The EnOcean Alliance, an international consortium of 120 companies from the building sector, announces the publication of its first global, open specification for energy-harvesting wireless sensors. Productized in the form of EnOcean Equipment Profiles (EEP), Alliance standardization guidelines ensure interoperability among devices of various manufacturers. Jointly produced by EnOcean Alliance members, the public specification is accessible to everyone and presently contains 50 equipment profiles supporting the development of a variety of solutions for building automation. Currently available EEPs include switches, remote controls, sensors, sensor combinations, and data.
Jointly Devised Specification
The specification was devised by the EnOcean Alliance technical working group (TWG), which undertook the task of standardizing EnOcean technology on an international scale to ensure full interoperability over a spectrum of sensor-based building-automation solutions. EnOcean Alliance member companies currently offer 350 different products based on EnOcean technology, all of which provide true interoperability by virtue of their rigid adherence to firmly defined equipment profiles established in the EnOcean Alliance specification.
Non-proprietary Communication
As a prerequisite for enabling equipment from different manufacturers to communicate and work together in building-automation systems, interoperability demands adherence to clearly defined rules and standards. For example, all components must use the same data formats or protocols as set forth in the profile definitions. In a system with interoperable components that work according to a profile definition, it is possible to combine a receiver from manufacturer A with a sensor from manufacturer B and a sensor from manufacturer C performing the same function. In this way, non-proprietary smart solutions for energy-efficient building automation are implemented on an enterprise-wide basis.
First Open Specification for Energy-Harvesting Wireless Sensors
The published specification contains 50 EEPs describing different switching functions, remote controls, sensors, and combinations of sensors for temperature, brightness, motion, and humidity. Additional profiles also are defined for switching actuators, dimmers, and other devices, with new EEPs under development, including Demand Response, Smart Grid, and SMART ACK.
EnOcean Equipment Profiles define the functionality of EnOcean-enabled equipment independently of manufacturer. To ensure interoperability among all EnOcean-based products, every manufacturer must provide a binding declaration prior to product introduction demonstrating that their solution meets the EnOcean Alliance specification though compliance with one or more EEP.
The new document is the first official specification to compile and publish the EEPs, paving the way for global proliferation of EnOcean technology driving the development and manufacture of new types of equipment. For users, the directive means they have an even greater selection and more implementation possibilities as a result of a growing number of products and suppliers.