U.K.-based Telegesis has developed a family of easy-to-install ZigBee wireless networking modules based on Ember’s technology, including a ZigBee CF card for communications.
Telegesis’ family of Ember-enabled modules is designed to help product designers easily integrate mesh networking capabilities without complex programming or RF design experience. The family includes:
— a programmable ETRX1 module designed for OEMs seeking to embed ZigBee networking capabilities into their products,
— a ZigBee CF card module (ETRX1CF) that provides ZigBee communications to portable handheld devices,
— and an USB ZigBee stick (ETRX1USB) as a cost-effective way to add wireless sensing to any device which employs USB.
The ETRX1 family enables companies to quickly bring to market ZigBee sensing, monitoring and control applications by providing a range of module types and development kits to suit their unique needs.
The Ember-enabled Telegesis modules are already being used in several real-world applications. For example, Tracking and Data Management Ltd. (TDM Ltd.) has deployed ZigBee wireless networks aboard trains to monitor the performance of equipment that cleans and maintains the railway tracks. The system enables railway staff to remotely view equipment sensor information anytime, anywhere, and intervene wirelessly when necessary.
“The combination of Ember’s ZigBee compliant meshing platform and the Telegesis module made ZigBee technology very easy to use, enabling us to build a solution for our customer remarkably quickly,” said Nigel Box, marketing director at TDM, Ltd.
The technology is also protecting the valuables of guests in hotels and hostels. New Zealand-based Hotech Edge Ltd. has installed wireless in-room safe management systems that link digital safes in each guest room to a sophisticated ZigBee monitoring and security network. The remote monitoring and control capabilities that the Telegesis modules provide have enabled Hotech to install and maintain the system for free on a revenue share program, with no capital cost, operating cost or risk to its hotel customers.
“We standardized on Ember’s chips and development tools because they enabled us to develop a reliable mesh networking solution much more quickly than other offerings on the market,” said Ollie Smith, Telegesis’ business development partner. “The ZigBee module provides users a good way to explore and implement ZigBee technology and development applications without chip level integration. Partnering with Ember is also wise investment protection. We will be able to continuously improve the performance and capabilities of our ETRX1 family as Ember continues to pioneer new features and functionality.
For instance, we are already at an advanced stage of development on the single chip ETRX2 built around Ember’s EM250 ZigBee system-on-a-chip semiconductor solution.”
Designed to be built into any device, the Telegesis ETRX1 family of low-cost, low-power mesh network modules combines Ember’s wireless semiconductors and software with Telegesis’ application hardware, integration and toolkits. The modules feature an AT-style command interface for easy integration, programming and debugging. The modules employ Ember’s 802.15.4-compliant radio and EmberZNet mesh networking stack.
“Ember’s technology is designed to help our customers bring their applications to market quickly and confidently, helping end-users reap the inherent benefits of ZigBee-enabled devices,” said Mohamed Awad, director of business development for Ember in EMEA. “Our work with Telegesis is already demonstrating quick results – hotel guests can feel more secure in their rooms and train passengers can be assured of safer, cleaner rides. Bringing ZigBee applications to life quickly and at a reasonable cost is what motivates Ember, and why we partner with companies like Telegesis. I know they have many other ZigBee applications on the way.”
ZigBee: Wireless Control That Simply Works
The ZigBee Alliance is an association of companies working together to enable reliable, cost-effective, low-power, wirelessly networked, monitoring and control products based on an open global standard. The ZigBee Alliance is a rapidly growing, non-profit industry consortium of leading semiconductor manufacturers, technology providers, OEMs, and end-users worldwide. Membership is open to all.
Additional information can be found at www.zigbee.org.
About Telegesis
Telegesis is a highly specialist development house working in the field of wireless data capture. The Marlow, U.K.-based company develops advanced wireless products for others with a view to providing low cost, high performance solutions to existing and future applications. Additional information can be found at www.telegesis.com.
About Ember Corporation
Ember enables communication among embedded microcontrollers with standards-based wireless mesh networking semiconductors and software.
Ember helps its customers to automate home appliances, lower energy consumption in buildings, keep borders and infrastructure secure, and control industrial processes, just to name four of the many diverse applications being developed by Ember’s more than 100 customers. Spun out of MIT in 2001, Ember is headquartered in Boston and has its radio development center in Cambridge, England, and distributors worldwide.
Ember is a lead member of the ZigBee Alliance, and its platform is the National Technical Systems’ (NTS) “Golden Suite” for 802.15.4/ZigBee interoperability testing. For more information, please visit www.ember.com.
