April. 22, 2009 — Daintree Networks announced an analysis solution for the new ZigBee RF4CE network protocol. The Sensor Network Analyzer (SNA) has been enhanced to include full decode and security support for ZigBee RF4CE.
The SNA family of products comprise a comprehensive solution for both the development and deployment of IEEE 802.15.4 and ZigBee systems. ZigBee RF4CE (Radio Frequency for Consumer Electronics) is the result of a recent agreement between the ZigBee Alliance and the RF4CE Consortium and has been designed to be deployed in a wide range of remotely-controlled audio/visual consumer electronics products, such as TVs and set-top boxes. Some of the benefits of ZigBee RF4CE include richer communication and increased reliability, enhanced features and flexibility, interoperability, and no line-of-sight barrier.
In addition to providing full decode support for ZigBee RF4CE, other popular SNA features are supported including security key harvesting and multi-channel capture (to support RF4CE's frequency agility). All of these features are available through the SNA’s intuitive user interface, which helps even those who are new to wireless embedded networking to achieve results quickly. “It’s great to have a company like Daintree show their support for ZigBee RF4CE,” said Victor Berrios, ZigBee RF4CE Compliance Working Group Chair.
“Their SNA solution has helped many IEEE 802.15.4 and ZigBee customers bring their products to market. We welcome Daintree to the RF4CE developer’s community and look forward to their contributions to improve overall usability of consumer electronics products for hundreds of millions of consumers around the world.” ZigBee RF4CE support is available in both the Standard and Professional editions of the Sensor Network Analyzer.
ZigBee RF4CE: More flexibility and control
The ZigBee RF4CE specification is based on IEEE 802.15.4. MAC/PHY radio technology in the 2.4GHz unlicensed frequency band and enables worldwide operation, low power consumption and instantaneous response time.
It allows omni-directional and reliable two-way wireless communication, frequency agility for enhanced co-existence with other 2.4GHz wireless technologies, simple security set-up and configuration. During the next quarter, the Alliance will develop a test program consistent with existing policies for specifications and public application profiles. Once complete, products using a public application profile based on the ZigBee RF4CE specification can be submitted to an authorized test house for certification.
