Smart Home Automation Wireless Technology: Z-Wave
Z-Wave is wireless network standard dominated by Danish company Zensys, although Z-Wave Alliance isn't as popular as ZigBee Alliance, Z-Wave Alliance has many members from current smart home automation equipment manufacturers. There are approximate up to 160 international recognized companies in Z-Wave Alliance, it covers every countries and territories around the world. Especially, the recent join of Cisco and Intel, greatly reinforce the status of Z-Wave standard in home automation field. On market share perspective, Z-Wave has been widely used in EU and America market, including reputable manufacturers such as NWD, Wintop, Leviton, Control4...etc.
Know Z-Wave Technology
Why Z-wave dominates today's smart home automation field? To answer this question, we need to know the technology of Z-Wave.
Z-Wave is a kind of new RF, low cost, low power consumption, reliable, and suitable for short distance network wireless communication technology. Its working wireless frequency is 908.42MHz(USA)~868.42MHz(EU), adopts FSK(BFSK/GFSK) modulation, data transmit speed is 9.6 kbps, the signal range can cover approximate 30 meters for indoor, outdoor can exceed 100 meters, it's ideal for narrow bandwidth applications. With increasing of communication distance, complexity of equipment, power consumption and system's cost will increase, compared with traditional wireless communication technology, Z-wave technology is the ultra low power consumption and low cost technology, greatly accelerate the establishment of private wireless network.
Z-Wave technology mainly used in home automation, lights remote control and remote data acquisition applications such as lights control and appliance control, HVAC, Security & Protection. Z-Wave can turn any individual devices into smart network device, which in turn, to achieve remote control and monitor. When engineer firstly introduced the Z-Wave technology, it exclusively target to provide wireless communication for smart home automation system.
Utilizing low data format transmission, 40 kbps speed adequately meet the data transmission, formerly it adopted 9.6 kbps speed for data transmission. Compared with other wireless technologies, Z-Wave has low bitrate transmission, moderate transmission distance, and competitive cost advantages.
Network structure/architecture
Every Z-Wave network has its own unique network address (Home ID); every Node ID is assigned by Z-Wave controller (hub). Every network can support maximum 232 node ID (slave devices), including control slave. Control slave can be multiple, but only one main controller. All the Node ID is assigned and managed by main controller, other control slave only forward the commands from main controller.
Z-Ware Application
Z-Wave smart automation system for a house: consists of 3 Z-Wave light controllers, 3 wall plugs, 1 IR remote control, 1 touch center controller, handset scene controller. Among them, IR remote control and touch center are controllers, the light controllers and scene controllers, handset controller are slaves.
Since every devices adopt routing technology, when install the system, user just need to install the devices in the place within wireless range. After installation, through HRPZ IR control to enroll all devices into network, after touch center controller connected into Z-Wave network, sync the all other devices into touch center controller.
As long as all devices connected into Z-wave network, users can check IR remote control and touch center controller to know the ON/OFF status of all Z-Wave devices, meanwhile can easily control these devices. If the touch center controller connects to Internet, user can use smartphone, tablet, PC to control home appliances remotely.
Z-Wave Technology Prospect
Z-Wave, a simple structure, low cost, highly reliable wireless communication technology, based on Z-Wave architecture wireless network, can not only achieve remote control home appliances, but also access and control Z-Wave devices through Internet from anywhere. In CeBIT 2015 show, home automation manufacturers from globe displayed countless innovative Z-Wave enabled home automation products including Gesture controller, touch controller, Z-Wave smart plug, Z-Wave motion sensor, smoke sensor, flood sensor, Z-Wave thermostats... and more. Furthermore, Z-Wave Alliance was established in early 2005 by a group of leading home control product manufacturers. With fast expanding of Z-Wave Alliance, this technology will not be limited to smart home automation field, the light control system for hotel, industrial automation, agriculture automation, are the potential markets for Z-Wave.