ZigBee Alliance to Incorporate IETF IT into Wireless Network Standards
May 10, 2009 // Published as a news service by IHS
The ZigBee Alliance will incorporate global IT standards from the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) into its specification portfolio of low-power wireless networking standards.
This move is designed to expand the portfolio of ZigBee specifications and advance the growth of smart grid applications that adopted the ZigBee Smart Energy public application profile, according to the ZigBee Alliance.
By incorporating IETF standards, ZigBee Smart Energy products are touted as enhancing their application capabilities with native Internet protocol (IP) support and allow integration of Internet connectivity into each product, experts said.
Through cooperative efforts with IETF, ZigBee members will be able to create additional solutions for wireless sensor and control networks as part of the new specification.
Internet connectivity is provided by existing ZigBee specifications; however, the addition of native IP support will offer "tighter" integration from wireless devices all the way to large-scale utility IT networks, according to the ZigBee Alliance.
"This activity creates a win-win for everyone by combining the strengths of the ZigBee Smart Energy standard with the ubiquity of Internet standards and confirms that smart meter deployments currently underway will have a seamless path for continuous upgrades including Internet connectivity," said Paul De Martini, vice president at Southern California Edison.
Source: ZigBee Alliance.