Modern Window Treatments Ideas-Insiders Guide

Mobile technology is changing the way we live our lives. Today, everything is instantaneous and easily manipulated with the touch of a finger. Contemporary tech has even entered the household, making our homes smarter, more efficient, and more personalized. The volume of your home theater system, the temperature of your house, even the color and brightness of your light bulbs-all of these things are now controllable by mobile applications. But some manufacturers are thinking, "Why stop there?" There are so many more household appliances and necessities to turn "smart," and the glass in your windows may be the next to catch on.

Smart glass is one of those window treatments you would expect to see in a sci-fi film, but it is absolutely real and being manufactured as you read this. The glass can automatically adjust its tint based on the angle of the sun, but there is also a mobile app that allows users to adjust it themselves. There are a variety of different tint settings to choose from, which makes smart glass one of the most versatile, customizable, and efficient window treatments available. The glass is double-paned, and the inside is lined with an almost impossibly thin film of electrochromic paint. This special paint is applied with vapor after the glass receives a heating treatment at 700 degrees centigrade. Then the magic begins.

To explain the science briefly, ions in the material move across the paint layer when they are charged with an electrical current. This movement causes them to release electrons in atoms, which gives the effect of the tint. The intensity of the movement and the alignment of the electrons affect the level of tint, and the direction of the movement determines whether the glass becomes clearer or more opaque. The process also blocks out heat, which could end up saving households and corporate office spaces alike lots of money on HVAC energy costs.

As far as availability goes, various manufacturers have already completed lots of installations over the past few years. Most of the clients are corporate offices housed in glass buildings that take heavy beatings from the sun and suffer large energy costs as a result. The smart glass window treatments alleviate that issue, making it a worthy investment in the long run-but that's not all it does. Users are finding that the glass's opaque settings provide an ideal backdrop for rear projections, a useful feature for companies that rely on these techniques for presentations. This also opens new doors for retail clients, who can use projections for advertising and increased customer experience. Further, some smart glass manufacturers even offer integration with touch screen walls, hinting at an imminent shift in the way employees interact with their work spaces and the way retail consumers shop.

Smart glass is making homes smarter, stores more interactive, and corporate spaces greener. Panels have already been installed all over the country, from California to Louisiana. Keep your eyes peeled for smart glass in your neck of the woods as the technology grows and becomes more widely adopted.

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