Thread (network protocol)

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Thread is an IPv6-based, closed-documentation (paid membership required for access to specifications[1]) royalty-free[2] networking protocol for Internet of Things (IoT) "smart" home automation devices to communicate on a local wireless mesh network.[3]

In July 2014, the "Thread Group" alliance was announced, which today is a working group with the companies Nest Labs (a subsidiary of Alphabet/Google), Samsung, ARM Holdings, Qualcomm, NXP Semiconductors/Freescale, Silicon Labs, Big Ass Solutions, Somfy, OSRAM, Tyco International, and the lock company Yale in an attempt to have Thread become the industry standard by providing Thread certification for products.[4]

Thread uses 6LoWPAN, which in turn uses the IEEE 802.15.4 wireless protocol with mesh communication, as does ZigBee and other systems. Thread however is IP-addressable, with cloud access and AES encryption. It currently supports up to 250 devices in one local network mesh.[5]

An "AS IS" BSD licensed free and open-source implementation of Thread (called "OpenThread") has also been released by Nest.[6]

Competing IoT protocols

Other competing Internet of Things (IoT) protocols currently already in wide use globally include ZigBee, Z-Wave, and Bluetooth LE (also known as Bluetooth Smart).[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Thread Wireless Networking Protocol Now Available". threadgroup.org. Thread Group. Retrieved 25 October 2015.
  2. ^ "About". threadgroup.org. Thread Group. Retrieved 25 October 2015.
  3. ^ Simon Rockman, 15 Jul 2014. "Google Nest, ARM, Samsung pull out Thread to strangle ZigBee". The Register. Retrieved 18 July 2014.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ Noel Randewich (Jul 15, 2014). "Google's Nest launches network technology for connected home". Reuters. Retrieved 18 July 2014.
  5. ^ "Introducing Thread". SI Labs. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  6. ^ OpenThread
  7. ^ "Samsung, ARM, and Nest launch Thread, a low-power network for the smart home". PC World. Retrieved 18 July 2014.

External links

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