A popular tourist destination in Sydney Australia’s Northern Beaches, a stretch of well-known beaches is renowned for its surf spots, coastal views, relaxed lifestyle, and high-end residences. One of the latest additions to the neighborhood is a five-bedroom home overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Incorporating stone, wood, steel, and glass into a sleek, modern design, the residence also features the latest technology — installed by integrator Dvine Smart Homes, with control and automation provided by RTI.

For entertainment, the home is equipped with four displays ranging from 42 inches to 85 inches. All are outfitted with a Satellite TV, with two also featuring Apple® TVs and Integra AV receivers for surround sound. A 12-zone Sonos® system allows music to be conveniently streamed anywhere in the home. Environmental systems include nine zones of CoolMaster-controlled air conditioning, 14 motorized shades, 11 heat strips, and two Pentair IntelliTouch pool and spa control systems. Security is provided by a combination of an advanced alarm system, IP cameras, two 2N® intercoms, and five 2N access unit keypads, with seven points of entry fully automated and integrated into the RTI system.

In addition to having all AV equipment tucked away for a clean look in each room, a high priority for the homeowner was simple, intuitive operation over its complicated technologies. The owner opted to not have a dedicated lighting control system, which created a challenge when it came to control over environmental elements such as motorized shades and heaters which could normally be integrated with lighting keypads. Still, the owner wanted all their home’s technologies brought together into one unified system that they could interact with via an easy-to-use app interface that wouldn’t skimp on functionality. To meet their needs, Dvine relied on solutions from RTI.

“The RTI platform allows us to take advantage of an array of control methods to integrate all technologies into one seamless system,” said Dave Vineburg, director of Dvine Smart Homes. “And the company’s Integration Designer® APEX programming software makes it simple to create a completely customized user interface that’s extremely simple to use.”

Control in the home is powered by an RTI XP-8v control processor, which integrates with the Sonos system, intercom and keypads, cameras, HVAC system, heat strips and alarm system via two-way IP drivers. RS-232 drivers allow for two-way control over the home’s AV receivers, motorized shades, and pool systems, while IR is used for all displays and video sources. The homeowners interact with their technology using the RTiPanel app — which was custom-designed by Dvine to complement the home’s aesthetics — on their iPhone; fixed iPads located in the kitchen, living room, study, and entrance; and removable iPads in areas featuring displays. Dvine used the Chowmain Pushover driver to enable push notifications from the control system to the homeowner’s iOS devices. For example, a notice is sent when specific codes — such as for the housecleaner or dog walker — are entered on any keypad, or if an alarm has been armed or disarmed.

The RTI system has also enabled a number of automation features in the home. For example, when the doorbell rings, all AV components automatically pause for five seconds so the homeowner can hear the chime. A single button allows for whole-home climate control, while heat strips are managed with timers to ensure they aren’t left on. After entering the proper code on the storage room’s keypad, the door is unlocked, the room’s alarm is disarmed, and a countdown timer is set for it to automatically rearm itself. Entering the proper code on any of the other keypads disarms the whole house. At bedtime all doors are automatically locked. If no motion is detected by the alarm’s sensors for a set amount of hours, the home is automatically set to “Away” mode. After 24 hours the home switches to “Vacation,” triggering the pause of any automation schedules.

“Our client loves their new home and has been completely blown away by its amazing technology and how simple it is to manage it all with RTI,” added Vineburg. “The system has performed reliably day in and day out, and they were able to start using it comfortably right away with minimal instruction. They just pick up an iPad or iPhone for a completely intuitive experience; it couldn’t be easier.”