Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group Achieve a Major Milestone for IoT Interoperability with Release of Dotdot over Thread Specification and Streamlined Certification Programs

Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group Achieve a Major Milestone for IoT Interoperability with Release of Dotdot over Thread Specification and Streamlined Certification Programs

Dotdot over Thread gives product developers low-power IP connectivity and the interoperability of a widely adopted IoT language, supported by a growing ecosystem of solutions providers

Davis and San Ramon, Calif. — January 4, 2019 — Together, the Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group have reached a critical milestone in IoT interoperability with the completion of the Dotdot 1.0 specification and announcement of the Dotdot over Thread certification program. For the first time, developers of smart products can confidently use a mature, open, and certifiable interoperability language over a low-power IP network. This will reduce product development risk and roadblocks, enable new IoT applications, and improve the consumer experience by reducing IoT fragmentation.

Bringing the Internet to the Internet of Things
Today’s smart devices can struggle to deliver a seamless experience when they speak different languages (or in technical terms, use different “application layers”). The Zigbee Alliance solved this by incorporating an open, common application layer that seamlessly connects products from many different vendors and powers popular smart home products like Comcast Xfinity Home Security and the Amazon Echo Plus and the new Echo Show. Dotdot takes that universal device language and enables it to work over Thread’s low-power IP network—extending this same proven approach to applications that benefit from IP. With Dotdot over Thread, smart home vendors can ensure the reliable user experiences needed to drive growth, while IP networking allows vendors to maintain a direct connection to their device and an ongoing relationship with their customers.

Ready for Development and Deployment
“When the Zigbee Alliance announced Dotdot, the industry responded,” said Tobin Richardson, president and CEO of the Zigbee Alliance. “Over the last two years, companies from across the IoT worked together within the Alliance on this effort to take the interoperability standard at the heart of Zigbee and enable it to run over any network. Built from this solid foundation, we are excited to announce that the Dotdot spec is now prepared for ratification and release to Alliance members.”

Furthermore, to accelerate time to market, the Zigbee Alliance has leveraged the existing Thread commissioning mobile application and extended it to include application level configuration of devices on a Thread network. This mobile application, along with an automated test harness, will assist member companies in expediting their Dotdot over Thread product development and facilitate their preparation for certification procedures.

Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group members that led development of the Dotdot specification are ready to help product vendors start building with Dotdot over Thread. These include DSR, MMB Networks, NXP Semiconductors, Silicon Labs, and Ubilogix.

Reducing Barriers with a Streamlined Certification Process
“Certification is critical to ensuring interoperability between wireless devices, but it can add time and complexity for product vendors,” said Grant Erickson, president of Thread Group. “Offering an efficient, affordable, and reliable certification process was a priority for both organizations and our members. As the Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group share a number of common authorized test labs, it made sense to streamline this go-to-market phase with a coordinated path to certification.”

Starting in Q1 2019, TÜV Rheinland will be the first test house authorized to perform both Dotdot and Thread certification tests, with more labs to come. These labs will be a one-stop shop for Dotdot over Thread adopters to complete certification testing. Successful products will then receive their accreditations from both the Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group.

Get Started Connecting the Dots
To access the Dotdot over Thread Specification and Certification programs and to engage with peers and leaders across the IoT industry, join the Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group. The Dotdot specification is available today to Zigbee Alliance members. The Thread 1.1 specification is available on the Thread Group website. To learn more about Dotdot over Thread, please register for a free webinar, co-hosted by the Thread Group and Zigbee Alliance, on January 30, 2019.

Meet with Us at CES!
Representatives from the Zigbee Alliance, Thread Group, and the member companies listed above will attend CES 2019 and are available to talk to media and product developers about Dotdot and Thread. Please reach out to the Zigbee Alliance and Thread Group contacts below or see the relevant vendors’ websites for more info on how to reach them.

For those attending the Parks CONNECTIONS Summit at CES, Sujata Neidig, Director of Product Marketing at NXP, VP Marketing of the Thread Group, and Board Member of the Zigbee Alliance, will be on the panel Focus on the Experience: Interoperability & Integration held January 8 at 3:15 p.m. at the Venetian Hotel.

About the Zigbee Alliance https://www.zigbee.org/zigbeealliance/join/
The Zigbee Alliance is the foundation and future of the IoT. Established in 2002, our wide-ranging global membership collaborates to create and evolve universal open standards for the products transforming the way we live, work, and play. With our members’ deep and diverse expertise, robust certification programs, and a full suite of open IoT solutions, we are leading the movement toward a more intuitive, imaginative, and useful world. The Zigbee Alliance is supported by Board Members from Comcast, Huawei, The Kroger Co., Landis+Gyr, LEEDARSON, Legrand Group, MMB Networks, NXP Semiconductors, Signify (formerly Philips Lighting), Schneider Electric, Silicon Labs, SmartThings, Somfy, Texas Instruments, and Wulian.

About the Thread Group https://www.threadgroup.org/
Formed in 2013, the non-profit Thread Group is focused on making Thread the foundation for the internet of things in homes and commercial buildings. Built on open standards, Thread is a low power wireless networking protocol that enables direct, end-to-end, secure and scalable connectivity between IoT devices, mobile devices, and the internet. And, because Thread is IP-based, it seamlessly integrates with many environments, apps, devices and clouds. Thread Group provides a rigorous certification program to ensure device interoperability and a positive user experience. Thread is backed by industry-leading companies including Apple, Arm, Google/Nest, Nordic Semiconductors, NXP Semiconductors, OSRAM, Qualcomm, Schneider Electric, Siemens, Silicon Labs, Somfy, and Yale Security.

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