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ZigBee Transceivers Include Wi-Fi Coexistence Schemes

March 28, 2013
The latest generation of ZigBee transceivers contains a sophisticated coexistence scheme that allows Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and ZigBee chips to work side by side in the same device.

GreenPeak’s latest generation of ZigBee transceivers, the GP501, contains a sophisticated coexistence scheme that allows Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and ZigBee chips to work side by side in the same device. The transceiver contains a coexistence interface to allow optimized and co-located ZigBee/Wi-Fi radios to work in the same device, avoiding RF interference when operating simultaneously. This coexistence interface enables arbitration over the shared radio frequency medium to prevent contention, signal degradation and data loss. The chip’s small size (32-pin 5x5 mm²) footprint allows integration into small product form-factors. Another feature of the ZigBee transceiver is the Deep Packet Inspection (DPI). Enabling advanced packet management, DPI allows the host processor to go into a deep-sleep mode to conserve power. Upon executing a DPI, and based on the outcome, the chip can decide if a packet has to be passed on to the higher layer application or can be ignored. Using ultra-low power to wake the processor from sleep mode, the DPI engine also blocks unauthorized packets without involving the host processor, ensuring the system does not waste energy analyzing non-compliant packets.

GREENPEAK TECHNOLOGIES

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