|
Definition
Zigbee is a rather new wireless technology that looks to have applications
in a variety of fields. Zigbee is a technological standard based on the IEEE 802.15.4
specification for low data rates technology allows for devices to communicate
with one another with very low power consumption, allowing the devices to run
on simple batteries for several years. Zigbee is targeting various forms of automation,
as the low data rate communication is ideal for sensors, monitors, and the like.
Home automation is one of the key market areas for Zigbee, with an example of
a simple network . A
concern that could arise may be related to the specific frequency band that ZigBee
uses - that is, the 2.4 GHz band, which is the same band used by IEEE 802.11 and
WiFi. A cursory reading of the previous sentence may seem to imply that ZigBee
could not co-exist with these other technologies without interfering with one
another. However, ZigBee-based products can access up to 16 different 5 MHz channels
within the 2.4 GHz band, several of which do not overlap those of 802.11 and WiFi;
data packets are automatically retransmitted in case interference does happen
to occur; and very few data packets are transmitted anyway, further reducing the
probability that data will be lost. Thus, ZigBee, with its specific application
focus, is not generally affected by other similar wireless technologies, but fits
nicely into a field of ever-increasing technological innovations. ZigBee
is designed for wireless controls and sensors. It could be built into just about
anything you have around your home or office, including lights,switches, doors
and appliances. These devices can then interact without wires, and you can
control them all . . . from a remote control or even your mobile phone.Although
ZigBee's underlying radio-communication technology isn't revolutionary, it goes
well beyond single-purpose wireless devices, such as garage door openers and
"The Clapper" that turns light on and off. It allows wireless two-way
communications between lights and switches, thermostats and furnaces, hotel-room
air-conditioners and the front desk, and central command posts. It travels across
greater distances and handles many sensors that can be linked to perform different
tasks. ZigBee
works well because it aims low. Controls and sensors don't need to send and receive
much data. ZigBee has been designed to transmit slowly. It has a data rate of
250kbps (kilobits per second), pitiful compared with WiFi,which is hitting throughput
of 20Mbps or more. But because ZigBee transmits slowly, it doesn't need much power,
so batteries will last up to 10 years. Because ZigBee consumes very little power,
a sensor and transmitter that reports whether a door is open or closed, for example,
can run for up to five years on a single double-A battery. Also, operators are
much happier about adding ZigBee to their phones than faster technologies such
as Wi-Fi; therefore, the phone will be able to act as a remote control for all
the ZigBee devices it encounters. ZigBee
basically uses digital radios to allow devices tocommunicate with one another.
A typical ZigBee network consists of several types of devices. A network coordinator
is a device that sets up the network, is aware of all the nodes within its network,
and manages both the information about each node as well as the information that
is being transmitted/received within the network. Every ZigBee network must contain
a network coordinator. Other Full Function Devices (FFD's) may be found in the
network, and these devices support all of the 802.15.4 functions. They can serve
as network coordinators, network routers, or as devices that interact with the
physical world.The final device found in these networks is the Reduced Function
Device (RFD), which usually only serve as devices that interact with the physical
world.
<<back |