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Are fully automated high-tech homes our future? Builder and CEO Frank VaFaee's team of engineers and architects collaborated to create a truly innovative, modern house that is not only eco-friendly but also has a leg up on traditional houses in terms of spaciousness, life span, maintenance level, and ability to upgrade. Much of the appliances in Protohomes are Energy Star brand, and many products used to construct the home are recycled, eco-friendly materials. The home was designed to adapt to constant advances in technology, which make it a worthwhile investment.
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The eco-friendly commercial-grade sliding doors slide up, as opposed to the sides, to allow more free access between the outdoors and indoors.
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The shelves are movable and may serve as partitions between rooms. In fact, the entire second floor of the house is the Flex Zone and can easily be upgraded from a 2-bedroom to a 3-bedroom simply by moving the storage units (that all float on casters) around.
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The master suite is located above the living space. The temperature of the house adjusts to the changing seasons, with air conditioning coming through the ceiling to cool rooms below, and heat ascending from the ground to warm the rooms.
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Like many other parts of the home, the island of the kitchen is mounted on a caster, and can be reconfigured to your momentary preference. Faucets and fixtures are wall mounted to allow for easy access when cleaning.
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Projectors can play movies on the double-height walls of the ProtoHome.
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The interiors of the ProtoHome are designed simply and like this kid’s room, encourage an excess-free lifestyle.
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ProtoHomes were inspired by mid-century modern design and a floor plan was arranged around the ProtoCore, to create the “open and intentional living” effect. The designers incorporated clean lines and simple materials to create a loft-like feel. They eliminated the traditional attic, to maximize their use of space.
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All functions in the house can be controlled by an iPhone or an iPad from anyplace on earth with an internet connection.
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No stucco or permanent materials here. The exterior panels of the house can be removed and replaced, much like changing the “skin” of your iPhone.
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Perhaps the most important aspect or as the designers describe, “the engine” of the home is the ProtoCore, a prefabricated silo that centralizes and houses the home’s mechanical, plumbing, and electrical sources and is only the size of a shipping-container. Like the house itself, the ProtoCore is easily upgradeable. New additions can easily be plugged in.
The home is also completely networked, allowing homeowners who may have forgotten to turn off the lights or turn on the security alarms, to control those functions while outside of the home by accessing their iPhones, iPads, or another computer. ProtoHomes can be constructed in a mere four months through a hybrid construction system.
