{"689895":{"#nid":"689895","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Batteries Not Included, or Required, for These Smart Home Sensors","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EMost smart home devices require power one way or another. You have to plug them in, recharge them, or replace their batteries at some point.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech researchers think they have a better way with small metal tags that can signal when a door or drawer is opened, count reps in the gym, or even track bathroom use for elderly relatives. Their tags are battery-free, quiet, inherently private, and cost only a few cents each. They\u2019re smaller than a penny.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELike other kinds of smart home sensors, the tags are designed to be mounted on a cabinet or doorframe, for example, using a 3D-printed base. A small tab is attached to the corresponding door or drawer. When it\u2019s opened, the tab strikes the metal disk, triggering a brief ultrasonic pulse imperceptible to human ears but detectable by a wearable device that logs the activity.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/coe.gatech.edu\/news\/2026\/04\/batteries-not-included-or-required-these-smart-home-sensors\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ERead the full story on the College of Engineering website.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EEngineering and computing researchers create simple metal tags with unique ultrasonic fingerprints to detect door openings and other movements.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Engineering and computing researchers create simple metal tags with unique ultrasonic fingerprints to detect door openings and other movements."}],"uid":"27446","created_gmt":"2026-04-20 17:02:57","changed_gmt":"2026-04-20 17:04:58","author":"Joshua Stewart","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2026-04-20T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2026-04-20T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"680001":{"id":"680001","type":"image","title":"SoundOff-smart-home-tags-with-penny-t.jpg","body":null,"created":"1776704592","gmt_created":"2026-04-20 17:03:12","changed":"1776704592","gmt_changed":"2026-04-20 17:03:12","alt":"A group of 15 round metal tags of various shapes and a penny to show the tags are smaller.","file":{"fid":"264234","name":"SoundOff-smart-home-tags-with-penny-t.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/04\/20\/SoundOff-smart-home-tags-with-penny-t.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2026\/04\/20\/SoundOff-smart-home-tags-with-penny-t.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":308230,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2026\/04\/20\/SoundOff-smart-home-tags-with-penny-t.jpg?itok=NmFY0OCz"}}},"media_ids":["680001"],"groups":[{"id":"1237","name":"College of Engineering"},{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71881","name":"Science and Technology"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jstewart@gatech.edu\u0022\u003EJoshua Stewart\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr\u003ECollege of Engineering\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["jstewart@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}