Multiprotocol Products

Maintaining Flexibility with Multiprotocol Wireless Connectivity

Multiprotocol wireless connectivity enables designs to meet both the evolving market needs and region-specific requirements for wireless IoT products. Take advantage of our multiprotocol software and wireless SoCs to introduce Bluetooth® Low Energy, Zigbee, Thread, and even proprietary wireless connectivity and get to production faster. The multiprotocol solutions and our support for their updates, help you meet the evolving needs of the wireless IoT.

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Wireless Kits & Boards
Starter Kits
Modular kits for software development and feature evaluation of IoT devices
Development Kits
Full-featured application development kits
Evaluation Kits
Product and feature evaluation kits
Demo Kits
Use case and feature-specific demos
Reference Designs
Application-specfic designs showcasing complete system solutions
Radio Boards
Wireless starter kit plug-in boards featuring specific SoC or module wireless devices
Expansion Boards
Starter kit and ecosystem accessory boards
Thunderboard Kits
Low-cost software development and prototyping kits for IoT devices
Debug and Programming Tools
Debugging and programming tools and accessories

Multiprotocol Software Development

Silicon Labs software includes industry-leading software stacks and development tools for Zigbee, Thread, Bluetooth and Proprietary applications. In conjunction with modules, SoCs and reference designs for wireless solutions from Silicon Labs, developers can use software and tools from Silicon Labs to quickly and reliably:

  • Develop multi-node mesh networks
  • Monitor and debug multiple nodes simultaneously
  • Visually analyze system performance

  Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) Software Development Kit (SDK) helps designers develop Bluetooth LE, and Bluetooth 5 solutions for the IoT.
  Bluetooth Mesh Software Development Kit (SDK) helps designers develop Bluetooth mesh solutions for the IoT.
  Silicon Labs’ Connect is an IEEE 802.15.4 based wireless networking stack for broad-based proprietary applications and is optimized for devices that require low power consumption. This full-featured, easily customizable networking stack is designed for compliance with regulatory specifications across worldwide geographic regions and supports both sub-GHz and 2.4 GHz frequency bands.
  Silicon Labs’ RAIL (Radio Abstraction Interface Layer) lets you adopt the latest RF technology without sacrificing the investment you’ve made in your wireless protocol. Designed to support proprietary or standards-based protocols, RAIL simplifies and future-proofs the migration of code to new ICs.
  Silicon Labs is a founding board member of the Thread Group with numerous successful customer deployments of mesh networking solutions based on 802.15.4 and Zigbee. Registered customers of the kits can access the Thread SDK and development tools through Simplicity Studio
  Silicon Labs EmberZNet PRO Zigbee networking protocol stack is a complete Zigbee protocol software package containing all the elements required for robust and reliable mesh networking applications on Silicon Labs' Ember platforms. The Zigbee stack provides "professional grade" networking for the most challenging applications such as Smart Energy / Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI), Home Automation, Home Security, Smart Lighting and Building Automation systems.



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Applications for Multiprotocol Connectivity

The usefulness of connected devices in consumer, commercial, and industrial environments can be enhanced or improved through multiprotocol connectivity. In-home automation, for example, Zigbee provides whole-home wireless coverage with its mesh capabilities and makes it possible to control devices from outside the home via a gateway. When Bluetooth LE is introduced, a smartphone can be used for direct local control and location awareness can be added.

Sub-GHz wireless technologies are ideal for smart metering applications since they propagate over wide areas. By adding simultaneous sub-GHz and Bluetooth communication to metering IoT devices, technicians can utilize mobile apps for local setup, information gathering, and maintenance.

In retail or commercial settings, there is a desire to make use of technologies such as Bluetooth beacons to provide location-based advertisements, track assets, and develop heat maps to track foot traffic. By integrating Bluetooth beacons into connected infrastructure such as lighting, large-scale coverage areas can be created. Instead of having to deploy both connected lights and beacons, a light or luminaire can serve as the means to deploy Bluetooth beacons. This provides a more cost-effective avenue to enable location-based services.

Smart home poster

Smart Home

Led bulb poster

Smart Lighting

White house mesh overlay banner

Mesh Network Performance

Metering poster

Smart Metering

Applications smart retail poster

Retail

Banner wi fi device on kitchen counter

Wi-Fi Coexistence

What is Multiprotocol Technology?

Many connected devices can improve consumer experience and enhance functionality by supporting multiple wireless connectivity options. We are used to our smartphones supporting Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and other connectivity options to provide streaming media as well as connectivity to headphones and smart watches. The power, size, and cost requirements for many IoT systems has traditionally made supporting multiple protocols challenging. Dynamic multiprotocol wireless connectivity provides a viable means to simultaneously support multiple wireless protocols on a single chip by using a time-slicing mechanism to share a radio between protocols, reducing wireless system cost and simplifying system design.


What are the benefits of supporting multiple protocols?

  • Reduce wireless subsystem BOM and size by up to 40%

  • Provide direct phone-based configuration and control of connected devices

  • Simplify wireless-subsystem design through reduction of RF components

  • Include diagnostic capabilities to check device health with a smartphone

  • Leverage multiprotocol IC for mobile engagement applications

  • Add a mechanism for high-speed OTA firmware updates


Here's a brief look at the different types of multiprotocol connectivity and their benefits.


Programmable Multiprotocol

Programmable multiprotocol support entails having a chipset that, when programmed with the right software stack, can run any number of wireless protocols. Being able to program a chip in production to support BLE, Zigbee, Thread or a proprietary protocol means you can streamline your hardware design and quickly address different markets. A chip platform that supports multiple protocols via different software images is a fundamental prerequisite for all other multiprotocol use cases.



