House Engineered to Assist Senior Lifestyle

By Moriah Balingit, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

September 19, 2009

Pam Panchak/Post-Gazette

Blueroof Technologies equipped this home in McKeesport with multiple sensors, including motion detectors, to track the residents' living habits. It is part of the company's Proving Ground program, which is designed to test products and technology that will make it easier for seniors to live on their own rather than moving into nursing homes. 

This modest, vinyl-sided home at Ninth and Jenny Lind streets looks like a typical McKeesport house -- until you notice the tripod on the roof that holds a bevvy of odd-looking equipment.

A small porch and an open, airy layout greet guests. There are two bedrooms and a ton of windows, letting light flood in.

But this isn't just a house. It's also a laboratory where, at any given time, multiple experiments can be performed. The subjects will be the home's two low-income senior residents, who are being handpicked by the home's owner, Blueroof Technologies, and the McKeesport Housing Authority.

This house cost around $130,000 to build and it's the second research cottage constructed on this site. But this is the first cottage that will have actual residents. On Wednesday at 10 a.m., Blueroof officials will gather for a ribbon-cutting and public tours of the house. Blueroof equipped the home with multiple sensors, including motion detectors, to track the residents' living habits.
"We know when they access something, we know when they turn the water on, we know when they flush," said Blueroof Executive Director John Bertoty. There are also sensors to measure indoor and outdoor temperatures and carbon dioxide levels.

"These are all something that might have significance to some researcher," Mr. Bertoty said.

In this house, the Bosch Group will be testing out some of its products with the residents. Bosch has not told Blueroof which of its products it's testing because of proprietary issues. Blueroof calls it the Proving Ground program, and the goal is to test products and technology that will make it easier for seniors to live on their own rather than moving into nursing homes. Technology now in the works at Carnegie Mellon University could help residents manage their medication or detect when they fall.

The house itself already contains many of these features. Lights along the baseboards turn on when motion sensors nearby detect movement, so when the residents get up at night, they don't have to worry about walking around in the dark. The bathroom has a special non-slip floor to reduce the incidence of falling. And door and window sensors provide security.

It also was constructed to require no maintenance for the first 10 years. The deck is made of materials that don't need to be stained or maintained and the siding, a special kind of vinyl, only needs to be hosed off once in a while.
The house has many environmentally friendly features. It's extremely well-insulated and built to seal out outside air. A special concrete foundation absorbs less heat, making heating and cooling the home more efficient. Double-paned windows also keep out the heat and the cold. Three geothermal pumps also work to heat and cool the house.

Mr. Bertoty said his goal is to build 14 more of these cottages in what he termed the McKeesport Independence Zone. But the goal is broader than just creating a space to test new products. It's also to provide nice homes for low-income seniors and to improve the look of the neighborhood.

"It's a win-win for everybody ... we have low-income people that are getting nice housing [and] we're redeveloping the community," he said.

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