Delivering multiprotocol mesh networking solutions for IoT

Wirepas and Silicon Labs have collaborated to create a concurrent multiprotocol switching solution with one ERF32 Wireless Gecko radio, enabling many innovative use cases for connected lighting, smart energy and asset management applications.

Together, Wirepas and Silicon Labs are enabling their customers and partners to take advantage of the unique features of Wirepas Mesh software including network scalability, reliability and ease of implementation, along with the RF performance and multiprotocol connectivity of EFR32 SoCs. The combined solution leverages the Wirepas Mesh networking stack and Silicon Labs' Bluetooth software, Micrium OS and RAIL radio interface layer software to manage concurrent Bluetooth and Wirepas Mesh connectivity on a single EFR32 SoC.

Bluetooth is an ideal protocol for controlling lighting systems and indoor navigation through easy-to-use smartphone apps to enhance user satisfaction. Using smartphones, it also enables simple device provisioning without requiring custom hardware, thereby easing the installation and commissioning process. Wirepas Mesh software serves as the backbone for large-scale IoT networks while Bluetooth provides a ubiquitous, point-to-point user interface. The protocol combination also meets the growing demand in the retail, commercial and hospitality markets for connected lighting solutions.

“Together, Wirepas Mesh and Silicon Labs’ EFR32 platform work together to solve a pressing problem for industrial-grade IoT: how to wirelessly connect billions of devices with diverse and evolving network requirements,” said Teppo Hemiä, CEO of Wirepas. “The combination of a high-performance mesh network and Bluetooth technology provides a powerful approach to meeting the multiprotocol connectivity needs of our partners and customers.”

“The combined Wirepas and Silicon Labs multiprotocol solution frees application developers from the complexities of developing network stacks and scheduling multiple wireless protocols,” said Dennis Natale, Vice President and General Manager of IoT products at Silicon Labs. “Our mutual customers can now focus on creating unique value-added mesh networking applications in a wide range of IoT segments.”