A technology partnership announced today between Ember and Tendril Networks will enable companies to quickly and easily build applications that draw information from ZigBee(TM)
networks. ZigBee is a wireless, standards-based radio technology that addresses the unique needs of remote monitoring and control, and sensor network applications.
Tendril is developing the industry’s first Web Services-based
technology for ZigBee networks, called a “service broker,” using
Ember’s ZigBee-ready semiconductor and software platform. Tendril’s
new service broker will shield developers from having to learn new
programming skills or master the intricacies of the ZigBee networking
stack.
Instead, they can build applications in familiar, higher-level
languages, like Java and Web Services, using the service broker to
automatically extract and manage data transactions across the ZigBee
network. For example, a company could use Ember’s technology and
Tendril’s service broker with BACnet – a popular building automation
and control application language – to create a new wireless control
and monitoring system for HVAC equipment.
“We’re eliminating the need to ‘node code’,” said Tim Enwall,
Tendril CEO. “With the standardization of ZigBee, we saw an
opportunity to help the larger community of developers accelerate the
market by easing the system-wide application development. Similar to
the way WebSphere and WebLogic middleware accelerated application
development for the Internet, we envision building a comprehensive set
of Ember-enabled wireless network services enabling rapid application
development using languages/environments like Java, Web Services and
.NET.”
How it works
Tendril’s service broker provides a rapid application development
and deployment platform utilizing Ember’s ZigBee-ready chips and
networking software. The service broker’s service-oriented
architecture (SOA) provides network discovery, extraction,
commissioning, configuration, management, security, rule logic and
data management functions for ZigBee networks. The service broker
extracts network capabilities into an abstraction layer that
developers can tap to build the application without needing to learn
all the complexities of the underlying ZigBee network infrastructure.
Tendril partnered with Ember because it offered the industry’s
first complete, end-to-end ZigBee-ready platform which was already
proven in numerous real-world applications, as well as Ember’s ZigBee
expertise and leadership. Ember’s technology is helping buildings
consume less energy, enabling industries to improve their
environmental impact, making our homes safer and more comfortable,
helping factories run with fewer breakdowns, and protecting the
country’s borders. Ember is a promoter of the ZigBee Alliance, and its
semiconductor system is the National Technical Systems’ (NTS) “Golden
Suite” for evaluating IEEE 802.15.4 products for interoperability.
“Tendril Networks is taking advantage of Web Services technology
to bring easy-to-use and to-deploy solutions for sensor and control
network application developers,” said Venkat Bahl, Ember’s vice
president of marketing. “The beauty of Tendril’s solution is in its
broadness and openness. It supports a variety of hardware platforms
and programming platforms, delivering the system as both a developer
and deployment kit.”
About Tendril Networks
Tendril Networks is a software and services company focused on
turning wireless sensor/ZigBee networks (WSN) into general purpose
computing resources. It offers WSN node developers, application
developers and end users a method of rapid application development and
deployment. Tendril Network’s custom application development services
use its Service Broker to enable faster successful application
development. For more information call 303-951-4365 or visit
http://www.tendrilnetworks.com.
About Ember Corporation
Ember Corporation develops wireless semiconductor solutions that
help buildings consume less energy, manufacturing plants run with
fewer breakdowns, and the country’s borders and infrastructure remain
safe and secure. Its vision is to help create an “Internet of things”
by enabling the eight billion microcontrollers built into products
each year to support low-cost, low-power networking applications in
any industry. Headquartered in Boston with offices and distributors
worldwide, the company was named one of Fortune Magazine’s top “Cool
Companies” and Red Herring’s “Top 100 Innovators” for 2004. For more
information, please visit www.ember.com.
