2.1 ZigBee Network Characteristics
Several standards currently exist for wireless networks, including Bluetooth, WiFi, and WiMax. ZigBee is a new standard for wireless sensor and control networks. It has the following characteristics:
- Low battery consumption. A ZigBee end device should operate for months or even years without needing its battery replaced.
- Low cost.
- Low data rate. The maximum data rate for a ZigBee device is 250Kbps.
- Easy to implement.
- Supports up to 65,000 nodes connected in a network.
- ZigBee can automatically establish its network.
- ZigBee uses small packets compared with WiFi and Bluetooth.
Table 2.1 shows a comparison of ZigBee characteristics with those of WiFi and Bluetooth.
Table 2.1. ZigBee, Bluetooth, and WiFi Characteristics
WiFi IEEE 802.11 |
Bluetooth IEEE 802.15.1 |
ZigBee IEEE 802.15.4 |
|
Application |
Wireless LAN |
Cable replacement |
Control and monitor |
Frequency bands |
2.4GHz |
2.4GHz |
2.4GHz, 868MHz, 915MHz |
Battery life (days) |
0.1–5 |
1–7 |
100–7,000 |
Nodes per network |
30 |
7 |
65,000 |
Bandwidth |
2–100Mbps |
1Mbps |
20–250Kbps |
Range (meters) |
1–100 |
1–10 |
1–75 and more |
Topology |
Tree |
Tree |
Star, tree, cluster tree, and mesh |
Standby current |
20 * 10–3 amps |
200 * 10–6 amps |
3 * 10–6 amps |
Memory |
100KB |
100KB |
32–60KB |
Table 2.1 shows that Bluetooth, while similar in functionality to ZigBee, does not offer the range of topologies, and its standby current is nearly 70 times more than ZigBee. Of the three wireless networks under comparison, ZigBee is the only one that offers mesh topology. In addition, a ZigBee end device can be in sleep mode and still keep its association with its network. ZigBee is considered a more sophisticated network when compared to either Bluetooth or WiFi.