Does anyone really make ZigBee networks easy?

30 May 2007 Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT

A new, out-of-the-box, plug-and-play, self-forming wireless control and monitoring network solution that the maker claims provides the ability to control anything, anytime, from anywhere with no programming required has been launched by Synapse, an intelligent wireless control networking solutions provider.

The company is offering the Synapse Network Evaluation Kit to allow potential customers to evaluate Synapse's solution (receive sensor data, monitor processes, drive relays and switches, etc.) Included in the kit is one Synapse Coordinator, three Synapse End Devices, and a free starter version of the intuitive Synapse Portal PC-based network administration and configuration software.

Synapse states on its website: "It is common to see advertisements for 'off-the-shelf' ZigBee solutions boasting 'Easy Wireless with ZigBee Technology'. As many users have discovered, at great expense, that designing, implementing, and configuring a ZigBee-based wireless network is not a trivial task. In reality, there is no 'Easy Wireless with ZigBee' and there are no 'Off-the-shelf ZigBee wireless network solutions'. Instead, there is off-the-shelf ZigBee hardware, which developers use as a starting point from which to build a working solution. This can easily take nine months (or more) and require programming skills and intimate knowledge of wireless control networking."

According to Synapse, by comparison, its solution makes wireless networking simple. "The difference is SNAP (Synapse Network Appliance Protocol)", states Wade Patterson, CEO and founder of Synapse; "SNAP handles the network allowing the customers to focus on their applications. SNAP is a high-performance, low-power, small-memory-footprint protocol that allows anyone to create a wireless control and monitoring network without requiring any expertise in wireless networks."

"Synapse RF Engines running SNAP provide a self-forming network - when a SNAP-based device is powered-up, it is automatically recognised and incorporated into the network; it is that simple!" he adds.

Synapse adds that SNAP and SNAP-based products have also been designed from the ground-up to be incredibly power-efficient. For example, a Synapse RF Engine, in operation, can consume as little as 47 μA, which means these units can actually run for the specified shelf-life of the battery used to power them.

www.synapse-wireless.com

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