With the explosion of the connected home and connected buildings in recent years, several protocols have emerged and established themselves. Here, we will focus on 2 of them that have proven themselves and that still stand out from the others due to their specificities: EnOcean and Zigbee.
What characteristics? For what uses?
EnOcean, the ingenious protocol!
Dealing with battery changes can quickly become a nightmare on an installation that has several dozen sensors. This is where EnOcean comes in! EnOcean is a great home automation protocol that offers self-sufficient peripherals. Indeed, EnOcean peripherals have the particularity of generating their own energy reserves which then allow them to return status information to the home automation controller. This is done via fairly simple and ingenious principles such as kinetic or solar energy.
On the operating principle, the EnOcean protocol uses a frequency of 868Mhz and has a status feedback as for Zigbee . It is therefore a protocol that can also prove to be very interesting in a home automation installation.
Zigbee, the protocol that grows!
Operating in a mesh network, it has a significant range and a certain redundancy. It is also Open Source . Which perhaps explains why several brands have chosen this protocol rather than another. Philips Hue, Xiaomi … To name but a few, have chosen this protocol for their connected objects. In addition, this protocol is perfectly controllable from a home automation box!
And more precisely…
Energy
| EnOcean | Zigbee |
|---|---|
| Works without battery ! The energy needed to send the information when a button is pressed is generated by a piezoelectric effect or with solar energy. | Batteries are needed to operate the various devices. But in Green Power, no batteries! Its consumption is very low because the size of the data packets sent is small. |
Communication
| EnOcean | Zigbee |
|---|---|
| Most EnOcean devices are bidirectional ! They communicate with each other to transmit information, such as status feedback. If a device is manually turned off, the information will be sent back to your home automation controller. | Using a mesh network . Each device is connected to another without hierarchy! This therefore allows you to extend the range of your devices without the need to add repeaters. |
Scope
| EnOcean | Zigbee |
|---|---|
| The EnOcean protocol uses radio frequency 868 Mhz . So, little interference, but also a great range ! Up to 300 meters in open field (by associating several devices in repeater mode). However, the network is not meshed, repeaters will be needed to extend the range. | Several dozen meters of range in open field. But thanks to the mesh network , range can be extended beyond 100 meters ! No need for repeaters. |
Each person has their own particularities!
The profiles EnOcean allow you to know what types of devices they communicate with. Thus, with the right information, the data is better interpreted and this facilitates the integration of devices on home automation controllers. Unlike devices operating in WiFi, EnOcean equipment does not communicate permanently above our heads! But only when necessary (by pressing a button on a remote control for example, to trigger the sending of the frame). Many reputable and reliable brands (NodOn in particular) manufacture devices EnO cean . You will therefore have choice for all your projects. NodOn designs interoperable products that allow you not to remain stuck with an environment of a specific brand, but to be able to develop your installation as you wish.
THE Zigbee is a simple protocol. Fewer parameters therefore more simplicity in installation and configuration. Thanks to its mesh network, it is possible to integrate a very large number of devices. In the case of large professional premises, it is very advantageous. It evolves and is enriched thanks to the Zigbee Alliance , of which NodOn is a member, which notably helps to improve interoperability.
Leave a comment
This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.