech perks. Lights go on by themselves when someone enters the room. The toilet weighs you, monitors body fat and measures your urine sugar.
The high-tech homes -- estimated to cost about 5 percent more than a regular new home -- are still small, but they're smart. And while fully loaded versions aren't yet available, certain features have already begun showing up in Japanese homes.
The Matsushita Electrical Industry Group is working on an HII -- Home Information Infrastructure -- model for 2003.
The system revolves around an "HII Station," a sort of central nervous system that serves as a depository for reams of information.
Through screens in every room, occupants can monitor the activities and use of appliances throughout the house, check security cameras and contact cyberspace.
The bedroom, for example, has a medical consultation kit that allows the electronic equivalent of an old-fashioned house call. A user can type in his complaint, some basic physical information and call the doctor, who makes a diagnosis based on that info and medical history that's available from the household system.
A key feature of the system is a wireless terminal -- about the size of a cellular phone -- which permits remote access to the house. A user can program the device to keep track of household information like what's in the refrigerator.
Convenient, yes. But a look into the smart house also reveals a future world of no secrets.
Cameras and sensors monitor who is where, doing what. Detailed information like blood pressure, weight and schedules of family members are available to other family members in the main memory bank.
And teens can forget about that wild party when the parents are away: The security system makes digital photos of all visitors and monitors their movement through the house.