Solar Decathlon Competition: Towards a Solar-Powered Smart Home

Alternative energy is becoming a growing source of power in the United States, including wind, hydroelectric and solar. The Solar Decathlon is a competition run by the US Department of Energy every two years. Washington State University (WSU) is one of twenty teams recently selected to compete in the fall 2017 challenge. A central part to WSU's entry is incorporating new and existing smart home technology from the ground up. The smart home can help to optimize energy loads, battery life and general comfort of the user in the home. This paper discusses the high-level goals of the project, hardware selected, build strategy and anticipated approach.