Enhancements to standard help create smart homes

San Ramon, Calif. – Aug. 19, 2009 – The ZigBee® Alliance, a global ecosystem of companies creating wireless solutions for use in energy management, commercial and consumer applications, today announced the certification of 17 devices from 10 manufacturers using ZigBee Home Automation, plus enhancements to the public application profile.

ZigBee Home Automation is a standard offering control for home appliances, lighting, environment, energy use, and security. It provides a path to direct interoperability with other ZigBee public application profiles, including the industry-leading ZigBee Smart Energy. ZigBee Home Automation now features new security mechanisms and support for doorbells and mechanized window shades. The standard features control of HVAC systems, power outlets, motorized devices, security and other devices. Product manufacturers will benefit from this standardized approach that makes devices reliable, affordable, easy-to-install and operate. Products using ZigBee Home Automation are ideal for new construction, do-it-yourself and retrofit markets.

The 2009 "Home Technologies and Energy Efficiency: A Look At Behaviors, Issues and Solutions" study by the Consumer Electronics Association shows 75 percent of consumers expressed concern over possible rising energy costs. Many ZigBee Home Automation certified products are designed to help consumers manage home energy costs.

"With 17 products from 10 global manufacturers passing our rigorous certification process, ZigBee Home Automation will be in a position to make a strong retail debut," said Bob Heile, chairman of the ZigBee Alliance. "With a total of 41 certified products, ZigBee Home Automation and ZigBee Smart Energy will give consumers more options to monitor and control their energy use while enjoying a smarter and safer home."

The following ZigBee Home Automation certified products are fully interoperable and will use the ZigBee Certified logo and the ZigBee Home Automation icon on product packaging and advertisements to clearly communicate interoperability to the marketplace. For a full list of features and product photos, please visit www.zigbee.org/homeautomation.

• 4Home -- ControlPoint, Portal Server and SDK software products allow for the rapid development and deployment of compelling, easy-to-use, and profitable new applications for today’s connected home, including energy management, home monitoring and security, and media management.

• AlertMe -- Occupancy Sensor monitors rooms and corridors for motion, features an indicator LED, battery operation, low-power micro-controller, status reports every two minutes and alarm events as they occur.

• AlertMe -- Simple Sensor for domestic windows and doors is a two-part design comprising a compact magnet and a sensitive magnetic reed switch and features an indicator LED, battery operation, low-power micro-controller, status reports every two minutes along with opening and closing events as they occur.

• AlertMe -- On/Off Button is a wireless doorbell or panic button offering touch and visual feedback via a positive button action and bright LEDs. It features indicator LEDs, battery operation, low-power micro-controller, status reports every two minutes and button-push events as they occur.

• AlertMe -- Access Controller serves as a key fob for the AlertMe Intruder Alarm service and recognizes a user’s occupancy. It features indicator LEDs, battery operation, piezoelectric sounder, low-power micro-controller, status reports every two minutes and button pushes as they occur.

• Black & Decker -- Kwikset SmartCode Deadbolt with Home Connect Technology enables the door lock to wirelessly communicate with other devices in the home, allowing homeowners to monitor and control their door locks using either a web enabled device or their home automation system. It offers true remote locking and unlocking features due to its motorized driven deadbolt and can automatically arm/disarm security systems as well as initiate customized scenes upon entrance and exit.   

• CentraLite -- HA On/Off Light Switches can be controlled at the device itself or from any other ZigBee Home Automation enabled switch. It is rated to control 1,000 watts and will be available in the standard Decora style design in a variety of colors.

• CentraLite -- HA Dimmer can be controlled at the device itself or from any other ZigBee Home Automation enabled controller. It features press and hold precision dimming and tap on and off power along with configurable soft rates. It is rated to control 800W and will be available in the standard Decora style design in a variety of colors.  

• CentraLite -- HA On/Off Switch can be bound to any ZigBee Home Automation compatible On/Off Device. It features a 110V input voltage and will be available in the standard Decora style design in a variety of colors.

• Control4 -- Home Controller HC-300 is the central building block for home automation, making it easy for anyone to add intelligent control to a home at a truly affordable price. One HC-300 replaces, on average, more than four traditional remotes and delivers easy navigation and operation.

• Control4 -- Wireless Dimmer offers affordable, elegant and convenient lighting along with intelligent customization features designed to fit individual life styles.

• Jetlun – Jetlun Gateway (model RD75606) is a controller that collects, stores and displays real-time energy consumption information and helps homeowners manage and control energy usage through a simple user interface.

• Jetlun – Jetlun Appliance Module (model 75613) is a three-prong electrical module with built-in advanced noise filtering technologies and surge protection that can be plugged into any standard wall outlet to monitor, store and control the energy consumption of electrical appliances and devices.

• MMB Research -- HA Coordinator provides control of thermostats, switches, sensors and other devices. It is a subset of RapidSE™ - a family of hardware and software allowing device vendors to rapidly integrate a fully-compliant ZigBee platform.

• NETGEAR -- ZEB102 ZigBee Bridge enables people to monitor and control their energy devices and in-home appliances over the Internet. The ZEB102 is designed around a flexible, yet affordable, MIPS 32-based high-performance system on a chip hardware platform supporting Linux, drivers and tool-chains to facilitate independent developers.

• Radio Thermostat Company of America -- CT80 Programmable Communicating Thermostat and In-Home Display is fully compatible with all popular residential central heating and cooling systems. It features a large dot-matrix display with touch-screen and multiple radio ports providing the most flexible solution for today’s complex energy management applications.

• SerComm -- NA401 Home Automation Gateway is a compact yet easy-to-use hardware platform supporting multiple communication interfaces. It is available as a ZigBee gateway development platform allowing application developers to develop solutions with pre-certified ZigBee gateway devices.

ZigBee: Control your world

ZigBee is the global wireless language connecting dramatically different devices to work together and enhance everyday life. The ZigBee Alliance is a non-profit association of more than 300 member companies driving development of ZigBee wireless technology. The Alliance promotes world-wide adoption of ZigBee as the leading wirelessly networked, sensing and control standard for use in consumer electronic, energy, home, commercial and industrial areas. For more information, visit: www.ZigBee.org.