Switched Multiprotocol

Switched Multiprotocol involves having two separate possible modes running on one chip. Each mode from a protocol and stack point of view is separate from each other. To swap protocols, you have two options: 1) Bootload the firmware image you want that contains the other protocol stack, do the communicating, and then bootload back to the other image, or 2) Have one image that has two modes to completely enable or disable each protocol.One example of this is a connected home device (like a door or window sensor) that only needs Bluetooth to be commissioned to join the network, and then will communicate via Zigbee for a vast majority of its life. To do this, you will ship the part with Bluetooth software programmed or enabled, interact with the user/installer via a phone, and then disable Bluetooth, enable Zigbee and join the Zigbee network. Then, typically the only way to go back to Bluetooth is via a user interrupt, like a button, or to reach out to the node via Zigbee to tell it to swap back to Bluetooth because the device cannot simultaneously remain on the mesh network and hold on to its Bluetooth connection. The time between swapping is very long – in the hundreds of milliseconds for Bluetooth and even longer for Bluetooth mesh.

Switched multiprotocol enables your connected device to change which wireless protocol is being used by bootloading a new firmware image when the device is already deployed in the field. Consumer experience of settting up or commissioning your product can be greatly improved by making use of smartphone connectivity to swtich between BLE securely onto Zigbee, Thread and other wireless networks. With the addition of over-the-air (OTA) updates, devices can also be updated in the field to evolve to changing market needs.

Switched multiprotocol


Dynamic Multiprotocol

Dynamic Multiprotocol is more fluid and flexible in its ability to swap and can more quickly hop between the two protocols. With dynamic multiprotocol, you do not shutdown or de-initialize the entire protocol stack; instead, you simply keep both running but swap who is using the physical radio, drastically reducing the time to switch. You are sharing the lowest level dependencies between the two protocols, which is typically the radio (this is represented as the bottom brick in the wall in the image below). By being able to swap faster, it allows Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connections to remain active, and at the same time remain on the Zigbee/Thread network, by ensuring you remain in the timing windows for each of the protocols as not to drop connection or be removed from the network. This allows the node to respond to either a command via Zigbee/Thread or Bluetooth, which means a user on the phone can control the node and the main network.A good example of a dynamic multiprotocol application is a door lock where you want the user to be able to lock/unlock to door via Bluetooth on their phone, as well as use sensors, time schedule, or cloud command via Zigbee.

Ultimately, any multiprotocol solution must address the possibility of simultaneously running multiple wireless protocols together on one chip, using a time-slicing mechanism to share the radio. This approach opens up even more use cases, especially when combining BLE with other wireless protocols. The simplest of these use cases involves the periodic use of Bluetooth beacons in retail environments from a device that normally operates on Zigbee, Thread or a sub-GHz wireless protocol.

Dynamic multiprotocol diagram
  Switched Multiprotocol Dynamic Multiprotocol
Pros
  • Typically, the cheaper overall system cost option, as your main IC can be the leanest of all the options.
  • The simplest option, as you do not have to worry about complicated software timing management
  • Requires less development
  • Enables ease-of-use because of its seamless connection
  • Maintains BLE connections while simultaneously remaining on the mesh network
Cons
  • The least flexible option is because you have to completely disable a protocol to enable the other. For example, with Bluetooth, you will lose all connections and have to reestablish them, and with Zigbee, you will be kicked off of the network.
  • Takes longer to switch between the two protocols because you have to shut down and restart each protocol every time you switch.
  • Requires expertise in software and networking and can be difficult to develop and test.
  • Requires a tight timeline to ensure you meet the requirements for keeping BLE alive


Concurrent Multiprotocol

Concurrent Multiprotocol (CMP) technology is a game-changer in the realm of wireless communication, enabling a single chip to operate multiple communication protocols simultaneously. More specifically, this capability is targeted for devices that need to operate in multiple networks and based on the same 802.15.4 standard such as Zigbee and Thread. CMP when combined with concurrent listening ensures that devices can maintain connections with different networks on separate operating channels without the need for multiple radios or switching between protocols. For instance, a single device can communicate with Zigbee and Thread end nodes on different 802.15.4 channels while also switching to Bluetooth (in DMP mode) for user interface interactions.

With an ability to provide seamless communication across different protocols, enhanced user experience and simplified device management, CMP plays a significant role in the development of gateway devices, which serve as central hubs for connecting various IoT devices within a network. These gateways can then manage multiple communication protocols simultaneously, ensuring seamless data exchange and interoperability between different devices and networks. This flexibility is achieved through advanced software and hardware integration, allowing for concurrent and dynamic multi-protocol operations. The MG21 and MG24 series chips support these features.

Besides gateways, this capability is also important in smart home and commercial building automation applications, where a diverse range of devices and protocols need to coexist and communicate effectively. The MG26 series chips which is pin compatible with MG24 also supports Zigbee and Matter over Thread CMP for end devices.

Concurrent multiprotocol figure


Multiradio Multiprotocol

Dedicated operation of multiple protocols without any trade-offs, especially where different radio frequencies are used by different protocols, requires two radios. There is a lot of value in an application and networking stack that can operate across two radios that perhaps even utilize two completely different frequency ranges. One example is smart metering in Great Britain, where the government will deploy dual PHY Zigbee communications hubs in 30 million households and businesses by 2020. This effort is to enable a Home Area Network that contains both 2.4 GHz Zigbee devices and sub-GHz Zigbee devices (operating in the 868 MHz band), maintained on the same logical PAN with the communications hub routing traffic between devices on different radio frequencies.

  Single Radio Multiradio
# Antennas 1 2
Operation Time-sliced Dedicated
Performance Bandwidth shared across multiple protocols; potential increased latency and missed packets No compromises
Cost Lower Higher
Size Smaller Larger

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