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1. Introduction

This manual provides an introduction to the various components of a ZigBee network. After a quick overview of ZigBee, we start with a description of high-level concepts used in wireless communication and move on to the specific protocols needed to implement the communication standards. This is followed by a description of using a Rabbit-based board and Dynamic C libraries to form a ZigBee network.

ZigBee, a specification for communication in a wireless personal area network (WPAN), has been called the "Internet of things." Theoretically, your ZigBee-enabled coffee maker can communicate with your ZigBee-enabled toaster. The benefits of this technology go far beyond the novelty of kitchen appliances coordinating your breakfast. ZigBee applications include:

• Home and office automation
• Industrial automation
• Medical monitoring
• Low-power sensors
• HVAC control
• Plus many other control and monitoring uses

ZigBee targets the application domain of low power, low duty cycle and low data rate requirement devices. Figure 1.1 shows a block diagram of a ZigBee network with five nodes.

Figure 1.1 ZigBee Network

Before going further, note that there is a list of glossary terms in Appendix A.