ZigBee Architecture & Protocol | Topologies

25 Jul

ZigBee Architecture & Protocol | Topologies | How does it work?

Home automation is the talk of the town and why not, with all the appliances controlled from a single remote, is the bare minimum that you can imagine.

ZigBee Architecture gives a wide room for people to enjoy the technology without affecting the quality.

But, how much do you think it will cost you to get this setup done?

Since Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are on the costlier side, do you still have an option of automating your home?

Topologies

Well, lucky enough ZigBee Architecture is introduced to serve the purpose to make the talk of the town exist in your house.

ZigBee is a device used in IoT(Internet of Things). The controlling of devices with the Internet in a network is called IoT.

ZigBee is a device used to sense and control the data transfer. It is manufactured for a short-range (10- 100m), low-rate wireless data transfer.

ZigBee Architecture for every smart home

Every house has multiple appliances to connect and control and this connection, ladies and gentlemen, is called topology or mesh.

The way appliances are connected differs and so do their names.

There is star topology, where the coordinator connects all the appliances.

It resembles a star and so the name.

If all the appliances are connected to each other, it is called a mesh and similarly is tree topology (another name of star topology).

Explaining this because that’s how the house is connected and is easier to understand the working.

How does it work?

There is a constant talk between all the ZigBee Architecture appliances and the ZigBee controller, which is called data transfer.

Now, we know there is a remote control, which acts as storage for information, like the data from all the appliances/ network.

It also handles and stores the security keys and that’s why the name, ZigBee Architecture and ZigBee Coordinator (ZC).

Next up is the path used or the individual device routers, that act as intermediate devices, called as ZigBee Router (ZR).

The appliance itself is called ZigBee End Device (ZED), which transfers data to the parent node (ZC). So that’s the working of these wireless networks.

ZigBee Architecture and Modes

ZigBee Architecture is cheaper than Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, why?

Have they compromised on the battery life?

Are you looking for yes as an answer?

Sorry to disappoint, but that’s not the case either.

The battery life of ZigBee is long and that has a secret.

So as to not consume power, when not in use, the devices sleep.

Yes, it is called sleep-mode. In this mode, the coordinators, routers and end devices sleep and periodically wake up and transmit beacons to confirm each other’s presence.

Therefore, this is called beacon-mode. The time when the network is active is called non-beacon mode, where it uses a significant amount of power.

Due to this on-off mode, the ZigBee network uses least memory, and therefore its storage capacity is optimal.

ZigBee Protocol

ZigBee Architecture has 128 bits key length symmetric codes for security.

With a data rate of 250 kbps from ZigBee sensors and control system, ZigBee covers a two-way communication in short-range.

This simply means its data transfer rate is high due to which the remote control commands (light switch on) reach the router quickly and light the bulb.

To talk deeper on the technical side, ZigBee works on IEEE 802.15.4 standard for the wireless personal network (WPANs).

The ZigBee Protocol works in Physical layer and the sublayer of Data Link Layer, i.e Media Access Control (MAC).

Physical Layer

This layer handles the physical connections and disconnections of the network.

It is responsible for the topology and network setup and device configuration.

Media Access Control

This is a sublayer of the Data Link Layer, which is responsible for the data transfer between the devices.

The way data is transferred in channel access mode (CSMA/CA- Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance) by the Data Link Layer (MAC).

The network management and data flow are decentralized in the ZigBee protocol.

Application Layer

The application layer is the user end layer.

This layer is seen by the users and physically operated.

It is also responsible for binding other devices to the network.

Due to the fact that ZigBee uses less power (less than 200W) it can integrate with radio and microcontroller, it is also used in different fields for Industrial Control, Embedded sensing, Medical Data collection and many more, which are still reaching their umpteenth state.

Conclusion

ZigBee Architecture has gained a lot of traction in the recent days because of various reasons.

It is widely suggested for users to know and explore various kinds of features available in the architecture to enjoy better mileage.

So the next time, you use your remote for a device control or hear the smoke-intruder warning, remember that a ZigBee is at work.

Tags:

Modes,Protocols,ZigBee Technology,Zigbee Working