What is UBILINK?
UBILINK is a communication protocol for the Internet of Things (IoT) that is independent of radio transport and open for public use. It is designed to achieve forward compatibility through decentralized control adaptability driven by device features. UBILINK prioritizes data security and integrity making it essential for future proof and sophisticated smart home and home security applications.
Why UBILINK?
In contrast to conventional approach, UBILINK defined a streamlined framework for “self described device control profile provisioning”, control capability is acquired by controller from corresponding device at initial pairing process, as such we don’t need to have the controller knows “every device” when it’s manufactured, in this way the controller will never get outdated in its entire service life span, and always adapt to newer and diversified devices available over the time.
Currently, UBILINK operates on two commonly used radio transports:
1. UBILINK over LoRa (UoL) - this protocol runs on LoRa radio and enjoys the benefit for outstanding datalink budget, strong interference immunity, and low power consumption from the LoRa technology. There are 2 obvious advantages for UoL over UoW: Outstanding communication range, and Wi-Fi fail safe, in case your wi-fi router or access point malfunctioned due to power outage or hardware failure, Custos Kit will keep safe guarding your home on it’s power backup for up to 24 hours.
2. UBILINK over Wi-Fi (UoW) - this protocol utilizes Wi-Fi transport, taking advantage of high popularity and abundant of hardware options. Please note that UoW is relying on your Wi-fi router or access point to convey communications between sensors and gateway, UoW will not function in the event that your Wi-Fi router or access point failed, say, during power outage.
UBILINK over Lora is implemented partially base on LoraWAN specification and source code from different open sources, UBILINK maintains top notch data encryption and authentication standards, literally all existing “LoraWAN hardware” can be UBILINK over Lora protocol enabled.
UBILINK protocol is developed and provided for royalty free use by UBITECH LIMITED
What is Z-Wave?
The Z-Wave protocol was developed by Zensys, a Danish company based in Copenhagen, in 1999 primarily for residential and commercial building automation. It is a mesh network using low-energy radio waves to communicate from device to device, allowing for wireless control of smart home devices, such as smart lights, security systems, thermostats, sensors, smart door locks, and garage door openers. Since 2018 the Z-Wave brand and technology are owned by Silicon Labs.
Its 100 series chip set was released in 2003, and its 200 series was released in May 2005, with the ZW0201 chip offering high performance at a low cost. Its 500 series chip, also known as Z-Wave Plus, was released in March 2013, with four times the memory, improved wireless range, improved battery life, an enhanced S2 security framework, and the SmartStart setup feature. Its 700 series chip was released in 2019, with the ability to communicate up to 100 meters directly from point-to-point, or 800 meters across an entire Z-Wave network, an extended battery life of up to 10 years, and comes with S2 and SmartStart technology.
What is Z-Wave Plus V2?
Z-Wave Plus V2, also known as 700 Series or Gen7, builds on the work that began with Z-Wave Plus and the incremental improvements of S2 and SmartStart. From the firmware to the chips themselves, Gen7 brings massive increases in wireless range, vastly superior security, faster operation and all while decreasing power consumption yet again. The 700 series edition of Z-Wave Plus chips and modules offer major advantages over older versions of Z-Wave in a lot of different categories. End users will notice them the most in wireless speed and improved battery life. Developers will notice them the most in the improved wireless range and the improved memory.
What is Z-Wave SmartStart?
SmartStart aims to simplify the process of Including Z-Wave devices and builds upon the functionality that was introduced by S2.
What is Z-Wave S2?
S2 is an extension to the security framework of Z-Wave Plus devices. It enables manufacturers to offer advance security without any compromises in terms of power consumption or latency.
It depends on application.
The current WiFi standards are highly suitable for high bandwidth tasks, like streaming videos, making calls, listening to music, and playing games, on a limited number of client devices, such as smartphones, PCs, laptops, and tablets. However, WiFi is not ideal for situations where numerous devices need to communicate ad hoc, requiring low power and excellent signal penetration for longer communication ranges, even in unfavorable conditions. Since WiFi operates on a frequency spectrum that is relatively susceptible to obstruction and absorption by obstacles, it is not suitable for IoT applications. Additionally, supporting high data throughput demands significant power consumption, which is unnecessary for IoT applications.
On the other hand, with advance spread sprectrum and chirp modulation technology which resulted excellent link budget and immunity for interference, LoRa is designed specifically for, and making it ideal for Smart Home applications. However, WiFi development continues at a fast pace, and the newest WiFi 6 standard devices are now available, providing faster speeds, better reliability, and increased client density. This implies that WiFi Smart Home devices could begin to compete with technologies such as LoRa and Z-Wave, but upgrading your WiFi infrastructure is necessary to achieve these enhancements.